Self Care Awakening

The Self Care Revolution

 We are facing a health crisis due to the increasing burden of chronic disease. Currently, chronic diseases are responsible for 70% of deaths. Over 60% of us live with at least one chronic illness and 42% have 2 or more. People who suffer from chronic diseases such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes, cancer, obesity, and arthritis experience limitations in function, health, activity, and work, affecting the quality of their lives as well as the lives of their families.

 According to the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), treating people with chronic diseases accounts form 86% of our health care costs. Nearly 70% of our population are on some type of prescription medication, with an average of nearly 17 per person.

 From reading the preceding paragraph you might surmise that I am talking only about the United States, but these same figures (or very close) apply globally.

Chronic Disease a Global Health Crisis

Although the United States currently leads the world in almost every disease and chronic condition, this is not just a problem here in the U.S., it is global. Fifty percent of adults worldwide have at least one chronic disease while one in three suffer from multiple chronic conditions. Disease rates from these conditions are accelerating globally and advancing across every region and pervading all socioeconomic classes. Chronic disease is responsible for 70% of deaths globally and pharmaceutical consumption continues to increase globally driven by a growing demand for drugs to treat chronic diseases, according to the World Health Organization. Chronic diseases, such as heart disease, stroke, cancer, chronic respiratory diseases and diabetes, are by far the leading cause of mortality in Europe, representing 77% of the total disease burden and 86% of all deaths.

Chronic diseases are interrelated, have common risk factors and are largely preventable. Yet, in Europe, 9 people out of 10 die of a chronic disease. Ninety-seven percent of health expenses are currently spent on treatment, with only 3% is invested in prevention.

If there was ever a time for a Self Care Awakening it is NOW

Some 20 years ago, I came to an awakening regarding my own health and well-being. This journey has led to the information we discuss in the Self Care Awakening. It is about a few very simple concepts. It is about Being Healthy by Choice and not by Chance. The reality is, if we leave our health to chance, chances are that we are not going to be healthy. The major impetus for the Self Care Awakening is to bring this and other aspects of good health to light.  To do so we first need to become aware of the problem or what are the reasons that so many of us are plagued with so many different chronic issues. This is a relatively new problem and maybe it is one that we have created ourselves.

In the early 1900’s the major cause of death was communicable diseases (infectious diseases). The top three were pneumonia and flu, tuberculosis, and gastrointestinal infections.  In 2012 the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine published a retrospective look at causes of death from 1900 to 2010. Deaths from infectious diseases have decreased dramatically, while the proportion of people dying from cancer has more than tripled. If we look at current trends, cancer rates are going up, heart disease and stroke are increasing, Type2 diabetes is nearly epidemic and a host of other chronic issues that contribute to our mortality. 

The first question to ask is why? What has changed in the last 100 years? Have we changed much biologically, or have we altered everything else around us? I think the latter is the more logical answer. The world we live in today is much different than that of the 1900’s.

In a span of a little over a 100 years chronic disease has become the number one killer worldwide accounting for 70% of all deaths. Chronic diseases and conditions—such as heart disease, stroke, cancer, type 2 diabetes, obesity, and arthritis—are among the most common, costly, and the most preventable of all health problems.

Americans currently fill 5.8 billion prescriptions per year. In 1993 the average prescription per American was seven, currently it is over 17 per person in the U.S Per capita pharmaceutical use is highest in the U.S., followed by Canada, Germany, and France according to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development.

The National Health Service recently reported that the UK has experienced a 47% increase in drugs dispensed over the last decade with over one billion prescriptions being filled every year. Medication has reached a shocking level of 15 per individual with half of Britons taking prescription medications.

Let’s face it, we are taught our entire lives to be consumers of modern medicine, especially pharmaceutical medicine. When we were young and had a headache, our moms gave us baby aspirin. They didn’t ask when we last drank some water. This behavior continued as we grew. If we think that there’s a pill for everything that ails us (and many do), we have missed the whole point of prevention and self care.  We are taught to treat rather than prevent, to react rather than be proactive about our health.

The Self Care Awakening series was designed to bring back common sense and some sanity to what I consider to be an insane notion that chronic disease is a normal part of life. It's not, but if we look at it statistically most our population have chronic health issues.

We think being healthy is difficult when it's pretty simple if we make some of the right choices. Our health, good or bad, is about our personal choices.  Knowing this I think it’s safe to say that we would all prefer to be healthy. Our tag line Be Healthy by Choice, not by Chance is a simple but very empowering statement.

Within the Self Care Awakening we look at four vital areas that lead to a healthier life and are the factors either individually or in conjunction are the causation for chronic conditions.  

1.     Water Matters discusses the importance of hydration and what happens if we don’t drink enough water. This Impetus also talks about different choices for healthy water that we consume and bathe in.

2.     Sleep Matters addresses the fact that many of us walk around every day sleep deficient. Sleep is considered by many of us to be an unproductive endeavor, when it is our most productive physiological activity.

3.     Weight Matters concerns itself with excess sugar consumption and what we can do to limit our intake by simple easy choices and achieve and maintain a healthy weight.

4.     Environmental toxicity and our body burden “the pollution in people” and what we can do personally to limit our toxic exposures and reduce our body burden of toxic chemicals.

Although these four concepts are simple and easy to understand they are vital for our health, unfortunately most of us don’t pay much attention to them. It is vital that we stay hydrated, get 8 hours of sleep, reduce our sugar intake to a healthy level and take steps to decrease our body burden of toxic chemicals.

Regrettably most everyone reading this article has experienced chronic disease in their lives, either personally, a family member or people they care about. It is our purpose and our passion to change this and empower everyone to Be Heathy by Choice and not leave their Health to Chance.

Healthy Bedtime Routine

“Sleep is a non-negotiable biological necessity.”

— Matthew Walker, PhD

You’re Making Me Sleepy

As we wrap up “better sleep month” we hope we have impressed upon you the importance of a healthy night’s sleep. We also hope we have provided for you some natural ways to improve your sleep. The director of the Center for Human Sleep Science, Matthew Walker, PhD has two main tips for improving sleep, the first is regularity and the second is to keep it cool.  We highly recommend you watch/listen to Matt Walker’s TED talk “Sleep is your superpower.” Scheduling your sleep and maintaining that schedule even on the weekends may be the number one key to getting a good night’s sleep but how do you tell your body it is now time to shut the brain off and go to sleep? For this, you really need a healthy bedtime routine.

Author of the “The Power Source,” Lauren Roxburgh states that “ Finding ways to unwind, become present, and transition from the yang (doing) of the day to the yin (being) part of our day is important for getting a full night of sleep to truly feel healthy and happy.”

A good way to start your routine is to schedule a time when you turn off the electronic devices. It is now common knowledge that blue light inhibits your body’s production of melatonin, the hormone in your body that plays a role in sleep.  Schedule a time at least an hour before your scheduled bedtime to turn off all of your device or put them on sleep mode. I also recommend ending your workday by scheduling the next day or making tomorrow’s to-do list. This helps to declutter the mind and give it a cue that you are done for the day.

Find ways to clear your mind and release tension, especially, before you try to sleep. I like to take a nice warm shower/bath then lay on the bed, cooling off and running a “systems check.” I check in with my body starting at my toes and work my way up to my mind. If there is any tension in any area, I take a moment to concentrate on releasing that tension. I am cooling down because not only do you need to drop your room temperature to a cool temp (68 degrees F works for me) Matthew Walker also advises that our body temp needs to cool a couple degrees for optimal sleep.

Some other ways that you can begin to transition into sleep mode is to not drink stimulants late in the day, avoid a late heavy dinner and try not to eat after 7:30 pm. I like to unwind with a chamomile or lavender tea while listening to an audiobook. Aromatherapy: also helps to signal the brain that it is time chill.

Your bedroom can play a very significant role in healthy sleep. Make sure your bedroom is decluttered and a place of sanctuary in your house. Your bedding should also cocoon you in natural fibers that help to release heat and maintain a comfortable temperature. A pillow and pillowcase that incorporates ceramic reflective technology to help keep your head a couple of degrees cooler than the rest of your body is essential for a good night’s sleep. Our favorite mattress topper is the Kenko Naturest Mattress Topper. The Naturest combines advanced scientific technology and natural materials, in a design that does the work for you in promoting healthy and refreshing sleep. Naturest features advanced sleep innovations — including a radical new design in magnetic technology and traditional materials that are not only environmentally responsible but help you sleep soundly and wake feeling relaxed and energized.

So, what if it is bedtime and you are not even close to sleepy? Don’t try to force yourself to sleep. As Dr. Walker says, “you don’t sit at the dinner table until you are hungry.” Instead try winding down again or a slow quiet walk in the cool air. Write down what may be keeping your mind from shutting down or read a book. Don’t force yourself to sleep. Reminds me of bedtime when I was 5, that was the worst… but I did sleep. Schedule yourself a bedtime and schedule downtime before your bedtime. Pleasant dreams and be Healthy by Choice.



Self Care for the Entrepreneur

“The main advantage of working at home is that you get to find out what cats really do all day. ”

— Lynne Truss

You Are The Boss

When you work from home separating your work from personal life can be very difficult. This makes self care and an active wellness lifestyle crucial to your success as a work from home entrepreneur.

 Here are some simple tips for working from home:

1.     Make your health a priority.

Working from home often means scheduling around the needs of your clients. While your schedule most likely needs to remain fluid. Schedule time for exercise or short walks throughout the day. Exercise has been proven to boost motivation and increase productivity.

2.     Set a sleep schedule.

When you work from home it can be very tempting to sleep in or work very late and not get a good night’s sleep. Often, we perceive sleep as an unproductive part of our day but from a physiological standpoint, it is our most important part of our day. Get eight to eight and a half hours of sleep each night. Sleep Matters!

3.     Get up and get a glass of water.

This is a twofer. You stand up, move, get your circulation going and you are hydrating. Make a point of drinking water. We have friends that actually set an alarm on their phone to remind them to drink a glass of water every hour. Water Matters!

4.     Create a meaningful and rewarding morning routine.

Take time have a good breakfast or a healthy protein shake. Our favorite is a healthy Kenzen Vital Balance pea protein shake. Heather likes to have her shake outside on the patio while soaking up the sun for 20 min and receiving a healthy dose of vitamin D. This is also a great time meditate, pray or make your daily to-do list and get ready for the rest of your day.

5.     Eat Healthy.

We have already mentioned the Kenzen Vital Balance shake as a great way to start your day but it is also perfect for lunch break, especially, if you schedule is tight. Don’t forget to drink your veggies. Yes, you read that right. Kenzen Jade Greenzymes made from organic barley grass is a perfect way to get a serving of veggies into you diet. Jade Greenzymes powder is also a healthy vegan alternative. Don’t forget the fruit. Have you fruit in a delicious glass of organic mixed superfruit juice concentrate Kenzen Super Ciaga.

6.     Read to lead.

Take time every day to improve your mind. This is rewarding not only in learning something new, but it also helps keep your mind sharp and improve memory.

7.     Get out of the house.

While sometimes it is tempting to stay safe in our Wellness Home. Getting out to socialize or network to create new relationships are at the heart of growing your business.  Creating new meaningful connections are also at the heart of self care. Growing your community or tribe keeps you connected, stimulated and motivated to share. Sharing is what we do. Heather and I enjoy meeting new people by engaging and attending events that interest us both. This has the added advantage of connecting with people with similar interests and passions. Depending on your personality, pick activities that you enjoy. We often head to a coffee shop to work; it affords a different environment and opens the opportunity to connect with new people or people we have met there before. Working from home provides us the opportunity to take a break and go for a walk, swim or any activity that helps boost our creative juices, reset and refocus. We love that flexibility.

8.     Stay Connected.

We routinely schedule on-line conferencing with individuals or teams throughout the week. In lieu of in person meetings, this is our favorite way to connect with our team members and potential clients. It doesn’t supplant the face to face live meeting but being able to see the person you are talking with in the video chat room is invaluable for a better conversation and productive meeting. Being able to share tools, concepts and ideas by sharing your screen is a real time saver and learning tool, especially for the 65 to 70% of us that are visual learners.

9.     Support Matters.

Whether you are self-motivated or need some help in getting you where you want to go, plug into your support group. Connect with your upline support group and get to know each of them. You will most likely resonate with a leader or leaders that can be of tremendous help and guidance in building your business and keeping you on track.

Remember, you are your greatest asset. Be Healthy by Choice, not by Chance.

Wellness Home on the Go.

“The greatest gift you can can give your family and the world is a healthy you. ”

Hodophiles and the Wellness Home

“Every Home a Wellness Home” is our vision and one of the coolest things about the Wellness Home is that it can travel with you. Heather and I love to travel, we are true hodophiles. Our trips usually include work and vacation time which is a great aspect of being self-employed and having a business that can be done just about anywhere.

Heather and I are embarking on a weeklong trip to Southern California and whenever we travel, we like to take our Nikken Active Wellness products with us. It is reassuring that we will get a good night’s sleep, healthy water for hydration, nutritional support and enjoy the day to day products that we depend on for recovery and relaxation.

Included in our travel Wellness Home products are the PiMag sports bottle for healthy hydrating water.

For a good night’s rest, we rely on the Nikken Cocoon, our Kenko Naturest® Custom Pillows,  Pillowcases and our Kenko PowerSleep Masks.

Recently we have included our KenkoGround earthing mats to our traveling Wellness Home.  I experience a better night sleep while using it with my Nikken sleep products and it has been wonderful for helping Heather release tension. Here is a link to  short video about the KenkoGround.

The Nikken KenkoGround serves as an indoor and portable way to reconnect with Mother Nature. Simply plug it into a grounded outlet and use it under your feet while working, on your mattress while you sleep or even draped around your shoulders. Direct contact with the skin is best. This can be a great product to take with you on the go, especially if you are traveling to areas where weather may prohibit grounding or to big metropolitan areas where grounding can be problematic.

Our Kenzen Vital Balance, Jade Greenzymes and Super Ciaga are vital for our daily nutritional needs and supply our daily requirements for protein, veggies and fruits. This is very important when traveling and dining out more than usual. 

We also include many other Nikken products that we rely on and use daily. The Kenko MagDuo®, Kenko PowerBands®, Kenko jewelry,  Kenko mStrides® insoles and of course our Kenko MagFlex®. We also include a tube of our wonderful CM Complex Cream.

This may sound like a lot of stuff to travel with, but Heather is a master at packing the suitcase.  We travel in style and assured that our Wellness Home on the go supports us to Be Healthy by Choice anywhere we travel.

The Self Care Revolution

If there was ever a time for a Self Care Awakening it is NOW.

Our nation faces a health crisis due to the increasing burden of chronic disease. Currently, 7 of the 10 leading causes of death are chronic diseases, and almost 50% of us live with at least one chronic illness. People who suffer from chronic diseases such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes, cancer, obesity, and arthritis experience limitations in function, health, activity, and work, affecting the quality of their lives as well as the lives of their families.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), treating people with chronic diseases accounts form 86% of our health care costs. Nearly 70% of our population are on some type of prescription medication, with an average of nearly 15 per person. Many chronic and degenerative conditions are becoming epidemic.

From reading the preceding paragraph you might surmise that I am talking about the United States, but these same figures (or very close) apply globally.

 Global Health Crisis.

Although the United States currently leads the world in almost every disease and chronic condition.  This is not just a problem here in the U.S., it is global. One-third of adults worldwide suffer from multiple chronic conditions. Disease rates from these conditions are accelerating globally and advancing across every region and pervading all socioeconomic classes. Chronic disease is responsible for 70% of deaths globally and pharmaceutical consumption continues to increase globally driven by a growing demand for drugs to treat chronic diseases, according to the World Health Organization.

 In a recent presentation for the United Kingdom, I summarized the epidemic of chronic disease that Britons are experiencing. In the UK, a 47 percent increase in prescription drugs dispensed over the last decade as reported by the National Health Service. Currently, one billion prescriptions are written every year, with medication reaching a shocking level of 15 prescriptions per individual and 50% of Britons taking prescription medication.

Part of the problem for this dramatic and epidemic rise is due to poor choices. Nearly 90% of Britons are chronically dehydrated.  Sleep deficiency is on the rise across UK, two-thirds have sleep problems and this is called a public health epidemic. The average sleep per night per individual in the UK is less than seven hours.

According to a recent official Health Survey for England 2017, the UK has a weight problem. Nearly two thirds of adults are either overweight or obese, with one third of these obese. The number of people with diabetes in the UK has more than doubled in the last twenty years, Diabetes UK. 2018. Once again, excessive sugar consumption is fueling this problem, with the average Brit consuming nearly 100 grams of sugar daily. Well above the daily recommended consumption.

The four main principles of the Self Care Awakening are not a panacea for all chronic conditions. There are many other factors involved depending on the disease being examined. However, these principles are vital to the health of us all irrespective of our current status of health.

All can benefit from reducing our body burden of toxic chemicals, being hydrated, well rested and reducing our daily sugar consumption and maintaining a healthy weight.

 Chronic disease is not a normal part of life. Up to 80% of chronic conditions can be prevented. My hopes are that this information and corresponding Self Care presentations have enlightened and empowered anyone to employ and share our battle cry for the Self Care Awakening,

 We invite you to look at our most recent video, Self Care Awakening, UK Edition.

Be Healthy by Choice, not by Chance.

Grounded a Self Care Solution

We are very fortunate this week to have a very special guest blogger for The Impetus. Here is a simple and informative explanation of Grounding also called Earthing, written by Dr. Jesse Allen, chiropractor and Independent Nikken Consultant from Fremont, California.

                                                             What is Earthing?

Clint Ober (co-author of the popular book Earthing, the most important health discovery ever?) came from a background in the cable industry.  He understood that all electrical and cable systems had to be “grounded” or connected to the earth’s surface to stop interference from outside electromagnetic fields.  He observed that most people wear some type of rubber or plastic-soled shoes.  He wondered if this could have an adverse effect on our health.  As a child growing up on a farm, he noticed that animals that were allowed to run free were much healthier than animal kept indoors in a cage.

He began experimenting with the use of a simple voltmeter to measure the effects of exposure from household appliances and wiring in the walls of his home.  He then took measurements while “grounded to a grounding rod.  Ultimately, he found that when he was grounded, he slept better and had less discomfort.

In another early experiment with Dr. Maurice Ghaly, a retired anesthesiologist, cortisol levels were measured before and after grounding.  (Elevated cortisol indicates chronic stress which can lead to chronic illnesses such as high blood pressure, stroke and depressed immune system function).  It was found that earthing could “resynchronize” cortisol secretion to a more normal natural rhythm.  People slept better and reported less discomfort.

In 2001, Mr. Ober began working with Dr. Stephen Sinatra, an integrative cardiologist who had identified inflammation as the cause of arterial and cardiovascular disease.  With the help of biophysicist James Oschman, Ph.D. they were able to determine that the earth was an effective anti-inflammatory aid.

The electric energy on the surface of the earth takes the form of a limitless supply of negatively charged particles called electrons.  When you make contact with the earth, while barefooted or with a grounding/earthing device, the electrons are absorbed into the body where they attach to positively charged free radicals that cause chronic inflammation.  The key here is the effect of chronic inflammation.  When you experience an injury or illness there is a normal level of inflammation that is part of the healing process.  However, if you have chronic inflammation,   tissue can be damaged leading to illness or disease.

Due to our technological world where cell phones, tablets, laptops and wi fi connected devices surround us 24/7; we are constantly being bombarded with EMF, electromagnetic frequencies.  This exposure has been linked to inflammatory reactions, cancer, sleep disruption and immune system dysfunction. 

If you can regularly walk bare foot on grass, dirt or on the beach you can ground yourself naturally.  However, most of us live in urban settings that limit our access to direct contact with the earth.  Grounding devices/earthing devices are the best alternative to neutralize the effect of electromagnetic fields and free radicals.

Thank you, Dr. Allen, for this enlightening explanation as to the health benefits and need for us all to be grounded. This is a concept that I have been aware of since the publishing of Earthing in 2010. I believe we all can appreciate the benefits of walking barefoot on the beach or strolling barefoot in a grassy park. We experience a feeling of relaxation and ease, less stress and a greater sense of well-being.

KenkoGround

As part of the Nikken Wellness Home, we are pleased to announce a new Active Wellness product, the KenkoGround. The KenkoGround is designed to help us connect to the Earth as a natural energy source. Direct contact with the ground (soil, grass, sand, ocean floor) gives our bodies natural energy to help restore our own healthful nature.

The contemporary lifestyle often causes fatigue, sleeplessness, and a general feeling of being out of balance. Unlike our ancestors who were directly connected to the ground by their bare feet, we separate ourselves from nature by using and wearing non-conductive materials, e.g. rubber, plastic, artificial flooring surfaces, etc. In other words, our feet rarely connect with the earth beneath us.

The KenkoGround serves as an indoor and portable way to reconnect with Mother Nature. Simply plug it into a grounded outlet and use it under your feet while working, on your mattress while you sleep or even draped around your shoulders. Direct contact with the skin is recommended for best results.

As a physiologist I appreciate the research that has been done in this field within the last decade. A simple google search on earthing grounding, can lead anyone who has an interest to be more informed. A 2015 study from the Journal of Inflammation Research entitled, “The effects of grounding (earthing) on inflammation, the immune response, wound healing, and prevention and treatment of chronic inflammatory and autoimmune diseases” is a good place to start.

The authors concluded, “Accumulating experiences and research on earthing, or grounding, point to the emergence of a simple, natural, and accessible health strategy against chronic inflammation, warranting the serious attention of clinicians and researchers. The living matrix (or ground regulation or tissue tensegrity-matrix system), the very fabric of the body, appears to serve as one of our primary antioxidant defense systems. As this report explains, it is a system requiring occasional recharging by conductive contact with the Earth’s surface – the “battery” for all planetary life – to be optimally effective.”

Heather and I are very excited about the new KenkoGround and can’t wait to integrate it into our Wellness Home as part of our Active Wellness program.

Be Healthy by Choice, not by Chance

The ABC’s of Self Care Y

“I think of self care like the airplane mask warning. When emergencies happen and the mask drops from the ceiling you are supposed to help yourself first. Then proceed to help others to put on their masks.”

The ABC’s of Self Care Y

Our series the ABC’s of Self Care is winding down. This week our series on the ABC’s of Self Care continues with Y.  

For Y, let’s talk about WHY or more specifically, Why Self Care? It just so happens this is the theme for an upcoming presentation that I will be giving in Toronto in a little over a week. This will be an incredible event with many talented speakers from all over the world. The event will kick off with the theme, Be Healthy by Choice. I must say that I am very honored and humbled to be the first speaker and set the tone for the rest of that day’s presentations.

You can find more information about this event at http://torontosummit.net/. Tickets are still available, and I invite you to join us for two days of great life changing information.

To answer the question, Why Self Care? All we need to do is look at the status on health care. We have blogged on this before in Health Care Crisis: Part. 1 and Part 2.

The incidence of chronic disease as our biggest killer and health problem is not segregated to the U.S., it is a global problem. Chronic diseases are the leading causes of death and disability worldwide. Disease rates from these conditions are accelerating globally and advancing across every region and pervading all socioeconomic classes according to the World Health Organization. Currently, one in three adults worldwide suffer from two or more chronic conditions.

The World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimate that as high as 80% of our world’s biggest killers can be prevented. I concur and am of the belief that just a few simple self care principles can lead to a vibrant heathy life.

Most people have become ambivalent towards chronic disease, thinking that they are just a normal part of aging. We are under a constant bombardment of advertising telling us so and that we shouldn’t worry because whatever disease they are talking about can be treated and managed. Here is a paraphrase of a recent advertisement from what use to be our corner drug store and is now called your local wellness center. The advertisement says, “there are 26 million Americans with diabetes, and 74 million are at risk, don’t worry, we can treat and manage your diabetes, so you can lead a normal productive life”. I almost fell out of my chair when I first heard this commercial. Then I got angry. It is a brainwashing, inferring that chronic disease is a normal part of life. It is not. 

Most chronic diseases can be prevented, however, most are treated and managed with pharmaceutical intervention. The U.S. fills 4.3 billion prescriptions annually and treating chronic conditions account for 86% of our nation’s health care dollar. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) states, “pharmaceutical consumption continues to increase globally driven by a growing demand for drugs to treat aging-related and chronic diseases.”

As many of you know, Be Healthy by Choice, not by Chance is the battle cry for the Self Care Awakening and is the core of the content and information here on the Self Care Hub.  Our health is our own responsibility and the choices we make every day can improve or impede our health. It is our goal to inform, inspire and empower anyone to be healthy. This is Heather and my WHY, it is our purpose and our passion for all to BE HEALTHY BY CHOICE.

We have a solution for the health crisis, health care needs to become Self Care. It all starts with our own individual plan for a healthy life. The Nikken Wellness Home and Active Wellness Products provides simple, easy and affordable choices to accomplish this goal. Our and fellow self care advocates mission is Every Home a Wellness Home.

If this resounds with you to be part of a dedicated passionate team in a worthwhile cause to help yourself and others, please contact the person that shared this article with you so everyone can Be Healthy by Choice. It may also become your Why?

Next installment will be the letter Z, time for some zzzz’s, then I’ll start to ponder what to write about. Sleep Matters.

The ABC’s of Self Care V

The ABC’s of Self Care V

A Nikken Wellness Home is designed to address many health concerns, including environmental toxins, contagions, dehydration, poor sleep quality, weight matters and nutrition. In a practical sense, the Wellness Home creates an environment that enables us to make healthier choices every day.

This week our series on the ABC’s of Self Care continues with V.

This month, Nikken announced the concept of Vital Wellness Home Packs to enable anyone to make simple, affordable choices to create a Wellness Home. The Packs address all the areas of self care and help make being Healthy by Choice more convenient than ever.

The Wellness Home Water Pack

Water is not just a beverage choice, it is our most essential nutrient. We have previously blogged about the importance of staying hydrated and the consequences of dehydration in the Impetus quite a few times. Clean water is key to good health. Whether you need clean water at home or on the go, Nikken water products give you access to healthy water to drink and bathe in.

The Wellness Home Sleep Packs

Sleep is the single activity that we spend the most time doing in our lifetimes. We spend one-third of our lives asleep and for good reason. William C. Dement, M.D., Ph.D., Stanford University, is one of the world's leading authorities on sleep. He is sometimes referred to as the father of sleep medicine. To quote Dr. Dement, “Healthy sleep has been empirically proven to be the most single important determinant on predicting longevity, more important than diet, exercise and heredity.” 

Sleep is not only about how many hours we sleep, but more importantly about quality of sleep that we are receiving. A significant component of sleep quality is dependent on our sleep environment. For that reason, the foundation of the Nikken Wellness Home is the Nikken Kenko Sleep System. It uses natural materials and simple principles to create Adaptive Sleep Technology. This includes, self-regulating temperature control, advanced magnetic technology and passive massage to provide a natural, relaxing sleep environment to for a deep restful, rejuvenating sleep. The Sleep Packs are available in twin, queen and king sizes.

The Wellness Home Energy Pack

The Energy Pack is essential for an Active Wellness lifestyle. It is designed to support maximum mobility, flexibility and energy. It is comprised of a variety of Nikken products and technologies to support over-all physical well-being. Heather and I use many of these products daily. They are staples in our Wellness Home.

I will add one more pack to the list which I consider to be vital to our health and well-being. I suggest this to my clients to provide a daily base for good nutrition.

The Wellness Home Core Nutrition Pack

This pack makes healthy nutrition simple, convenient and affordable. The products include:

Kenzen Super Ciaga®

 Super Ciaga is an organic mixed superfruit juice concentrate made exclusively with organic fruit content. This advanced formula is made with a select group of superfruits chosen for their nutrient and antioxidant characteristics. Highly concentrated, it has an exceptional ORAC value. Certified-organic, Super Ciaga supports individuals who want to feel more energized as well as those who need assistance with poor eating habits.

Jade GreenZymes®

Called "nature's perfect food," barley grass is said to have more nutrition than an equal serving of any other vegetable. The barley grass in organic Jade GreenZymes® is beneficial in helping balance pH, supporting a strong immune system, and assisting in maintaining blood glucose levels that are already in the normal range. 

 Kenzen Vital Balance®

Organic Food for Everyday Health
Our formula contains organic moringa and naturally sweet monk fruit in addition to organic pea protein and organic vegetables. It is designed to help burn fat, boost metabolism and promote healthy brain function and the elimination of toxins in the body. With pre- and probiotics to assist in digestive and immune system activity, the Kenzen Vital Balance formula is food for action and food for thought—for people of all ages. 

These Nikken Wellness nutrition products can be ordered as an autoship with an additional 25% discount.

Empowering individuals to take greater ownership of their health has never been more important. The rising cost of healthcare, the unprecedented increase in chronic disease, and the cost of treating and managing preventable conditions has launched an Awakening to raise Self Care as an essential component of health care. The new Vital Wellness Home Packs are easy, convenient and affordable ways to empower anyone to be Healthy by Choice, not by Chance.

The ABC's of Self Care Q

“Our job is improving the quality of life, not just delaying death.”

— Robin Williams

The ABC’s of Self Care Q

For the letter Q let’s talk about Quality of life.

I think it’s safe to say that quality of life is important to everyone. Although the term “quality of life” has meaning for nearly everyone and every academic discipline, individuals and groups can define it differently. What makes it challenging to measure or quantify, is that quality of life is a multidimensional concept that usually includes physical, mental, and social domains. These are usually qualitative or subjective evaluations of both positive and negative aspects of life. Although health is one of the important aspects of overall quality of life, there are other domains such as jobs, housing, schools, the neighborhood and finances. Aspects of culture, values, and spirituality are also key components of overall quality of life that add to the complexity of its measurement and assessment. In the context of self care we all can and should be the guardians of our own quality of life and what that means to us.

The pressures of daily living, busy schedules, demands of work, inadequate family or personal time, not enough rest, health and financial challenges can lead to a life thrown out of balance and can disturb our quality of life.

Balance is the key. Just as our bodies strive for physiological homeostasis, we must balance all the areas of our lives. Over 43 years ago, Nikken’s founder, Isamu Masuda, recognized this imbalance. He felt that total happiness and wellness depended on living a life in balance in five key areas, what he named the 5 Pillars of Health® — Healthy Body, Mind, Family, Society and Finances.  Leading a balanced life strengthens each of these pillars, and results in a more satisfying, healthy and rewarding lifestyle.

Nikken offers the means to attain this balance, through the Nikken Wellness Home and the Nikken business opportunity. We believe the way to fulfill our mission of a life in balance is through duplication of Wellness Homes. The awesome thing about a Wellness Home is that any home can be a Wellness Home, by utilizing Nikken products and technologies to make your home the healthiest environment possible for you and your family. Our motto is “Every home a Wellness Home”. 

Healthy Body

We often say in the Self Care Awakening, we cannot put a price on our health. It is our most precious asset. The concept behind the Nikken Wellness Home is to provide our bodies with the tools it needs to be healthy while making healthy choices easy. Clean air; pure energized alkaline water; organic whole food nutrition; deep, regenerative sleep, and organic personal use and skin care products are all part of the Nikken Wellness Home. Nikken’s leading-edge products and technologies have been the cornerstone for providing thousands of people with great physical health. Think of a seedling being grown in a green house where just the right amount of sunlight, moisture, nutrients and protection from the elements allows it to flourish into a lush, green plant. Creating a Wellness Home provides us with an optimal environment that nourishes, protects and energizes us in much the same way. With any category of Nikken products, you begin the process of assisting people with building their Wellness Homes. The Wellness Home concept is universal: everyone needs to sleep well, drink beneficial water and consume healthy nutrition to live a Life in Balance.

Healthy Mind

Our minds are remarkable! What we think determines our success. Many people suffer ‘lack’ versus ‘prosperity’ due to their thinking. When we are in balance, our mind is open to enjoy all the blessings of abundance. Freedom from health and financial stress is a goal that we all can achieve for a greater quality of life.

Healthy Family

In addition to the benefits that a Wellness Home can have for the physical health of a family and its members is the time freedom that a Nikken business allows for a healthy family. One of the crucial components to the success of a healthy family is creating work/life balance. In today’s fast paced environment, it very difficult to maintain the work/life balance that we all desire. Too often people work well past their office hours or skip lunch in order to meet tight deadlines. People are becoming over stressed, over worked, and over tired, which can lead not only to health problems, but also directly affect your home life.

This was always a challenge for me in my previous career and unfortunately work was usually the priority. My profession involved a tremendous amount of travel. I had developed a thriving business that I loved, but it took an awakening for me to see how it was affecting me and my family. I came to an epiphany one day while on a telephone call my wife was giving me the play by play of my son’s little league game over the phone. I didn’t want to miss ball games, by gosh I wanted to be the coach. Although I loved my business it appeared that it did not love me back. Not until I fully understood the 5 Pillars of Health and the importance of maintaining a balance in all five areas did I put a plan into action that utilized the Nikken business opportunity to create more time freedom for my family. Oh, and by the way, I coached baseball for the next 10 years. You can’t put a price on that.

Healthy Society

Have you ever done something for someone, great or small, and felt even better than the person on the receiving end? Giving back to society is vital for living a meaningful and fulfilling life. When we see ourselves as “more”, we can be “more” to others in society. Nikken’s Humans Being More workshops offer fabulous opportunities to improve yourself, thereby allowing you to give more of yourself to others in need.

Healthy Finances

Finances are a major vital component of the Wellness Home. When the finances are affected, then everything is affected. Many people work around the clock often at the expense their family time and their health. They spend most of their lives working, usually too hard and for too many hours, just to make more money. In today’s world, it is very rare to achieve financial security by working for someone else.

Compare that to Nikken, where you have complete flexibility and unlimited opportunity. Earn extra money part-time or develop a new career or an encore career. Build your business and create a steady source of income. We provide the tools, support, the leadership from experienced professionals.

When you create a Wellness Home and teach others to do the same, you generate a healthy lifestyle that provides you with a source of revenue. Spread the word. Educate your Consultants on how to grow their Nikken businesses by building their Wellness Homes as well as by creating repetitive orders for clients who are similarly learning to build their own Wellness Homes. It’s a continual cycle of health and prosperity. As an Independent Nikken Consultant, you can have the freedom to live as you wish. To earn as much as you deserve and to make a difference in the world, helping others.

Humans Being More

The Nikken mission is both simple and inspirational—to help people discover an Active Wellness Lifestyle. We provide the means with The 5 Pillars of Health®. Since 1975, Nikken has provided the innovative products and income opportunity to live a life in balance and to share the message of every home a Wellness Home. Our action plan and easy-to-understand compensation plan create infinite possibilities of building a better future for everyone. It all begins with you and your commitment to the 5 Pillars of Health®.

Have a very happy and healthy 4th of July. We will see you all the following week for our next installment for the ABC’s of Self Care.

Be Healthy by Choice, not by Chance

The ABC's of Self Care P

This is the core of what we do. 

The ABC’s of Self Care P

There are several choices for the letter P as it applies to Self Care and the Nikken Wellness Home. We could talk about our impactful Active Wellness products. We could discuss the importance of prevention or we could write about the environmental toxicity and the Pollution in People, just to name a few. However, let’s take this opportunity to talk about People, Planet and Profit and how they relate to the Nikken Wellness Home and Self Care.

People are what we are all about. Whether it’s showing them how to be Healthy by Choice or how to truly live a life in balance. We have written before about Nikken’s philosophy of the 5 Pillars of Health®.

• Healthy Body
• Healthy Mind
• Healthy Family
• Healthy Society
• And Heathy Finances

These are interrelated aspects of our lives that can positively or negatively affect each other pillar. Let’s use two examples, if we are experiencing physical health challenges does this affect our mind, our family, our society and our finances? All these areas would be impacted and given the severity of the challenge it could lead to financial ruin. A recent Harvard University study showed that medical expenses account for approximately 62 percent of personal bankruptcies in the United States. The study also reported that over 75 percent of those who filed for bankruptcy due to medical expenses had some type of health insurance, thus discrediting the myth that only the uninsured face financial catastrophes due to medical-related expenses. If our finances are out of balance, what are the resulting effects on the other pillars? We talk to people daily about this problem and the resulting stresses it causes on our physical, emotional health and relationships.  Finances are a major vital element in the Wellness Home. When the finances are affected, then everything is affected. Many people work around the clock only to jeopardize their family time and their health. They spend most of their lives working, usually too hard and for too many hours, just to make more money. 

The Five Pillars are foundation of everything we do and for over 43 years Nikken has provided a means for anyone to live a life in balance. For 20 years, I have advocated for Nikken and this philosophy. When I was first introduced to Nikken the Five Pillar philosophy was foremost in my decision to get involved. We have incredible products, cutting edge technologies and a fun and rewarding marketing plan, but they all are braced on these Five Pillars.  It is our foundation where People come first. Ours is a relationship business and collaboration are key to our success. As any good teacher, the goal is to inform, inspire and empower your partners to be more proficient than yourself. We call this Collaborative Entrepreneurship. Team work is the core of our people focused business, where it truly embodies “Together Everyone Achieves More.”

Our purpose to create healthier lives by making every home a Wellness Home. Imagine the communal, societal and global health ramifications of helping everyone be Healthy by Choice. Chronic diseases are the number one killer in the world. Preventing them or improving their condition is a major focus of Self Care and the Wellness Home. Our health choices are our own responsibility and the Wellness Home provides an easy, affordable and effective way to be healthy by choice for people.

The health of our Planet is another area that should be of concern for everyone. Nikken is committed to reducing pollution and providing solutions to many of our environmental issues. Many of the suppliers Nikken partners with use sustainable energy sources in their manufacturing processes such as wind or solar power. For example, the partner who supplies our vegan certified Kenzen® Omega Green + DHA, (one of the subjects of last week’s Impetus) uses 100% wind power in their manufacturing processes.

Our PiMag Waterfall and Sport Bottle not only provide us with healthy water choices but are made with biodegradable polymers to reduce pollution from plastic water bottles. The effect of plastic bottles on our environment has been documented and although we have an awareness of the problem it is getting worse not better. There are over 100 million plastic bottles used each day globally and nearly 80% of these ends up in our landfills. This means that only 20% are recycled. Approximately 1500 bottles end up in landfills and the ocean every second accounting for 2 million tons of plastic bottles that are landfilled each year.

The PiMag Waterfall and Sport Bottle are environmentally responsible. They reduce the number of discarded, disposable water bottles that become trash in landfills and oceans. This also decreases consumption of fossil fuels used in manufacturing those bottles. PiMag water products are made with recyclable and biodegradable materials, including a polymer that does not leach chemicals into water as most plastics will. The ratio of water filtered for healthy water for the Waterfall and Sport Bottle is one to one. Other filtration methods used in homes or for bottled water can be as five gallons to get one gallon of filtered water.

Nikken’s True Elements skin and hair care products use natural, sustainable sources and are certified organic by EcoCert. The seaweed species in True Elements are harvested off the coast of Brittany in northwest France, and the harvesting method ensures that the seaweed yields are sustainable. 
These skin care preparations are natural, organic, and free from parabens, GMOs, mineral oils, phthalates, phenoxyethanol, PEG, EDTA, synthetic colorings and fragrances. These as well as many of our other products come packaged in recyclable materials.

Nikken Wellness Nutritional support products also use sustainable products in their sourcing and manufacturing.  Nikken believes that the best way to take care of your nutritional needs, is the natural way. So, they created the first complete program based on organic ingredients. These can fill the nutritional gaps in your daily diet, to help you "eat right," even when your meals may fall short of the mark. Organic-Based Nutrition means that all ingredients are carefully chosen, and the organic content is maximized.  Nikken Kenzen® Wellness nutrition was founded on a whole-food philosophy. These organic-based solutions bring your daily diet even closer to nature.

The Self Care Awakening is a global movement to empower people all over our planet to be Healthy by Choice. Imagine solutions to prevent and improve chronic conditions rather than treating and managing them at considerable expense. The Ben Franklin adage that comes to mind, “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”. Although Ben wrote this referring to fire prevention it is often used in the health care arena. In this instance, I would substitute the word cure with treatment. Treating preventable disease is fast becoming our largest expense across the globe.

The Wellness Home creates opportunity for Profit.

Since 1975, Nikken has provided the innovative products and income opportunity to live a life in balance and to share the message of every home a Wellness Home. Our action strategy and easy-to-understand compensation plan creates infinite possibilities of building a better future for everyone. It all begins with you and your commitment to the 5 Pillars of Health®.

The Wellness Home provides us with an opportunity to make simple, easy choices to be healthy, while at the same time providing a steady income source for healthy finances. People love our products and people buy our products. They are priced to sell and priced for Profit. Nikken maintains and prides itself on a strategy of providing the best quality product at a reasonable price competitive in any of the markets of our product line.

The Wellness Home is the cash flow engine of the business. It has a beginning but has no end. Nikken introduces new products or updates Wellness Home products with new technology on a continual basis. It’s transformational Active Wellness products and technologies and the concept of the Wellness Home are natural to share with others. The Wellness Home and Nikken Active Wellness products and technologies provide an integrated approach and one-stop shopping for Self Care.

Self Care needs to replace the existing Health Care System and is the answer to our Health Care Crisis on a global scale. We are a passionate team dedicated to accomplishing this goal by making every home a Wellness Home. We welcome new Self Care Advocates as Independent Nikken Consultants with enthusiasm, support and collaboration. We are dedicated to People, our Planet and Profit. If you are interested in becoming an Independent Nikken Consultant contact the person that referred, you to this blog or click the “let’s work together” link.

Next week we will talk about the letter Q, we need to think a bit about that one?

Be Healthy by Choice, not by Chance

The ABCs of Self Care: M, Magnetic Energy

““... healing comes from nature, not the physician...””

— Paracelsus

The ABC’s of Self Care M

This week we are concerned with the letter M for our series the ABC’s of Self Care, so let’s talk about Magnetic Energy.

The Earth's natural electromagnetic field is one of the fundamental forces of nature and is essential for life. Heather and I have been enjoying the recent National Geographic series, “One Strange Rock” #OneStrangeRock.  We have been reminded multiple times in the series that it is the earth’s magnetic field that enables our planet to support life as we know it.  The Earth's magnetic field shields us from deadly cosmic radiation. The motion of liquid iron in the planet's outer core, a phenomenon called a "geodynamo," generates the field. But how it was first created and then sustained throughout Earth's history has remained a mystery to scientists.

Basically, we live on a big magnet. Not only does this energy provide protection for our planet but also provides a natural energy and an environment for us to be healthy. In their book “Earthing, the most important health discovery ever?”, authors Clinton Ober, Stephen T. Sinatra, M.D. and Martin Zucker describe how our current living conditions have reduced the vital energy of the earth to our bodies and the resultant chronic issues that ensue from being disconnected from the power and energy of the Earth.

The use of magnets for health can be traced back as far as the ancient Egyptians, Greeks, Romans and Chinese. Pliny, a Roman naturalist, used magnets to rectify eye problems, female disorders and wounds. Documentation tells us that Chinese doctors believed in the therapeutic value of magnets at least 2,000 years ago, and perhaps earlier than that. In sixteenth century Europe, Paracelsus, used magnets for many different conditions, claiming that “…the magnet is king of all secrets and that the art of healing comes from nature, not from the physician. Therefore, the physician must start from nature, with an open mind.” Two centuries later, German physician Franz Mesmer became famous for using magnets for various disorders.

In the middle decades of the twentieth century, scientists in various parts of the world began performing studies on the therapeutic use of magnets. From the 1940s on, magnets became increasingly popular in Japan. Yoshio Manaka, one of the influential Japanese acupuncturists of the twentieth century, used magnets in conjunction with acupuncture. Magnet therapy also became a commonly used technique of self-administered medicine in Japan. For example, a type of plaster containing a small magnet became popular for treating a variety of discomforts. Magnetic mattress pads, bracelets, and necklaces also became common. It is estimated that one in seven people in Japan use some form of magnetic products for health.

North American interest in magnetic energy for health was inspired by NASA’s space program. NASA recognized the importance of electromagnetic fields to biological organisms when astronauts in optimal health became ill traveling in outer space. Beyond the outermost layer of the atmosphere (ionosphere), the astronauts’ bodies were no longer immersed in the geomagnetic fields of the planet. Withdrawn from the influence of these fields, their health declined (poor sleep, fatigue, weakness, rapid bone loss, etc.), but was restored when administered artificially generated magnetic fields that emitted the necessary planetary frequencies. Magnetic field generators installed in NASA’s spacecraft alleviated many of these health problems in orbit.

During the 1970s, magnets became popular among athletes in many countries for improving performance, rejuvenation and alleviating sports-related injuries.

In 1975, the Japanese company, Nikken, developed a magnetic insole and ensuing products that has resulted in its prominence in the field of supporting our health. Nikken magnetic products are designed to be natural, easy to use, for more energy, rest, rejuvenation and recovery.

Nikken magnetic technologies have been developed for over 40 years to provide a carefully designed, supportive environment. Nikken’s magnetic products are designed to fit easily into our normal day-to-day lives. This can be in the form of our Sleep System or special magnetic insoles, seats, jewelry and massage products that can be used conveniently throughout the day. This is one technology that we frequently utilize in the Wellness Home. I have personally benefited from these products for over 20 years and have met and know thousands of others that have incorporated them into their daily self care routines. 

It’s generally safe for most people to wear and use low-intensity static magnets. However, if you use an electronic medical device such as a pacemaker, have a magnetically sensitive surgical implant, are in the first trimester of pregnancy or have health problems, consult a physician before using magnetic products.

Magnetic energy is just one of the technologies that are utilized in the Wellness Home to provide simple, easy to use, natural ways of being Heathy by Choice.

Please note, that Heather and I will be taking a break next week from the Impetus in honor of Memorial Day and tribute to the many men and women that have paid the ultimate sacrifice in enabling and preserving our freedom and liberty. We wish you all a good Memorial Day Weekend.

Be Healthy by Choice, not by Chance

ABC’s of Self Care K & L

““Our bodies are our gardens - our wills are our gardeners. ”

— W. Shakespear

 

The ABC’s of Self Care K & L

In our continuing series the ABC’s of Self Care, this week we are concerned with the letters K and L.

K is a very important letter for Nikken and the Wellness Home, so let’s let the letter K represent a few terms that we frequently use in describing our products, business and philosophy, Kenko, Kaizen and Kenzen.

Nikken originated in Japan over 43 years ago. Fittingly, many of our products use the word Kenko in their description as kenko is the Japanese word for health. Meaning a healthy product or choice and very appropriate to our mission of the Self Care Awakening to empower anyone to be Healthy by Choice. It is used in our sleep system products, magnetic products and support wraps. A quick stroll through our Wellness Home will reveal many of these products that enable us to make healthy choices daily.  

Kaizen means improvement. The Japanese word kaizen simply means "change for better", with inherent meaning of either "continuous" or "philosophy". The word "kaizen" in English is typically applied to measures for implementing continuous improvement, especially those with a "Japanese philosophy".

Kaizen is also defined as a “continuous improvement through positive change.” This term in the context of our health can be interpreted to mean a progressive improvement in our state of health. Our bodies are amazing, and we are continually replacing old cells with new cells. The Wellness Home is designed to give our bodies the tools it needs to be healthy. The Wellness Home itself is always under remodeling. New products, technologies and natural solutions for Being Healthy by Choice are continually being added or upgraded for continuous improvement through positive change, Kaizen.

Since 1975, Nikken’s philosophy has been and still is, to be truly healthy one must live a life in balance based on Five Pillars of Health, Healthy Body, Healthy Mind, Healthy Family, Healthy Society and Healthy Finances. Our business is about sharing the benefits of a Wellness Home and our motto of “Every home a Wellness Home” exemplifies the meaning of continuous improvement in all areas of the Five Pillars of Health. 

Kenzen is another Japanese word that describes health, soundness, or wholesome. Many of Nikken’s nutritional supplements in the Wellness Home are described as kenzen, a healthy choice. A good example is Kenzen® Lactoferrin 2.0™.

So, for the letter L, let’s talk about Lactoferrin.

L- Lactoferrin is a protein present in milk and other bodily secretions whose main biological function is to bind and transport iron. Iron is essential for overall health and is considered the number one micronutrient deficiency by the World Health Organization. It’s also one of the most problematic to supplement because in many instances, iron can irritate the intestines. Iron deficiency can result in anemia, fatigue and poor circulation, as well as many other physical discomforts. Thirty-nine (39%) of consumers are adding iron supplements to their daily diets.

The Wellness Home solution is Kenzen® Lactoferrin 2.0™. Lactose-free, gluten-free and GMO-free, our advanced lactoferrin formula provides a delivery system to support better utilization and balance of iron in the body. * Lactoferrin 2.0 is naturally iron-binding, which studies have shown to have a positive effect on iron absorption, blood iron levels and digestive issues. *

Lactoferrin 2.0 also supports gastro-intestinal health. Lactoferrin has a unique affinity to iron, allowing it to bind to the nutrient. Interestingly, numerous strains of pathogens need an iron-rich environment to reproduce. Lactoferrin limits the availability of iron to bacteria in the intestines, allowing only beneficial bacteria to thrive.  Lactoferrin is present in other bodily fluids, including tears, nasal secretions, saliva, bronchial mucus, gastrointestinal juices, vaginal mucus, and semen. At first glance, these secretions may seem unrelated, but they share one important similarity, they are consistently exposed to potentially harmful microbes.

Nikken’s Lactoferrin 2.0 formulation also contains organic Inulin, organic Ginger, organic Turmeric and organic Rhodiola, a combination that works together with Lactoferrin to produce antioxidant effects and anti-inflammatory properties that support overall health. *

Kenzen® Lactoferrin 2.0™ is a gentle way for more than 35% of woman looking for alternative sources to boost their iron, whether to improve their overall health or to supplement for specific health needs like menopause, pregnancy or menstruation. For the 56% of male and female athletes with iron deficiencies, Lactoferrin 2.0 is an excellent iron-balancing solution for increasing endurance and accelerating post-exercise muscle recovery.

We hope you are enjoying the ABC’s of Self Care and the Wellness Home series. Who can guess what the letters M and N will represent next week?

Until then, Be Healthy by Choice, not by Chance.

*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.

ABCs of Self Care; H-J

The ABC’s of Self Care H,I & J

Pure water is the world's first and foremost medicine. Slovakian Proverb

H- Yep, for most of you that know me, I’m sure it is no surprise that H is for Hydration. We have previously blogged about the importance of staying hydrated and the consequences of dehydration in the Impetus quite a few times.

Life cannot exist without water! We are water-based beings, comprising about 70% of our body. It is the most important nutrient we consume every day of our lives. Humans can live up to 40 days without food but can die in three days without water.

Water is not just a beverage choice. However, many of us choose just about everything else to drink other than water. Researchers estimate that about 75% of people in the US have a mild chronic dehydration. This can lead to many health issues such as fatigue, joint pain, weight gain, headaches, ulcers and high blood pressure. Chronic dehydration may affect your organs and lead to kidney stones, cholesterol problems, constipation, and liver and muscle damage. What if you could reduce or alleviate these symptoms by just drinking healthy water?

Everyone has heard drink eight 8oz glasses of water a day. This is insufficient in my opinion for proper hydration for most us. A good rule of thumb is to drink half your body weight in ounces per day of water. So, if you weigh 160 pounds, 10 glasses or 80 ounces per day is a good rule to follow. 

As part of our Wellness Home our choice for healthy water is Nikken PiMag water from our Nikken Waterfall. The most efficient and cost-effective way of providing yourself and your family is filtering tap water.

The Nikken PiMag Waterfall® converts tap water into fresh spring-like water. Using a multistage process which filters, alkalizes, mineralizes, ionizes, energizes and oxygenates water. The Waterfall provides great tasting water which is easy to use, affordable and a healthy water choice. Water the way nature intended it.

We shot a couple quick 2 minute videos showcasing the PiMag Waterfall. Take a look : ). 

1. Turn Your Tap Water Into Drinking Water
2. Healthy Enhanced Drinking Water

I- For this letter let’s talk about Immunity and ways that through Self Care and the Wellness Home we can have healthy immune systems.

The purpose of the immune system is to keep infectious microorganisms, such as certain bacteria, viruses, and fungi, out of the body, and to destroy any infectious microorganisms that do invade the body.

Natural Ways to Boost Your Immune System

Get a good night’s sleep

"Sleep’s the only medicine that gives ease.”  Sophocles

One night of poor quality sleep or insufficient sleep can drop your immune efficiency as much as 60%. Sleep deficiency and stress overload increase the hormone cortisol, prolonged elevation of which suppresses immune function.

Sleep is not only about how many hours we sleep, but more importantly about quality of sleep that we are receiving. A significant component of sleep quality is dependent on our sleep environment. For that reason, the foundation of the Nikken Wellness Home and our personal choice, is the Nikken Kenko Sleep System.

Eat medicinal mushrooms

Mushrooms have been employed by herbalists for centuries. Some species have been used as far back as 3,000 BC. More recently, studies have been devoted to the relationship between mushrooms and immune response. *

Part of our Wellness Home includes Kenzen® Immunity. This product is a combination of 14 different mushrooms, including rare varieties not available in conventional mushroom products.
Each is carefully chosen for its specific profile of compounds, each structurally different at the molecular level. It would be almost impossible to include all these various types of mushrooms in a regular diet. Kenzen Immunity combines them to provide a wide-spectrum range of natural biochemicals. In addition, each species is grown under laboratory conditions that optimize its beneficial ingredients.*

Eat more fruits and veggies.

Increase your consumption of vegetables, fruits, nuts, and seeds, which will provide your body with the nutrients your immune system needs. A study in older adults showed that boosting fruit and vegetable intake improved antibody response to the Pneumovax vaccine, which protects against Streptococcus pneumonia.

The Wellness Home provides a number of consumable products just for this reason. Jade GreenZymes® and Kenzen Super Ciaga® are ideal for busy people to provide their bodies with healthy vegetable and fruit consumption in a fast, easy, economical way.

Consider probiotics.

Studies indicate probiotic supplements reduce the incidence of respiratory and gastrointestinal infections.

One serving of Kenzen Vital Balance® provides more probiotics than 10 servings of yogurt and is part of our daily regimen. Prebiotics and probiotics support gastrointestinal and immune system health. * In our Wellness Home, we look forward to starting each day with a delicious shake.

J- We will end this week’s discussion with the letter J for Joint Health.

It is estimated that 1/3rd of Americans suffer joint pain. These can be mild to severe depending on the condition. Many times, this relief can be as simple as drinking more water and staying Hydrated. In other cases, anti-inflammatory medication either prescription or over the counter products are used.

The Wellness Home provides natural solutions in the form of Nikken Magnetic Support products and KenkoTherm® Support Wraps. In our home we routinely use them for joint issues. These are supportive and comforting and can be worn while playing sports or other activities.

One other product I personally use daily is Kenzen® Joint. I frequently refer to this product as WD-40 for joints. I have recommended it to many people and they love this supplement. It is provided in easy to swallow soft-gel capsules with superior bioavailablity for rapid absorption.*

Kenzen® Joint is an advanced formulation that nutritionally supports collagen, bone and connective tissue repair. This formula has a high concentration of cetyl myristoleate and combines this with glucosamine, methylsulfonylmethane and compounds from the boswellia plant, which has long been used in Ayurvedic and other complementary practices. * Cetyl myristoleate possesses natural surfactant and lubricant properties, in support of smooth joint movement.* 

Another staple in our Wellness Home is CM Complex Cream. Whether you're a seasoned athlete or just a weekend warrior, Nikken CM Complex Cream can help soothe the discomfort that comes from living an active life. CM Complex and Kenzen® Joint is endorsed by the estate of Dr. H. W. Diehl, the National Institutes of Health researcher who discovered cetyl myristoleate.

I trust that our readers are getting the message that the Nikken Wellness Home is a multi-faceted solution for many of our requirements to be healthy and a simple solution to many health issues. It’s main focal point is that it makes healthy choices easy on a day to day basis so we can all Be Healthy by Choice.

*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.

Self Care; Bridging the Generational Gap

The ABC’s of Self Care G

A Nikken Wellness Home is designed to address many health concerns, including environmental toxins, contagions, dehydration, poor sleep quality, weight matters and nutrition. In a practical sense, the Wellness Home creates an environment that enables us to make healthier choices every day.

This week our series on the ABC’s of Self Care continues with G. We need a few single letter blogs to accommodate the 26-letter alphabet. Three a week just doesn’t pencil out.

G- Last week we discussed gastrointestinal health in Digestion, so for G let’s take a little different approach and talk about the benefits of Self Care and the Wellness Home for Generational attitudes concerning health. Just as each generation has its own soundtrack and cultural references, every age group has a different view of what it means to be and stay healthy. 

Baby Boomers

About 76 million people were born during the baby boom years, which range from 1946 to 1964. 

Baby boomers want to live longer even as many are managing chronic ailments. For them, staying healthy means avoiding a health scare like getting cancer or having a heart attack and, most important, getting the most from their life.  

Baby Boomers are very likely to seek health information online. A Google/Nielsen Boomer Survey from August 2012 reported that 78 percent of this age group has searched health information online after seeing something on TV. Their searches focus on treatments, medications, side effects, and risks. They are more trusting of the healthcare system than younger generations but are questioning traditional treatment and management protocols more and more. They are actively searching for products and or technologies that can help them feel better, be healthier and more active. As more and more boomers reach retirement age, there's a generational focus on longevity and delaying the physical and visible effects of aging. They might be more skeptical and questioning, but providing logical, fact-based solutions are accepted readily.

Health appears to be greater priority for boomers today than for previous generations. It’s becoming clear that baby boomers are placing a greater importance on healthier lifestyles. This demographic has seen increased activity in pharmacy visits, and the purchase of vitamins, fitness equipment, and health foods. A survey of affluent boomers (household include 250k+) found that over 80% identified health as a top priority.

It’s sounds almost cliché, but baby boomers are more demanding than other generations. A research study by Colloquy found that among all generations, baby boomers were the most likely to write off a company if they received poor customer service. Boomers are also the most confident of all consumers – with only 12% responding that they prefer having the help of others to make a purchase. This is unlike millennials, who reported a much higher percentage.

Recent studies report that Boomers are less stressed than Gen Xers or Millennials, and despite age-related diseases, they report feeling healthier compared with their younger counterparts. Unfortunately, the next generation of seniors may not be as well off. According to a study released in 2016 by the United Health Foundation, compared with the current senior population when they were middle-aged, the next wave of seniors smokes 50 percent less, yet has a 55 percent higher prevalence of diabetes, a 25 percent higher prevalence of obesity, and a 9 percent lower frequency of very good or excellent health status.

As a boomer, I can attest and endorse the Nikken Wellness Home. I can honestly say, I feel healthier at age 66 than I did at 46. I credit this to the simple self care principles outlined in many of our videos, publications and blogs supported by the products and technologies that constitute our Wellness Home.

I have been a consumer of the product line from Nikken for over 20 years. It has made my Choice to be Healthy a simple and rewarding experience. Sharing self care concepts and choices for others has become a passion to empower anyone to be Healthy by Choice.

Gen-X

Generation X (born in the mid-1960s to the early 1980s) represent nearly 62 million Americans. They are called the first generation of true health care consumers. Caught in the middle, Generation Xers are often considered as health influencers. They are looking after the health of their aging parents as well as their young children, not to mention struggling to eat better, exercise more, and get more sleep themselves.

More than half of Gen X’ers say they follow healthy habits most of the time, almost a third say they struggle with weight, making it their number one health issue.

Gen X’ers are willing to spend now to stay healthy later. They are very open to self care and prevention as opposed to treating and managing health problems. Sixty-nine percent of Gen X women and 60% of men express interest in products to improve their health. More than half of these consumers say they take a supplement to address specific nutritional deficiencies, 59% take supplements for general wellness, and 56% eat functional foods.  Although few say they follow health trends, 28% of Gen X women say they buy natural health products. Interestingly, 66% of Gen X’ers say they participate in self care to improve their wellbeing. This can include anything from finding more time to do the things they enjoy and feel passionate about to indulging in a bubble bath (one of Heather’s favorite leisure time activities). Positioning health care as self care may shift the mindset of these consumers and more actively engage them in the process.

Middle-age is often a wake-up call that results in the adoption of a healthier lifestyle. Marketers who help consumers adapt to the changes they’re experiencing and offer solutions for long-term wellbeing, can engage and inspire the Gen X’ers.

Heather here. I remember at a young age being labeled as Generation X, the “ME generation.” Boomers looked down their noses on what was perceived as a thirst for excess and over indulgence. It is true we weren’t happy with the status quo and wanted more but not just for ourselves, for everyone around us and it is this desire that, in my opinion, lead to 80 hour work weeks instead of 40. We didn’t just not trust the system, we honestly couldn’t spare the time. Instead, I maintained an excessive exercise program to avoid check-ups and doctor visits. This worked great when I was younger.

As an aging Gen Xer I now realize this was a mistake and changes to my routines HAVE to be made. Self Care and the Wellness Home help me maintain my “indulgent” lifestyle but in a different way.

 Self Care and the act of making healthy choices everyday keep my mind, body and my family healthy. The Wellness Home encompasses Self Care and creates a haven of health that includes healthy finances (Gen Xers love this part).

I am proud to be a Gen Xer that gave birth to Millenials and a Gen Z that are so much smarter than me. I am also very thankful for being able to nurture my boomer parents and my children in a Wellness Home. Our goal is to make every home a Wellness Home so that we may all live in a healthy society.

Millennials  

Millennials (born in the early 1980s to the early 2000s), also known as Generation Y, include more than 80 million adults. As the largest generation in the United States, and one whose purchasing power continues to grow, Millennials are having a major and increasing influence on just about every industry out there. Healthcare is no exception.

The mindsets, influencers and habits of Millennials don't align with traditional models of healthcare. Millennials’ distrust of large, old institutions is no secret. Millennials continuously find ways to circumvent traditional dogma and come up with innovative ideas as new solutions. To many millennials, the idea of “health” suggests something institutional and, as a result, untrustworthy. As a substitute, many young people gravitate towards the idea of “wellness,” which combines physical health with a more holistic sense of mental and full-body well-being. There is no health-related industry more distrusted by the millennial generation than “Big Pharma.” Seen as dishonest and greedy, the pharmaceutical industry has been ranked as the least-trusted health information resource by people aged 18-34.

The millennial generation resists following traditional health care rules and considers wellness as equally important as health. Almost half of the generation considers maintaining work/life balance and having strong relationships with friends and family as being a significant part of health and wellness.

Highly attuned to personal lifestyle and curated online lives, millennials want to feel good and look good. Being healthy for them doesn’t just mean “not sick”, it’s a daily, active pursuit. Millennials think digitally, rely heavily on social networks for information, and gravitate toward convenient, self-serve options for health. Compared to older generations, Millennials take a broader view of what affects their health and wellness. Whereas older generations are more likely to consider regular exams important to their health, Millennials are more likely to focus on day-to-day health maintenance choices that they believe will pay off long-term. Millennials are very open to alternatives rather than traditional healthcare and pharmaceutical intervention.

Post-Millennials

Generation Z encompasses children and young adults born from 1996. This generation makes up 25.9% of the United States population, the largest percentage. By 2020, they will account for one-third of the U.S. population, certainly worth paying attention to.

Gen Z’s key health concerns are related to their life stage – getting enough sleep, managing stress, maintaining their grades, building self-esteem, and having time to socialize with family and friends. Stress is often top of mind for these notoriously over-scheduled teens – almost half are treating or preventing anxiety and stress, behind only skin problems and colds/flu, and ahead of weight issues. Exercise is a key stress management technique and is central to how teens manage a variety of health conditions, from weight issues to depression to sleep disorders. They know getting enough sleep is also key to stress management, and many teens take an active role in carving out time to get a good night’s rest. They don’t hesitate to look up or ask their social networks for answers to health and wellness questions. Yet as teens, Gen Z’s are guided and strongly influenced by their parents, many of whom are Gen X, as well as their teachers and coaches at school. 

As more children are born in to Gen Z and as teens in this generation mature, marketers need to remember that Gen Z kids are already highly proactive participants in health and wellness.

One of the major benefits of Self Care and a Wellness Home is what it provides to our children. Some 20 years ago one of my mentors asked, “Imagine our children growing up in a Wellness Home, learning and practicing healthy choices daily that continue as they grow. What impact could this have on our health as a society?”  Personally, our children have been exposed to and have adopted the principles of self care and being Healthy by Choice that the Wellness Home provides and continue these practices now as adults. I have no doubt that they will impart these choices on to future generations for healthier individuals and ultimately healthier societies.  That’s why we advocate, “Every home a Wellness Home”.

A recent poll of cross generational participants reported that 95% of Americans link self care with healthy habits. Over 90% want better control of their health, yet only 52% considered themselves to be in good health. Less than half of those polled were pro-active when it came to their health.

Empowering Americans to take greater ownership of their health has never been more important. The rising cost of healthcare, the unprecedented increase in chronic disease, and the cost of treating and managing preventable conditions has launched an Awakening to raise Self Care as an essential component of health care. Regardless of generational differences, informing people about self care is the path to improve individual health, reduce medical costs and empowering anyone to be Healthy by Choice, not by Chance.

Self Care: D-F

"D" for Digestion

This is our second installment for the ABC’s of self care. This week we will concern ourselves with D; E and F.

D- Let’s use the letter D to talk about Digestion. This is a problem that affects many of us. A recent survey reported that nearly three out of four Americans are living with digestive problems. Over 70,000,000 people suffer daily from some form of digestive issues (heartburn, acid reflux, GERD (gastro esophageal reflex disorder), IBS (irritable bowel syndrome), indigestion, constipation, diarrhea, abdominal pain, and others. To relieve these symptoms many turn to over the counter (OTC) products as Tums®, Rolaids®, Zantac®, Tagamet®, or prescribed medications such as PPIs (Proton Pump Inihibitors) Nexium®, Prevacid®, Prilosec®, Protonics® and others.

I used to travel about 80 to 90% of my time. I drank a lot of bottled water. In my vehicle was always bottled water and the biggest jar of OTC antacid I could find. I suffered from heartburn daily and ate antacids like they were candy. Once I was introduced to the concept of self care and healthy choices I was able to get rid of the giant jar of antacids. I replaced bottled water with water from the Nikken Sports Bottle while traveling and the Nikken Waterfall at home. To this day if I drink bottled water, often a case of heartburn ensues shortly afterward. The simple choice of changing the kind of water I drank made a huge difference for my digestive health. I have seen similar results for others that have started their Wellness Homes with healthy water. Self Care and the Wellness Home have several choices that can aid digestion in a simple, natural ways.

“E” for Enzymes

E- Since we started this week with digestion it seems appropriate that we use the letter “E” for Enzymes. Enzymes are proteins that act as catalysts. When a substance needs to be transformed into another, nature uses enzymes to speed up the process. For example, in our stomach enzymes break down food into tiny particles to be converted into energy. 

Many times, digestive issues are caused by poor enzymatic activity.  Our bodies have a limited supply of enzymes. The general rule of thumb is that we lose over 10% of our enzymatic potential every ten years.

Digestive enzymes exist naturally in the raw foods we eat. Since enzymes are proteins, cooking destroys these enzymes. This places more stress on our bodies to produce digestive enzymes to breakdown our food into the nutrients we need.  Our bodies produce digestive enzymes; however, it cannot produce enough digestive enzymes to keep up with the typical western diet, which is full of enzyme-depleted, cooked, and processed foods. This is one of the reasons, so many people suffer from digestive-related health problems.

The stress of modern life many times necessitates us to supplement our bodies' natural abilities. Many people take enzymes in the form of dietary supplements to replace the enzymes their body is lacking, or to fortify the enzymes found in their food to ensure complete digestion of each meal. 

THE NIKKEN WELLNESS HOME SOLUTION

One product that we have in our Wellness Home to help in digestion is Kenzen® Digestion 4-20.

Kenzen® Digestion 4-20

Recent research has shown that there are four enzyme groups critical to the digestive process. Many digestive products on the market contain only one or two of these notable enzyme groups and lack in providing optimal digestive support. Kenzen® Digestion 4-20 contains all four of these important enzyme groups, making it a superior formulation for digestion, absorption and weight management. *  Digestion 4-20 contains twenty specific digestive enzymes that act on four different types of macronutrients: fats, proteins, carbohydrates and fiber. 

Years of research have led to a growing appreciation that a healthy human body relies on armies of "friendly" bacteria. The good bugs keep bad bugs in check and may perform other functions essential to a healthy gut and immune system. These probiotics play an important role in digestion and in fact, produce certain enzymes to assist with digestion.

Look for more on Probiotics when we get to “P” in our series on the ABC’s of Self Care.

"F" for Family and Finances

F- I wager that most of our readers think this letter will lead to a discussion on folic acid. Nope, what I want to discuss is Family and Finances in the context of the Wellness Home.

When I think of this I am reminded of a statement that one my mentors said to me years ago, “Imagine our children growing up in a Wellness Home”.  The Wellness Home is the healthiest and safest place for you and your family. It utilizes Nikken Active Wellness products and technologies that addresses the specific areas of concern in the Self Care Awakening. The Wellness Home is a haven for our family. Our children have been exposed to and have adopted the principles of self care and being Healthy by Choice that the Wellness Home provides. When growing up, they were very rarely sick and often the colds and flu bugs that were circulating around school, never set foot in our Wellness Home.

“A NATION is only as HEALTHY as its CHILDREN.” Harry Truman (1946)

Personally, I can only remember once or twice in the last 20 years that I have been sick. A healthy family includes not only physical health but many other factors. Among them is healthy Finances.

Prior to my discovery of self care and Nikken, I traveled most of my time. I loved my profession, and it provided a great income for our family. The downside was that it left a lot to be desired in terms of time freedom. I remember missing birthdays, ball games, vacations as well as dinners at home with the fam. I didn’t want to miss these things, but work seemed to come first. I knew this was unhealthy in many ways but couldn’t imagine that I would ever do anything else as an occupation. Fortunately, I discovered a company that had a vision of living a “Life in Balance”.  Their philosophy was and still is to be truly healthy one must live a life in balance based on Five Pillars of Health. Healthy Body, Healthy Mind, Healthy Family, Healthy Society and Healthy Finances. Some 20 years ago, when I first discovered this, I can honestly say, the only pillar that was healthy for me was finances at the expense of the other four.

In this instance, I was very fortunate, but for many others finances are a major concern. When the finances are affected, then everything is affected. Many people work around the clock only to jeopardize their family time and their health. They spend most of their lives working, usually too hard and for too many hours, just to make more money. So, it is with the Five Pillars and the balance in our lives, one area effects the other areas either positively or negatively.

THE NIKKEN WELLNESS HOME SOLUTION

The Wellness Home is the backbone of my 20-year encore career. Through the principles of the Self Care Awakening and the Active Wellness products provided by Nikken to create Wellness Homes we have been able to develop a business that supports all Five Pillars. It is and always has been our mission to inform, inspire and empower as many people as possible to Be Healthy by Choice. The most efficient way to accomplish this is through teaching others to do the same. It starts by asking yourself, where am I out of balance? We truly value our partnerships with others and have fun, purpose and profit in their service. This is a business that truly can improve lives. If you are looking to build a purpose driven business or supplement your income by sharing Nikken Active Wellness products or start building your own wellness home we want to work with you. Fill out the form below and let's talk healthy choices for you, your family and your finances.

The ABCs of Self Care

“No matter how slow you go you are still lapping everyone on the couch. ”

— Anom

 

Self Care ABCs

Heather thought it would be fun to do a series on the ABC’s of self care and how the Wellness Home can provide simple solutions for us all. So, for the next few weeks, we will pick 26 ways we can all be Healthy by Choice. I must admit, it sounds fun to me too.

A. This letter could have lots of choices to talk about but next to Air, everything else is inconsequential. We can only survive approximately three minutes without air (oxygen).

In the framework of self care and the Wellness Home we are talking about indoor air quality. One of the major factors contributing to our body burden is air pollution. Although we have limited control over outdoor air pollution we do have choices for the quality of air in our homes.

Indoor Air Pollution is a concern for many health-conscious individuals and with good reason. According to the US Environmental Protection Agency, the air within our homes and other buildings can be more seriously polluted than the outdoor air even the largest and most industrialized cities. We spend nearly 90% of our time indoors. Those who spend most of their time indoors are the very young, elderly or infirm. Pollutants can be 2 to 10 times higher indoors than outdoors. See Fresh Air... Indoors for more information.

The Nikken Wellness Home Solution

The KenkoAir® Purifier is designed to combat allergy-causing particles and enhance the air we breathe, helping us to enjoy a more natural, pollutant-free air quality in our homes.  When guests first enter our Wellness Home, they often remark that they feel a difference in the air, a calm, fresh feeling as though they were outdoors in a forest or at the beach.

The Nikken KenkoAir® Purifier incorporates multiple-stage filtration including an ultra-low penetration air filter (ULPA). The KenkoAir® Purifier exceeds that, with measured efficiency up to 99.9995%. No other home air filtration system matches this level of performance.

B also presents many possibilities for discussion, however let’s talk about one of our favorites- Barley grass. This is a staple in our Wellness Home and we drink two or three glasses a day. In fact, I am enjoying a glass as I write this blog, my food for thought on the subject.

Called "nature's perfect food," barley grass is said to have more nutrition than an equal serving of any other vegetable. It is one of the earliest grown sweetgrasses in the world and traces its history even before 5000 BC. Barley has long been a traditional part of the Japanese diet. Research pharmacologist from Japan, Dr Yoshihide Hagiwara MD, made the study of barley grass his lifelong mission and passion. Embarking on study more than 150 types of plants, including grasses, herbs, vegetables, and fruits, Dr. Hagiwara concluded, after 40 years of research, that young barley grass was “one of the most nutritionally balanced foods in nature”.

The Nikken Wellness Home Solution

 Jade GreenZymes®

Made with organic barley grass and a Proprietary Blend of organic acacia and organic pearl barley seed extract powder. Kosher and vegan certified, gluten free and USDA cerified organic. A complete ‘salad in a glass’.
This food is instant energy in a glass. Our bodies know when we consume something healthy and this product immediately gives me that sense of well-being. We like it mixed with PiMag Water from our Nikken Waterfall. Jade GreenZymes® is also available in capsules.

C would have to represent Cardiovascular health recognizing that heart health issues are the most common cause of death. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about 610,000 people die of heart disease in the United States every year–that's 1 in every 4 deaths. Coronary heart disease (CHD) is the most common type of heart disease, killing over 370,000 people annually. Heart disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women. Read more in I Heart Self Care for My Heart.

It is interesting to note that CDC and World Health Organization consider cardiovascular disease to be one of the most preventable issues we face. Preventing chronic disease is a common thread in our Self Care Awakening series of Being Healthy by Choice, not by Chance.

The Nikken Wellness Home Solution

Our favorite products for healthy heart choices are Kenzen Super Ciaga® and Kenzen Bergisterol™ Capsules.

Kenzen Super Ciaga® is an organic mixed superfruit juice concentrate made exclusively with organic fruit content. This advanced formula is made with a select group of superfruits chosen for their nutrient and antioxidant characteristics. Super Ciaga® helps to neutralize and eliminate free radicals, which supports healthy cellular functions. It therefore helps support a healthy immune system, healthy heart and blood vessels, natural energy levels and overall well-being. * 

We enjoy this diluted in PiMag Water or in tea. We have lots of fun creating new beverage recipe’s with Ciaga.

Kenzen® Bergisterol™ is a unique formulation made from Citrus Bergamia Risso, an exclusive strain of the bergamot fruit. For help in maintaining levels of triglycerides, blood glucose, blood pressure and cholesterol that are within normal limits, clinical studies indicate that bergamot extract helps support cardiovascular health and cholesterol levels that are within the normal range. *

I hope you have enjoyed our 1st installment of Self Care ABC’s, I have enjoyed writing it, good idea Heather (as usual). Next week, D, E and F? Let me think about that?

Be Healthy by Choice, not by Chance

*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.

Good Nutrition the Essentials

Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food

Hippocrates

Wellness Home and Good Nutrition

A major component of the Wellness Home is healthy nutrition. Eating a balanced diet is vital for good health and wellbeing. Food provides our bodies with the energy, protein, essential fats, vitamins and minerals to live, grow and function properly. We need a wide variety of different foods to provide the right amounts of nutrients for good health.

There are six basic nutrients required for good health. 

These include:

Carbohydrates-Carbohydrates are grouped into two categories: simple and complex. Carbohydrates are the main energy source for the brain. Without carbohydrates, the body could not function properly. Sources include fruits, breads and grains and starchy vegetables.

Protein-which is broken down into amino acids by the digestive system. Protein is the major structural component of cells and is responsible for the building and repair of body tissues. Lean protein sources such as low-fat meat, dairy, beans or eggs. There are many other vegetable sources of protein, if that is your personal choice.

Fat-The fat in food includes a mixture of saturated and unsaturated fats.  Fat is an energy source that when consumed, increases the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins including vitamins A, D, E and K. Choose healthy options such as omega-3-rich foods like fish, walnuts and vegetable-based oils. Omega-3s help with development and growth. Limit intake of saturated fats such as high-fat meats and full-fat dairy. Other smart choices include nuts, seeds and avocado.

Vitamins- both water and fat-soluble. There may be slight differences in the amounts of specific vitamins for men versus women, but in general, the essential vitamins that your body needs are:

• Vitamin A
• Vitamin C
• Vitamin D
• Vitamin E
• Vitamin K
• B vitamins

The best way to get these vitamins is to eat a healthy and balanced diet with plenty of fruits and vegetables. A multivitamin may also be useful to help fill in the gaps if you have a restrictive diet.

Minerals- These essential nutrients, those that your body needs but cannot produce, include the inorganic substances found in foods such as: calcium, potassium, sodium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, chloride and Trace Minerals.

Water- said to be our most essential nutrient, read more in Down the Hatch. Water helps to maintain homeostasis in the body and transports nutrients to cells. Water also assists in removing waste products from the body. We recommend drinking half your body weight in ounces per day.

Whenever possible choose fresh organic produce. We strive to eat as natural as possible and avoid processed foods. Many processed foods, including canned and frozen vegetables contain added sugar. In our Wellness Home we make a conscious effort to keep our sugar consumption at a healthy level, 36 grams or 9 teaspoons a day for me and 25 grams or 6 teaspoons a day for the ladies in the house.

Unfortunately, our busy fast-paced lives often impede with our choices for healthy eating.  I’m sure we have all experienced the trials and tribulations in shopping, food preparation and all that goes in to preparing and consuming healthy meals. One way to counter act this is supplementing our food. Many supplements fall short in what they deliver in terms of natural provided nutrients. 

Nikken’s philosophy (and ours) is that the best way to take care of our nutritional needs, is the natural way. Nikken created the first complete program based on natural, organic ingredients. These fill the nutritional gaps in our daily diet, to help us "eat right," even when our meals may fall short of their nutrtional mark. Organic-Based Nutrition means that all ingredients are carefully chosen, and the organic content is maximized. 
Nikken Kenzen® Wellness nutrition is founded on a whole-food philosophy. These organic-based solutions help bring our daily diet closer to nature and is an integral part of our Wellness Home.

Here are three of our favorite products that are core to our nutritional needs:

Kenzen Vital Balance® Meal Replacement Mix- We kick-start every day with a KVB shake.

KVB’s formula contains organic moringa and naturally sweet monk fruit in addition to organic pea protein and organic vegetables. It is designed to help burn fat and boost metabolism as well as promote healthy brain function and the elimination of toxins in the body. With pre- and probiotics to assist in digestive and immune system activity, the Kenzen Vital Balance formula is food for action and food for thought—for people of all ages. 

Naturally-sourced protein from organic pea, organic rice and organic chlorella to promote the formation of lean muscle mass without the high levels of saturated fat and calories associated with animal protein.
Contains Medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs), sourced exclusively from palm kernel oil, serve as “brain food” to support cognitive sharpness and for weight loss to assist in burning fat, boosting metabolism and regulating the appetite.*

Jade GreenZymes®- We have glass of JGZ’s twice a day.

Called "nature's perfect food," barley grass is said to have more nutrition than an equal serving of any other vegetable. The barley grass in organic Jade GreenZymes® is beneficial in helping balance pH, supporting a strong immune system, and assisting in maintaining blood glucose levels that are already in the normal range. 

Made with organic barley grass and our Proprietary Blend of organic acacia and organic pearl barley seed extract powder.

Kosher and vegan certified and USDA Organic.

Kenzen Super Ciaga® - We use this once a day and have developed some very delicious drink variations.

An organic mixed superfruit juice concentrate made exclusively with organic fruit content. This advanced formula is made with a select group of superfruits chosen for their nutrient and antioxidant characteristics. Highly concentrated, it has an exceptional ORAC value. 

Excellent flavor enhancer when diluted and mixed in with other beverages or water.
• Great replacement for sodas that may contain artificial sweeteners or lots of sugar. Simply mix with Nikken PiMag® water or seltzer for a naturally sweet beverage.
• Certified Kosher by Earth Kosher.
•USDA certified organic.

• No preservatives, 12 month shelf life.

Super Ciaga bottles are made of an environmentally-friendly polymer that contains no bisphenol-A (BPA) or other potentially harmful chemicals, are easily recycled and compared to glass, require fewer resources to store and transport.

An effective nutritional strategy is more than just what we eat. It requires attention to many self care processes that can affect our well-being. Quality sleep, proper hydration with healthy water, reduction of our body burden of toxic chemicals and stress management are all important for improving and maintaining good health.

One of the most important decisions we make every day is what we eat and drink. It is everyone’s Choice to eat Healthy or not.

Be Healthy by Choice, not by Chance

* These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.*

Nutrition in Your Wellness Home

To eat is a necessity, but to eat intelligently is an art. 

Eating You Alive

“People aren’t living longer, they are dying longer.” This is the first statement in a trailer for an upcoming in theater broadcast event of the movie “Eating You Alive”.  For more details on the film and showings check out their webpage.

EatingYouAlive.org is a non-profit 501(c)(3) committed to promoting the power of a Whole Foods Plant Based lifestyle through films, television and online platforms.  With a fresh and passionate perspective, our mission is to produce content that educates and inspires audiences to implement the changes that have been proven, through science and experience, to reverse disease, create a more sustainable planet and promote a more compassionate global community.

Half of all adults in the U.S. struggle with chronic health conditions including cancer, heart disease, stroke, diabetes, obesity, hypertension, Alzheimer’s and arthritis just to mane a few. Twenty-five percent of us 2 have two or more chronic health issues. Seven out of 10 deaths in the U.S. are a result of chronic diseases, yet it is estimated that over 80% of chronic disease is preventable.

Despite countless dollars spent on medical research, new drugs and innovative technology to improve our health, more Americans are disabled and dying from chronic disease than ever before. Nearly 70% of our population are on some type of prescription medication. We fill over 4.3 billion prescriptions per year. Many chronic and degenerative conditions are becoming epidemic and the United States currently leads the world in almost every disease and chronic condition.  Although the U.S represents 4.4% of the world’s population, we consume 75% of the world’s pharmaceutical drugs.

At some point you must ask, Why? What is causing all of this dis-ease? This is the impetus for the film “Eating You Alive”. From information listed on their web page they are advocates for plant based whole food nutrition. Although, Heather and I are not vegan, we do try and include as much whole foods, while eliminating processed foods in our Wellness Home.  We are very cognitive of our sugar consumption as well as the other aspects of the Self Care Awakening.

Whole Food Nutrition

Whole food nutrition is the basis of our Nikken Active Wellness product line and much of our nutritional support in our Wellness Home is provided by Nikken.  Nikken Wellness Organic-Based Nutrition is designed to bring the daily diet closer to nature. Each ingredient is carefully selected and where possible the organic content is maximized. The Nikken concept of Whole Body Renewal includes a Core System to help meet daily needs, and modules that offer support for specific biological activities: gastrointestinal, cardiovascular, neurological, immune, and skeletal support.

A few of our daily favorites are Kenzen Vital Balance®, Jade GreenZymes® and Kenzen Super Ciaga®.

Just think about it, one of the most important decisions we make every day is what we eat and drink. It is everyone’s Choice to eat Healthy or not. It is our biggest aspiration that you will Be Healthy by Choice, not by Chance, and if you have the chance you may want to catch “Eating You Alive” at select theaters on April 5th.

“quick, power-up, healthy Kenzen Vital Balance protein snack recipe”

½ cup rolled oats
1 scoop of vanilla or chocolate Kenzen Vital Balance pea protein powder
(our fav is chocolate)
½ cup peanut or almond butter
¼ cup honey
½ Tbsp Chia seeds
Dried Cherries
Water

• Combine ingredients in a bowl only adding water as needed
• Mix until ingredients start to form a ball
• Form into bite sized balls and chill until firm
Check out Kenzen Vital Balance: https://goo.gl/SiWe42 🤗

Save You, Your Family and the Planet

"We forget that the water cycle and life cycle are one"

Water Matters and the Wellness Home

One of the most important aspects of the Wellness Home is to provide ourselves and our families with clean, healthy water.

Water is not just a beverage choice, it is an essential nutrient. We have been saying this for years and the reason why is we tend to choose just about everything else to drink other than water. That is the main reason why over 75% of us walk around dehydrated every day. I advocate drinking half your body weight in ounces of healthy water per day. 

We have choices for different types of drinking water: tap water, filtered water and bottled water. 

The solution to our global water issues and the plastic pollution of our planet is very complex and people often wonder what they can do as individuals to make a positive impact. One thing we all can do is to not to contribute to landfills by filtering tap water rather than purchasing bottled water. In recent blogs we have talked about the pollution problem with bottled water and about how to choose a water filtration system. 

Filtering our tap water is convenient, cost effective and the best way to provide ourselves and our families with healthy water. 

What do we use in our Wellness Home? 

Our personal choice for water filtration is the Nikken PiMag Waterfall. Imagine if we could create fresh spring water in our own home or office? This is the strategy behind the Nikken Waterfall.  The Nikken Waterfall System is an advanced, technically sophisticated, well designed countertop home filtration system that converts tap water into fresh spring-like water. Using a multi-stage filtration process which cleans, alkalizes, mineralizes, ionizes, energizes and oxygenates the water, the Waterfall produces a light, velvety fresh-tasting water which is highly absorbed and healthy. 

PiMag Waterfall

Put simply, the Waterfall produces water the way nature intended water to be. Free of contaminants but maintaining an alkaline pH with minerals that are added back after the filtration process. The water is run through a magnetic field that provides a water structure as it occurs in nature. 

The Waterfall Gravity Water System has a modern, compact profile and fits conveniently into most kitchen environments. All Nikken water products are designed to the highest standards, using non-leaching, and free of BPA and other estrogenic chemicals. With its Gold Seal of Approval from the Water Quality Association, the Waterfall meets rigorous standards for performance, capacity, and integrity, removing a variety of drinking water contaminants.

The Nikken Waterfall meets contaminant-reduction specifications of National Sanitary Foundation (NSF) Standards 42 and 53 and reduces objectionable tastes, odors, colors, aesthetic chlorine, chloramines, VOCs and mercury from municipally treated tap water. This is considerably better performance than you'd get with many conventional faucet or pitcher--type or water filters. The filtration efficiency is equivalent to more complex and expensive water filtration systems costing $1000’s of dollars.

The water tank components are bio-degradable plastics that will not leach potentially harmful chemicals into the contents of the tank. Nor will they release these chemicals into the soil.  The Waterfall is environmentally responsible in several ways. It reduces the number of discarded plastic water bottles that become trash in landfills. This also decreases consumption of fossil fuels used in manufacturing those bottles. The waterfall is made with recyclable and biodegradable materials, including a polymer that does not leach chemicals into water as some plastics will. 

Features and Benefits that we like most about our Waterfall:

• Multiple-stage filtering process, advanced water-contaminant reducing technology

• Certified filtration to reduce contaminants, NSF Certification 42, 53 and 372

• Gold Seal of Approval from the Water Quality Association

• Natural, gravity-fed filtration – no need for electricity or plumbing, can be used is any location

• Minerals added back to adjust pH to create alkaline water

• Fits perfectly onto kitchen counter-top

• Non-leaching and BPA free materials

• Made of bio-degradable plastics for no environmental impact

• Ease of operation and maintenance

• Cost effective solution for healthy water

The Waterfall is good for your family, your pocketbook and our planet! It is an integral component of the Nikken Wellness Home.

Water Matters and is a vital component of every Wellness Home.

Be Healthy by Choice, not by Chance.

Fresh Air... Indoors

Some old-fashioned things like fresh air and sunshine are hard to beat. 

-Laura Ingalls Wilder

Is Your Home Your Haven?

Most of us consider our homes to be a safe, healthy environment, but in reality, our homes are often very toxic places. Given a choice, “Would you prefer to live in “sick” home or a “wellness” home? The answer is obvious, I think we would choose a wellness home. 

Your first question may be, what is a wellness home? The best way to answer this question is to use an analogy. Think of a greenhouse. It creates the optimal environment for plants to grow. It provides optimal light, healthy air, healthy water, a balanced pH and nutrients. If a plant is not provided with the optimal environment it can still survive but given an optimal environment it thrives. Are we any different? 

Imagine a greenhouse for you and your family, an optimal environment that provides the tools for your body to heal and protect itself, that is the concept of a wellness home. I am of the opinion if we give our bodies the right tools it can heal and protect itself. Our bodies are amazing.

A Nikken Wellness Home is designed to address many concerns, including environmental toxins, contagions, dehydration, poor sleep quality, weight matters and nutrition. In a practical sense, the Wellness Home creates an environment that enables us to make healthier choices every day.

In the Self Care Awakening we discuss environmental toxicity and our Body Burden. 

One of the major factors contributing to our body burden is air pollution. Although we have limited control over outdoor air pollution we do have choices for the quality of air in our homes. 

Indoor Air Pollution

Indoor Air Pollution is concern for many health-conscious individuals and with good reason. According to the US Environmental Protection Agency, the air within our homes and other buildings can be more seriously polluted than the outdoor air even the largest and most industrialized cities. We spend nearly 90% of our time indoors. Those who spend most of their time indoors are the very young, elderly or infirm. Pollutants can be 2 to 10 times higher indoors than outdoors. This is especially so during the cold months, when windows and doors are kept tightly shut and homes, schools and office buildings are made as airtight as possible to conserve energy.

The air inside our homes is the same air as outside, but we add to the pollution with cleaning products, chemicals from our carpets, furnishings, paints, glues from furniture (i.e. particleboard), and with the other by-products of our modern lives. Dusts, molds, pollens, pet dander and other particles in our air can directly impact us through hay fever or other allergies. Indoor air pollution can aggravate, irritate, and in some cases cause serious harm. The effects of indoor air pollutants range from short-term effects – eye and throat irritation – to long-term effects – respiratory disease and cancer.

Symptoms of Poor Indoor Air Quality include:

• headache
• eye irritation 
• fatigue
• dry throat 
• sinus congestion
•  dizziness
• nausea

Improving the quality of our air can reduce the air pollution we experience, as well as helping to reduce airborne transmissions in our homes, offices, schools, and other environments.

The Nikken Wellness Home Solution

The KenkoAir® Purifier is designed to combat allergy-causing particles and enhance the air we breathe, helping us to enjoy a more natural, pollutant-free air quality in our homes.  When guests first enter our Wellness Home, they often remark that they feel a difference in the air, a calm, fresh feeling as though they were outdoors in a forest or at the beach. 

KenkoAir Purifier

There are many choices when it comes to home air filtration units. We recommend the KenkoAir Purifier for the following reasons.

·         The KenkoAir Purifier operates without producing ozone. Ozone is classified by the United States Environmental Protection Agency as a toxic gas, yet many other air filtration systems produce it as a byproduct. The State of California has banned the sale of ozone-producing air systems, and other states are expected to follow.
 

·         The Nikken KenkoAir Purifier incorporates multiple-stage filtration including an ultra-low penetration air filter (ULPA). The KenkoAir Purifier exceeds that, with measured efficiency up to 99.9995%. No other home air filtration system matches this level of performance.
 

·         This advanced design uses minimal energy. The KenkoAir is Energy Star qualified by the United States Environmental Protection Agency. The Energy Star is given only to an appliance that is at least 35% more efficient than a standard model and saves its owner a minimum of 215 kilowatt-hours per year.

·         The KenkoAir Purifier costs no more than typical home air systems that do not include ULPA filtration technology and Energy Star qualification. Only Nikken offers all these advantages at a competitive price.

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KenkoAir Purifier

1.  Prefilter that removes larger particles present in air as dust, pollen, animal dander, among others.
2. Deodorizing Filter (replaceable), which neutralizes odors such as cigarette smoke. 
3. ULPA High Effciency Filters provides a 99.9995% removal of particles as small as 0.12 microns. No other home filtration system matches this level of performance. 

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The Wellness Home is by design and application an easy, effective way to be Heathy by Choice. It offers peace of mind, saves money and gives our bodies the tools it needs to repair, rejuvenate and prevent many health concerns. Early in my career as a Self Care advocate, one of my mentors asked me to imagine our children growing up in a Wellness Home, getting quality sleep, drinking healthy water, breathing pure clean air, receiving optimal nutrition, exercising and maintaining a healthy weight. My conclusion was at the time and still is, we would prevent most of our health concerns.

The awesome thing about a Wellness Home is that any home can be a Wellness Home, by utilizing Nikken products and technologies to make your home the healthiest environment possible for you and your family.  That’s why we say, “Every home a Wellness Home”. 

Be Healthy by Choice, not by Chance