Forget the resolutions- Make a commitment

You know the drill… You spend the entire holiday season overindulging – on food, drinks, gifts. Then New Year’s Eve arrives and you consider your options for a resolution. Chances are the resolution you choose will be one of the following: 1. Lose weight, 2. Quit smoking, or 3. Pay off debt.

The word resolution itself is a noun describing something you intend to do, a commitment. Research shows that 40-45 percent of Americans make New Year’s resolutions. Seventy-five percent stick to their guns for the first week, while only about 45 percent are still on track by June and only 10 percent by Dec. 31st in that same year.

For 2013, call it a commitment. Commit yourself to improving your health. Try one of these less popular, but highly rewarding and easily attainable goals. So that you don’t fall victim to the resolution rut: set realistic, measurable goals and come up with a plan or a timeline for attaining those goals.

1. Volunteer.
Studies of mental health prove that people who do good deeds have higher brain levels of serotonin, the hormone that makes you feel happy. Find creative ways to beat the winter blues by getting your whole family involved in a volunteer activity. Convince a local restaurant to donate leftovers to the homeless. Do some spring cleaning and donate all your unused clothes to a charity. Offer up your unique skills at a local library as part of community outreach. Become a mentor at your local youth organization to help motivate our teenagers. Teach your children how to do good and watch a legacy of generosity develop right before your eyes. DoSomething is a great resource for ideas for volunteering your time, money or talents.

2. Get outside and get your D.
You may find that your annual physical this year may include a Vitamin D level. As physicians learn more about the importance of Vitamin D in preventing major illnesses like cancers, diabetes, arthritis, allergies and heart disease, the more we realize how deficient most Americans are in Vitamin D.

Our sedentary, indoor lifestyles limit our direct sunlight exposure, especially during the winter months. The average Caucasian requires 20 minutes of unprotected (meaning no sunscreen) sun exposure per day in order for the body to convert your daily requirement of Vitamin D. Individuals with darker skin probably need about an hour’s worth.

Even if you are drinking your milk, which is fortified with Vitamin D, it is possible that you are deficient. Ask your doctor to check your levels and make other recommendations about how you can achieve your daily recommended D levels. And while you’re outside, you may as well get a little cardio in. Short intervals of intense workouts are shown to be more effective at burning calories and converting fatty tissue to lean muscle mass. This resolution is a two-for-one!The National Institute of Health Office of Dietary Supplements website provides extensive information about Vitamin D metabolism, how much you require, and how you can get it safely.

3. Regulate your sleep cycle.
At least 40 million Americans suffer from chronic sleep disorders and another 20 million from intermittent sleep disorders. Insomnia is just one form. Other conditions like bruxism (grinding teeth), restless legs, sleep apnea, night terrors, sleepwalking and sleep paralysis can severely affect quality of life. Those who have been treated for sleep disorders, especially severe conditions like sleep apnea enjoy revolutionary lifestyle improvements. Many will lose weight, come off their medications for high blood pressure and enjoy better control of their blood sugars. In addition, once a sleep disorder is under control, patients’ mood and energy improve while levels of anxiety and fatigue decrease dramatically. If you suffer from impaired sleep, consult with your primary care doctor who can recommend a sleep specialist, usually a pulmonologist.

4. Get intimate.
Theoretically, this should be an easy one to accomplish. However, with hectic work schedules, childrens’ activities and other obligations, even very close couples find themselves putting their private life on the back burner. Make a commitment to your spouse to have a date night once a month when you’re both sure to get lucky. Aim to increase your sexual activity to twice as often as you’re doing it now.

Some tips to ensure that you’ll be able to fit it in… Don’t just reserve intimacy or flirtation for the night time. By the time the evening rolls around you’re both usually exhausted from the day. Try to fit in some alone-time in the morning or mid-day. Surprise your spouse by coming home early from work before the kids get home. Try something new and different. Mixing it up will break the monotony and make your new goal that much more attainable.

Another double bang for your buck (pun intended)… having sex burns calories, improves self-confidence and strengthens the bond in your relationship. Frequent ejaculation helps protect men against prostate cancer and frequent climax is shown to help women relax. Why wouldn’t you make this your resolution? MSNBC provides some convincing evidence about exactly how sex keeps us healthy.

5. Get up to date on your healthcare maintenance.
This one should be a part of everyone’s routine every year. But all too often people don’t get to the doctors for their routine physical for several reasons: no time, fear of bad news, they feel well and don’t see a need to visit a physician. But, risk reduction and early detection are two key elements in keeping you from acquiring life threatening diseases like high blood pressure, diabetes and many types of cancer.

If you are an adult over forty, chances are you are in need of a mammogram, prostate or pelvic exam. If you’re over 50, you’re in for a colonoscopy. By 60 you should prepare yourself for bone density studies and an abdominal sonogram to screen for aortic aneurysm. Depending on your individual risks, you may need screening chest x-rays (especially if you’re a smoker), blood tests, STD screening tests, and vaccines such as influenza, pneumonia, and the shingles booster. The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force provides comprehensive guidelines for screening and early detection of diseases.

If you’re really motivated and ready to tackle your biggest health concerns, then go for the big ones – Get to the gym, actually quit smoking, pay down some of that debt. But if you’re looking for something new, make 2013 your healthiest year yet by committing yourself to a new New Year’s resolution you can attain.

Good luck and have a happy, healthy New Year!

Alexis Hugelmeyer, D.O. is the wife of Michael, mother of Isabella, 5, and Lance, 2, and a family physician whose passion is hands-on manipulation for treatment and healing of any and every type of medical problem. She is administrative director of medical education and internship director at Peconic Bay Medical Center and also a private practitioner in Riverhead. A graduate of Villanova University and New York College of Osteopathic Medicine, she lives in Baiting Hollow.

Look for Dr. Mom every Saturday on Riverheadlocal.com

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