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Good food + good exercise = great looks

HAVE you ever wondered what the most important part of looking good is ? It is you: your face, your figure and your personality which form the basis of your own individual outlook. Healthy living and eating make you look and feel good. So diet and exercise play a vital role in your health and looks.

Diet

A healthy, well balanced diet is important for your figure, skin, hair, teeth and for the whole body. Do you eat whatever takes your fancy so long as it is quick, convenient and filling ?

Try to make a list of everything you eat and drink over the next seven days.

Then you will be able to get an idea on how well, or how badly, you are treating your body.

Your body requires a supply of proteins, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins, minerals and water to stay healthy every day. Proteins (milk, eggs, cheese, peas, beans, and lentils) are essential for the continual process of building and repairing body tissues.

Both carbohydrates (starch and sugar sources such as flour, potatoes, jam, sweets, and fruits) and fats (butter, cheese, and vegetable oils) provide heat and energy.

Vitamins and minerals are needed for many different bodily functions. Vitamin A (oily fish, liver, carrots, spinach and many green vegetables) is needed for growth, good eyesight and healthy skin.

Vitamin B (yeast, cereals, nuts, and eggs) is essential for the nervous system, energy and skin. For resistance to infections, healing, healthy gums and good circulation, it is important to take in vitamin C (citrus fruits and vegetables of every kind).

Healthy bones and teeth are the result of essential amounts of Vitamin D (oily fish and fish liver oils) while vitamin E (milk, eggs, green vegetable and wholemeal bread) is necessary for the functioning of nerves and muscles. Your body needs at least three litres of water per day, some of which will be in the food that you eat.

Workout

If you want a healthy body, you need regular exercise to tone your muscles and keep your figure trim; to improve your circulation and make your skin and hair look great.

It is an important aid for slimmers and above all it makes you feel fit, alert and full of life. When you are feeling tired and tense, a few minutes' exercise can do wonders for you.

To be effective, exercise must be regular. One or two chosen exercises performed night and morning will give definite results. Work up for six repeats to a maximum of 15.

A workout should leave you panting and short of breath. The best place to exercise is near an open window and on a carpeted floor. Wear a leotard if you have one. If not a T-shirt and pants will be just as suitable.

Exercise to music if you can. This makes the exercise fun and helps you to keep up to a rhythm. Always start with an easy stretching exercise, and always end by gently shaking your limbs to relax muscles and reduce the possibility of cramps.

Besides sports such as swimming, athletics, gymnastics, hockey, netball, tennis and volleyball, there are many other ways of keeping fit. Yoga is one such way which is becoming popular as an easy and enjoyable way of keeping fit.

Unlike conventional exercise, with its energetic and repetitive movements, yoga involves stretching the body very gently into a series of positions which help to extend and exercise it from within.

Dancing is another good way of keeping fit which also lets you express your emotions as you exercise. It is a form of toning and stretching muscles and helps to keep you supple, slim and trim.

Dancing classes are now widely available, at gyms, health clubs, day and evening institutes, and dancing centres. There are many different types of dancing: Kandyan, low country, Barthanatyam, Kathak, Latin, Jazz, Tango, ballet, tap and ballroom to name a few.

Jogging costs nothing and easy to do since it requires no special skills.

The only essential equipment is a pair of good shoes, which need good padding and thick soles to protect against the repeated impact. Regular jogging uses up lots of calories as it makes your body burn them up faster.

Jogging

Jogging is good for firming upper thighs and to keep you fit and healthy. If you like to exercise on your own, rather than in a team or a group of people, then jogging may be the sport for you.


Radiant skin without acne

PIMPLES is a frightening word for most of women, specially to those stepping into adolescence. Today's health column throws a glance at the pimples/acne problem.

Q: What is acne or pimples?


Dr. Asoka Kamaladasa - Specialist in Dermatology

A: Acne is the medical term for pimples. The belief was that pimples were not a desease and it is part of the natural growth process. But now medical science has found that pimples are a skin desease.

Acne is a disorder resulting from the action of hormones on the skin's oil glands, (sebaceous glands), which leads to plugged pores and outbreaks of lesions commonly called pimples. Acne or pimple lesions usually occur on the face, neck, back, chest, shoulders and thighs.

Although pimples are not a serious health threat, severe acne can lead to disfiguring, permanent scarring, which can upset the people affected. Pimples also definitely have a genetic background.

Q: What causes pimples?

A: Medical science does not believe that pimples are a result of having oily food. The exact cause of pimples is unknown, but doctors believe that it results from several related factors.

Pimples are also caused by external factors such as cosmetics, oily lotions and industrial chemicals. Certain drugs can also cause pimples. But some reports say that in some way chocolates can change sex hormonal balance and may aggravate pimples in an affected person.

Q: Who are prone to pimples?

A: People of all races and ages can be affected. It is most common in adolescents and young adults. Nearly 90 percent of people between 12 and 25 years develop the disorder. For most people, pimples tend to go away by the time they reach their thirties. However, some people even in their forties continue to have this problem.

Q: How is pimples treated?

A: The goal of treatment is to heal existing lesions and stop forming new lesions, prevent scarring, and minimise the psychological stress and embarrassment caused by this disease. Drug treatment is aimed at reducing several problems that play a part in causing acne.

Depending on the extent of a person's acne, the doctor will recommend medicines. There are topical (applied to the skin) or systemic (oral). Doctor may suggest using more than one topical medicine or combining oral and topical medicines.


Mexican Style - Off shoulder tops

YOUNG girls and women of today have a passion for fashionable and charming blouses and T-shirts. The Mexican or off shoulder tops which come in a variety of colours and designs are very popular among them. It can be worn either with jeans, skirts or pants.

Off shoulder tops are more suitable for girls with a slim figure and when choosing colours one should be aware of their complexion,because that adds extra elegancy.

Mexican style-off shoulder tops gives a charming fashionable look for women of any height. Off shoulder tops also look stunning with most of the stylish hair cuts.

Comfortable, smart T-shirts or blouses with off shoulder certainly add glamour to a woman's closet today.

 

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