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    How to Erase Your 4 Biggest Health Mistakes

    By Healthy SELF, SELF Magazine | Healthy Living – Wed, Feb 1, 2012 11:06 AM EST

    CN Digital StudioCN Digital StudioselfselfWorried about the smoke, booze, sun worshiping or junk-food binging in your past? Good news: New science shows that much of the harm you may have done to your body can be reversed. Here's how to wipe the slate clean.

    Related: Kristen Bell Answers Your Biggest Health Questions

    1. Oops. You snuck cigarettes at parties for years.
    It's never too late to ditch the sticks. Your body starts to bounce back a mere 20 minutes after your last puff: Carbon monoxide starts clearing from your system, and your blood vessels begin to repair themselves. You can ward off further damage with some salad: Eat 12 servings of leafy greens per month, and their phytochemicals could protect you against lung tumors and cancer, a study on smokers in Cancer Research indicates. Because you're more vulnerable to future lung damage than never-smokers are, prevent it by getting flu shots (the fewer infections you get, the better), avoiding secondhand smoke and rolling up windows if you're behind a stinky truck (no joke), says Norman H. Edelman, M.D., chief medical officer of the American Lung Association.

    2. OMG. You partied too hard in college.

    Related: 21 Good-For-You Snacks

    Still worried about frat-fiesta fallout? If you're healthy these days, don't fret about past overimbibing, says Tram Tran, M.D., medical director of liver transplantation at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. You may have caused inflammation, but that sounds scarier than it probably is: If you're usually moderate-defined as having one drink or fewer per day-your liver will naturally repair itself within a few months or at most a couple of years, Dr. Tran says. (If you have a family history of liver disease, however, it's wise to have a hepatologist screen for abnormalities.) To help your liver, do what's good for you overall: Eat well, exercise, and maintain a healthy weight. One liver-loving move, especially if you're sexually active, is to get the hepatitis B vaccine, Dr. Tran says. Finally, swig coffee: Four cups daily were associated with a 75 percent reduced risk for alcoholic cirrhosis of the liver in a study in the Archives of Internal Medicine. Less java was still associated with a lowered risk, so enjoy that morning joe.

    3. Uh-oh. You couldn't resist the tanning booth.
    Your personal tanning toll is twofold: a 74 percent higher risk for melanoma, according to a study by the University of Minnesota in Twin Cities, and premature aging. You know to coat yourself in a broad-spectrum sunscreen with SPF 30 every day. (Right?) What you might not realize is that a good way to reduce existing damage is a dual-wavelength laser like Fraxel re:store Dual. Although you may have some initial redness, you'll likely end up with younger-looking skin, and the laser may help zap precancerous cells, says Ranella Hirsch, M.D., a dermatologist in Boston. And chocolate lovers, rejoice: Antioxidants in cocoa soak up free radicals, limiting UV-ray damage in former tanners, says David Katz, M.D., a researcher at Yale University. Enjoy 1 to 2 ounces of dark chocolate with 60 percent cacao daily.

    See More: 6 Secrets to Firing Up Your Metabolism

    4. Yipes. You've been pigging out on fatty stuff.
    If you've got the cholesterol creeps, focus on healthy fats. Olive oil, avocados and walnuts can help lower levels of the LDL ("bad") cholesterol you may have upped with a diet heavy on saturated, trans and refined fats. Fats can also help you feel full for longer, avoiding binges, and the healthy ones will do so without hurting your heart, says Ashley Koff, R.D., coauthor of Mom Energy: A Simple Plan to Live Fully Charged. Then stay on the good-food path: Clock seven to nine hours of sleep nightly. The more you skimp on shut-eye, the more you throw your hunger hormones out of whack, making it harder to evade the grease-gorging habits of your past, says Christine Gerbstadt, M.D., a physician and dietitian in Sarasota, Florida. Plus, if you're well rested, you're less likely to turn to junk food for much-needed energy. That's delicious.

    More From SELF:

    -Yoga Moves for Flat Abs
    -20 Superfoods for Weight Loss
    -Jillian Michaels: How to Lose Two Pounds a Week
    -The Healthiest Cities for Women

     
    • Scott
      Scott  •  3 months ago
      Stop reading articles like this and extend your life by multiple minutes!!!!
      • Aileen
        Aileen 3 months ago
        What are you doing on here then. Practice what you preach.
      • Mark
        Mark 3 months ago
        Oh Sweet Irony... ;-)
      • gekogirl1
        gekogirl1 3 months ago
        ha ha...extreme boredom got to me as well.
    • gekogirl1
      gekogirl1  •  Kingsport, Tennessee  •  3 months ago
      the oldest living man ate bacon and eggs every morning, walked to his mailbox, and enjoyed a beer a few times a month...it's all about moderation and good genes...
      • Mary
        Mary 3 months ago
        That certainly helps.
      • Jean Paul
        Jean Paul 3 months ago
        Beer a few times a month? F..k that take a couple of years off my life!
      • StemCell
        StemCell 3 months ago
        Some people have good cholesterol clearing mechanisms. It may have to do with the size of their cholesterol molecules (larger ones don't tend to stick as much as smaller ones)--genetics, as you say. The rest of us have to avoid the bacon and eggs, and, maybe even moderation.
    • DSundiego
      DSundiego  •  San Diego, California  •  3 months ago
      I would really hate to be lying in bed dying of nothing!!!! Ya gotta live!!!
      • Linda
        Linda 3 months ago
        Ha! Ha!
      • William
        William 3 months ago
        Say that to someone whom is unduly on their deathbed, the internet is one thing but im willing to bet you dont speak like that in real life. Either that or one day, youll find yourself unduly on your deathbed and in either case i feel for people like you.
      • angelah
        angelah 3 months ago
        Excessively on their deathbed?
    • tracy
      tracy  •  Port Orchard, Washington  •  3 months ago
      Not going to preach at the smokers, but I was a pack a day for many years and am now trying to survive on one lung. I'm here to tell you that this isn't a way to live. I can 100% guarantee you won't like it. Please stop!
      • John
        John 3 months ago
        God bless you.
      • John
        John 3 months ago
        Smokers Check out moneybucket.biz it saved my life
      • motherhen
        motherhen 3 months ago
        MY DAUGHTER WOULD NOT LISTEN ABOUT SMOKING AND NOW SHE HAS LOTS LUNG PROBLEMS ,MAYBE CANCER NOT SURE YET...SHE IS 55 ..I AM 74 AND DO NOT HAVE PROBLEMS WITH COLDS,BRONCHITIS AND ALL THAT LUNG PROBLEMS YOU GET FROM SMOKING ...IT PAYS TO LISTEN.
    • Scott
      Scott  •  3 months ago
      As soon as you are born, you are dying......
      • Dana
        Dana 3 months ago
        You are right...today is the oldest I've ever been.
      • Alicia
        Alicia 3 months ago
        Not true. Your body has not released the triggers for aging until approx 24 years of age :o)
      • Coyote
        Coyote 3 months ago
        Well, I don't think he meant it in a physiological sense. He meant when you are born, your clock starts, and whips and scorns of time shortens the cord.
    • Step
      Step  •  Moscow, Idaho  •  3 months ago
      I'll take the walnuts and add coffee.
    • Coyote
      Coyote  •  Las Vegas, Nevada  •  3 months ago
      Here's another one....Ate too much salty foods? Drink more water....
    • MOM
      MOM  •  Pinellas Park, Florida  •  3 months ago
      Unfortunately, you can eat and drink all the wrong things to excess and still be alive.........but feel like crap every day for the rest of your life. That's not my definition of living. I can't control how long I'll live but I can sure as hell control how good I feel while I live. LOVING LIFE!
    • Ronald B
      Ronald B  •  Raleigh, North Carolina  •  3 months ago
      as a minister I have done my share of nursing home visits and I must say, living for ever , is not for me,
    • writer'sblock
      writer'sblock  •  3 months ago
      Sex, drugs, and rock and roll !!! By all accounts, lots of us baby boomers should be dead by now: no air bags or seat belts, tanned ourselves a golden brown each summer, smoked pot and cigarettes, drank often, had unprotected sex, ate Bob's Big Boy hamburgers..#$%$..how I miss those days where I threw caution to wind and just went for it...without any forethought to the consequences of my actions !!!
    • Stef
      Stef  •  Buffalo, New York  •  3 months ago
      I have two sisters, both now in their late-50's. One was the "beautiful" one. Shapely, sexy, bikini wearing, sun-worshipping babe. She was HOT! She was like that all her life.
      The other sister was the "smart" one. Less attractive, chubby, not particularly what you would call a babe. She always wore hats, good sun screen, rarely sun tanned even though she lives in AZ and was outside quite often.
      Today, the beautiful one looks like she's made of alligator skin, or an old baseball mit. It's shocking, what has happened to her. The smart one could easily pass for someone in her 40's. She has a face as smooth and pure as a fresh peach. It's absolutely amazing, the difference between the two.
      You people in your 20's that are reading this... take note. It's a real thing. And once it happens, it's too late. Go ahead and enoy the sun. And if you got it, flaunt it. But be aware what will happen if you don't take precautions and use moderation. You WILL turn into LEATHER FACE. And not just your face.
    • paul b
      paul b  •  3 months ago
      Sorry, but your body is going to break down and die one way or another. We all will die.

      The tragedy would be not living life to the fullest.
    • Sandy
      Sandy  •  Boston, Massachusetts  •  3 months ago
      It's not just about living longer but avoiding chronic diseases and livng in pain. Organic veggies is a whole lot cheaper than being on drugs forever!
    • hose b
      hose b  •  3 months ago
      Eat, drink and be merry, for tomorow you shall die!
    • April K
      April K  •  Austin, Texas  •  3 months ago
      Tanning beds are soooo bad, and some women just refuse to listen. I used to hate that I'm so fair skinned and that I burn easily, but now I realize its a blessing. It's kept me out of the sun and tanning beds. If I want a little color, I just use fake tan and a little bronzer. It's not worth dying, ladies. My children are bi-racial with beautiful olive complexions, but I still put spf 30 on them when we go swimming. Everyone is capable of getting skin cancer!
    • O.G. - Oscar the Grouch
      O.G. - Oscar the Grouch  •  3 months ago
      good thing i found the fountain of youth.
    • scott
      scott  •  Los Angeles, California  •  3 months ago
      WHAT IF I GET HIT AND KILLED BY A TRK?
      THE HEALTHIST DEAD PERSON??
    • smith
      smith  •  New York, New York  •  3 months ago
      It's these tips that help people actually live the best they can, which you say in your comment! You can love your family all you want, but if you choose unhealthy behaviors, you will be gone before you're supposed to be and that's not good for ANYONE! I wish people would stop fighting this stuff, and try to take care of the only bodies they will EVER have. People would be happier, and we could significantly reduce the money we ALL pay for people who need medical treatment due to unhealthy lifestyle choices. Do you have to be perfect? NO way, impossible, but jesus people just try!!
    • Barbara
      Barbara  •  3 months ago
      The American people need to tell the News Media we are sick to death (no pun intended) of all these scare tactics about our health. Who is funding all these studies? I would be will ing to bet it's PETA and the Vegans. Before everyone jumps on this, I am in my sixties, at the low end of recommended weight and in very good health. I eat, drink and smoke what I want in moderation. There will always be some people who can't stand the rest of us enjoying life.
    • Stormy
      Stormy  •  Los Angeles, California  •  3 months ago
      Help! I am going crazy at the never-ending, changing list of what is good and what not is good for you. And what is with all this crap about living longer? What is so great about that? Is it a race to see who can live the longest? Well, count me out of that race. I already know I won't have social security benefits, the doctors don't want to treat people anymore, I won't be able to afford any medicines or medical procedures. So I say....Live free and die hard!
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