Global One Magazine

What’s your stress “tell?” For some, a quickened heart rate or a slight feeling of queasiness is enough to let them know they’re getting anxious or overwhelmed. But just as a slight from your boss or bad news from a family member can get your stress hormones pumping and your blood pressure rising quickly, you have the power to reset almost instantly.

When we’re stressed, hormones like cortisol flood our systems, producing the “fight or flight response” in which our heart rate goes up, we breathe more heavily (requiring more oxygen) and our blood vessels constrict. While in the pre-civilization world, the increased blood flow to our heart and muscles helped us escape from predators and dangerous situations, we find ourselves in a very different position now. Our bodies can’t tell the difference between an approaching grizzly bear and a ticked off spouse or a particularly epic traffic jam, so our stress response is triggered when there’s no imminent danger. Instead of helping us to escape, this can contribute to chronic conditions like hypertension and headaches, as well as mental health concerns like depression and anxiety disorders. What’s more, stress can make other conditions — like asthma, irritable bowel syndrome and insomnia — worse.

Identity your stress triggers. First things first, what exactly stresses you out? Do you know exactly what triggers this reaction? How do you react to it? When you have a few answers, look for possible solutions. While you’re not going to be able to eliminate every stress trigger in your life, you can at least remove the ones that you have influence over.

Breathe deeply.  Any yogi knows that the breath — known as pranayama or “life force” — plays an important role in nourishing the body. And medical researchers agree.  “Breathing exercises can help you relax, because they make your body feel like it does when you are already relaxed

Take a 10-minute walk.  Exercise is one of the best stress relievers out there. But not everyone will take the time or have the motivation to commit to a strict workout regimen.  Could you squeeze in a 10-minute walk either first thing in the morning, during a lunch break, or when we get home from work? A short walk clears our heads and boost endorphins, which in turn reduces stress hormones.

Laugh.  Since we all have different senses of humor, think about something that puts a smile on your face. Is it an old SNL sketch, viral video of a dog chasing its tail, or reminiscing about that time your best friends fell down the stairs? Whatever it is, keep it on hand so it’s easily accessible when you need a good laugh.

You are not doomed to toss and turn every night. Here is better sleep, from setting a sleep schedule to including physical activity in your daily routine.

Think about all the factors that can interfere with a good night’s sleep — from work stress and family responsibilities to unexpected challenges, such as illnesses. It’s no wonder that quality sleep is sometimes elusive. While you might not be able to control the factors that interfere with your sleep, you can adopt habits that encourage better sleep.

Start with these simple tips.

1. Stick to a sleep schedule – Set aside no more than eight hours for sleep. The recommended amount of sleep for a healthy adult is at least seven hours. Most people don’t need more than eight hours in bed to achieve this goal. Go to bed and get up at the same time every day. Try to limit the difference in your sleep schedule on weeknights and weekends to no more than one hour. Being consistent reinforces your body’s sleep-wake cycle. If you don’t fall asleep within about 20 minutes, leave your bedroom and do something relaxing. Read or listen to soothing music. Go back to bed when you’re tired. Repeat as needed.

2. Pay attention to what you eat and drink – Don’t go to bed hungry or stuffed. In particular, avoid heavy or large meals within a couple of hours of bedtime. Your discomfort might keep you up. Nicotine, caffeine, and alcohol deserve caution, too. The stimulating effects of nicotine and caffeine take hours to wear off and can wreak havoc on quality sleep. And even though alcohol might make you feel sleepy, it can disrupt sleep later in the night.

3. Create a restful environment – Create a room that’s ideal for sleeping. Often, this means cool, dark and quiet. Exposure to light might make it more challenging to fall asleep. Avoid prolonged use of light-emitting screens just before bedtime. Consider using room-darkening shades, earplugs, a fan or other devices to create an environment that suits your needs. Doing calming activities before bedtime, such as taking a bath or using relaxation techniques, might promote better sleep.

4. Limit daytime naps – Long daytime naps can interfere with nighttime sleep. If you choose to nap, limit yourself to up to 30 minutes and avoid doing so late in the day. If you work nights, however, you might need to nap late in the day before work to help make up your sleep debt.

5. Include physical activity in your daily routine – Regular physical activity can promote better sleep. Avoid being active too close to bedtime. Spending time outside every day might be helpful, too.

6. Manage worries – Try to resolve your worries or concerns before bedtime. Jot down what’s on your mind and then set it aside for tomorrow. Stress management might help. Start with the basics, such as getting organized, setting priorities and delegating tasks. Meditation also can ease anxiety.

Food is the great unifier that connects us across cultures and generations. We have all had those moments when we smelled something that reminded us of our childhood or recreated a dish that we had abroad that immediately brought us back to that foreign place. Food can quite literally propel you to another time, another country, another culture without even leaving your dinner table, which is why food culture is such an important way that we as people are able to connect and relate to one another.

    Food culture is as much a part of me as I was a part of my food culture, and as I got older and began to travel and explore food cultures and the way in which they nourish our bodies differently, I began to better understand how my own food culture was able to give me a natural appreciation and sense of connection for the way in which food, local ingredients, and traditions can connect us as people — even when nothing else seems possible.

Different Food Cultures Around the World

There are many different food cultures of the world. Some are more distinctive and globally famous than others, and some which very rarely leave their regional environment but are still just as significant to the local community they influence.

Different food cultures around the world are influenced by many factors, but the most noticeable is arguably the way in which different food cultures utilize specific ingredients and spices to evoke unique flavor profiles that define their food culture. Therefore, food cultures often vary regionally even within one country depending on the landscape, weather, and history that each region uniquely experienced.

While the United States is not known for having the most positive food culture, this is something that is very apparent as local cuisines in the United States vary drastically depending on what region you live in. The same holds true for Italian food culture, which varies drastically from North to South.

Regardless of what ingredients, flavors, or traditions exist between different food cultures there are two things that act as connected threads woven throughout them all — community and pleasure. There isn’t a food culture in the world that does not include these two parts of our food experience, even though they are often overlooked and undervalued in the American interpretation of food culture.

 What this means is that we were meant to enjoy our food. We experience pleasure when we eat. We are meant to enjoy our food. Food cultures are founded on the way in which food was used to celebrate religious holidays, community events, and family gatherings. In other words, food is celebrated and respected as an essential part of what makes humans human.

Importance of Food and Culture for Well-Being

Food cultures, no matter where in the world, all encompass a few key components:

• involve sharing food with community and family. They…
• value the needs of the land over the convenience driven desires of people
• use food to celebrate religious and community events
• focus on local and seasonal ingredients, and use them to create unique and distinguishable flavors
• value their food experiences and then move on with their day
• are not something to be manipulated, it is meant to be shared and celebrated

This is where we begin to be able to clearly see how our food is meant to support the land it is grown on, nourishing both our bodies and our environment, as well as something that we are meant to live in balance with, not control.

For these reasons it is easy to see how food and culture conflict significantly with the Western diet culture that exists today to separate ourselves from our food culture, and instead turn our food into something to be controlled and measured.

How Food Culture Impacts Health

But what does food culture have to do with health? EVERYTHING. Without a strong food culture food becomes something that we manipulate for personal gain. It stops being something that we respect, and becomes something that we aim to control, and the more we aim to control our food the less we value and experience it.

Food cultures are deeply rooted parts of our history that has evolved and developed overtime. It is  essential parts of how we support our overall health and nourish our bodies. However, over the past half century within the United States especially, commercially processed foods and the insurgence of supermarkets and marketed diet culture have disconnected many Americans with their traditional food culture to the point where they may not even recognize it anymore.                             

  For so many Americans the phrase food culture doesn’t mean much. Food is something that comes packaged, that is counted and manipulated, and overall disconnected from any real meaning. At some point we decided to remove the culture from our food and our health began to suffer.

  All you have to do is take a look at the blue zones of the world (the areas of the world researched to have the happiest and longest lifespans) to understand that our food culture is as much a part of our personal and societal well-being, as our food is itself.

You are on time for work, got your sexy outfit on and your make-up is on point. Your favorite customer is coming to the club. He pays you lots of money, so you must look your best. You look over to the left and there is your cell phone. Could this be a great time for a selfie? You think about it for a few seconds and your answer is yes. Just as likely as it is that you will be sitting with other dancers, it is even more likely that you will be inspired to immortalize the moment by snapping 25 consecutive pictures of yourself in the hunt for the perfect selfie. Admit it selfie culture is here to stay. How do we know? ‘Even our daughters and moms are sneaking in selfies. It’s time to embrace the prudish movement and love our “selfies” even more.

Here are some do’s and don’ts that’ll help you put your best face forward. Always protect your brand – YOU!

• DO NOT over-selfie it. Save your selfies for special occasions: A new haircut, a great outfit, the private moment before your walk down the aisle; you know, the moments worth sharing. By adding context to your post, your photo becomes more of a story. It creates an opportunity for specific feedback from your friends as opposed to the random streaming feed of your face that only seems to say, “Hey, how about some compliments today?”

DO find your good side.  The art of a great selfie starts with choosing the right angle. Tilt the most symmetrical side of your face slightly towards the camera. Hold the camera a little above your head, angling the lens downward. This will make your nose appear slenderer and your eyes larger. Prepare to have your prettily posed post blasted with insta-love.

• DO NOT do the duck face. I am guilty of this one. I have a duck face selfie right now on my Instagram. I will leave it just so you can see how ridiculous the duck lips are. You have not fooled us. We do not think your lips are that plump. You just look a little bit like a duck now.
• DO find the perfect lighting. The best selfies are taken in natural light and front lit. The bright light smooths out the skin tone while providing a natural beauty filter. You will be able to post the photo with the ever-enviable awe-inducing hashtag #nofilter (and you will actually be telling the truth).
• NO selfies in insensitive environments. Perhaps this one is obvious, but many people have made the embarrassing mistake of snapping selfies at the worst time. Things to avoid are funerals, natural disasters, and any form of human suffering. Posing while operating a moving vehicle is also not advised. If the perfect light strikes while you are in the driver’s seat, pull over and hashtag your photo #thiscarwasparked.
• DO pose in front of beautiful backdrops. Vibrant wallpaper, the textured bark of a tree, your head tossed back in a field of electric-green grass, a richly colored bookcase – all of these are inspired backdrops. Look to build a vibe that has a bit more to say than, “Look at me!” After all, photography is an art so explore the depths of your inner artist.
• DO not pose half-naked in underwear.  I know you are going to do it anyway, because you are a stripper, I am hoping you do not. Protect your brand.
• DO invest in a selfie stick.  One of the quickest ways to look a little less selfie is to widen the frame. Using a selfie stick allows you to make the image about the sweeping panorama behind you or the loving huddle of friends wrapped in your arms. Grab that innovative stick and wave it proud as you capture the bigger picture.
• DO experiment with different looks. Selfies seem to tap into that early childlike part of ourselves—like when we played dress-up in front of the mirror while applying our mother’s lipstick. Go ahead and have fun! Strike a pose with a new lip shade, dramatic liner, false eyelashes, or a hat you have always wanted to secretly wear. Express all your many sides while also testing your new looks before you brave the real world.
• DO NOT take yourself too seriously. Putting your best face forward does not always mean your perfect face. Dare to post a picture of your natural makeup-free face, make silly faces, or share a post-workout messy ponytail glow. Show the world that you have a sense of humor, that you are fearless, that you, in fact, do not need to be perfect. There is nothing prettier than your truth. So, selfie that!

People all over the world take selfies. Millions of people take selfies every day, yet it is an

oft-reviled practice. You could call the selfie our most popular guilty pleasure.