As a blogger there are times when I sit in front of my computer, working for a long period of time. Apart from the fatigue I feel at the end of every such session there are other negative aspects of spending a lot of time in front our computer systems.

Firstly the computer chairs of most computer users are not suited for long-time sitting; when we keep up that sitting position for a long time every day, we risk serious damage to our backbone/spine. Also worth mentioning is that sitting like that for so long can affect our posture and look bad when we walk.

Moreover gluing ourselves to our monitors is the perfect way to damage our eyes. There have been countless cases of people with perfect vision ending up with weaker eyesight because they spent too much time looking at their computer monitors continuously.

The hazards of working in front of a computer are well known which is why in some countries laws are now passed to outlaw jobs that require employees to work on computer fulltime (8 hours shifts).

We however have some situations in which there is no alternative but to work on our computers (blogging, for instance). To work on our computers in a healthy fashion we need to take breaks after specific work intervals. Suppose you are going to work on your computer for 5 hours, you decide to take a 10 minute after every 45 minutes. In these 10 minutes, you get up, stretch your legs, walk a little, and after doing all that, you return to work.

This cycle is much like the Pomodoro Technique which stresses that the work-break-work-break cycle increases our productivity. A neat way to directly implement the Pomodoro Technique is to incorporate a great extension titled ChromoDorointo your Chrome browser.

With this extension installed, we can specify our work and break intervals in minutes:

Upon activation of our work cycle, we are presented a notification which states it is time for a break:

The work cycle will re-continue once the break is over.

The cycle can be activated or deactivated by the extension’s icon in the address bar. This icon also displays the number of minutes left in our next break:

If you are somebody who spends a lot of time in front of the computer working, then ChromoDoro will work wonders for you. Employing the Pomodoro Technique will produce more efficient results which will be instantly noticeable.

Being unable to sleep can make life hell. Waking up sleep deprived can greatly compromise your competence in the workplace. But the adverse effects are not restricted to your professional life; if you have not slept properly the previous night then your patience level is not at its usual state, leaving you volatile. As a consequence you might not appropriately deal with people who are important to you. Therefore both your professional and personal lives are negatively affected if you have trouble sleeping.

Most people start using sleeping pills to get into bed. But these pills can have countless long lasting side effects if take over an extended period of time. So before you take the critical decision of using sleeping pills, it would be wise to exhaust all natural solutions first.

Today we will be listing some foods which are known to induce sleep in the person eating them. Try them out; hopefully they will help.

1. Wheat bread

A slice of Whole-wheat bread toast with your tea and honey will release insulin, which will help tryptophan get to your brain, where it will be converted to serotonin and send a signal telling your body that it is time to sleep.

2. Flaxseeds

If it is worrying or depression that is keeping you from going to sleep, you should try sprinkling 2 tablespoons of flaxseeds on your bedtime oatmeal. Having a concentration of omega-3 fatty acids, flaxseeds are nature’s very own mood lifters.

3. Almonds

Almonds can also be helpful in getting you to bed. They contain doses of tryptophan and magnesium which send you into a state of sleepiness in addition to relaxing your muscles.

4. OatMeal

While traditionally a breakfast food, oatmeal contains the chemical melatonin. Melatonin naturally prepares the body for rest. This makes oatmeal a great pre-bedtime food as well.

5. Potatoes

Tryptophan, one of the chemical helping you sleep, lose their effectiveness if a lot of other chemicals are in your body. Potatoes can absorb those other chemicals, which reduces the obstacles in tryptophan’s way. Potatoes, too, would be a good food to eat before going to bed.

06. Warm Milk

“Drinking warm milk before bed will help you sleep better” is not a myth. Along with tryptophan, milk also contains calcium which helps the brain use tryptophan. Try drinking a warm glass of milk before going to bed.

7.  Nonfat Popcorns

The carbohydrates in nonfat popcorn coax your body to create serotonin (a body chemical which relaxes you). Being nonfat is a requirement since the absence of butter-fat will slow down your systems. Eating some nonfat popcorn half an hour before your bedtime should help you sleep better.

8. Chamomile tea

Chamomile tea is a great bedtime option to go with. Its mild sedating effect gradually and naturally coaxes you in the state of rest, helping your systems calm down and you sleep.

9. Honey

Whether you are having milk or chamomile tea before bed, remember to add a little honey to it. The slight dosage of glucose it will give your body will disable orexin (a body chemical believed to keep you alert).

10.

Bananas can be called the sweetest sleeping pills. In addition to containing the sleep supporting chemicals melatonin and serotonin, like almonds they also contain magnesium which relaxes your muscles. A banana before sleep would definitely be the right way to go.

Mildly puffy eyes, the kind we usually get in the morning, disappear as the day moves on as gravity drains the fluid that has accumulated throughout the night. But the irritation we feel because of them and the negative impression they send are reason enough to sought cures for puffy eyes. But before we move on to what will cure your puffy eyes, let us find out their cause.

There is not just one reason that can be pinned down as the cause of puffy eyes. The causes are multiple and may include at least one of the following:

• Dehydration
• Diet
• Insufficient sleep
• Aging
• Hormonal changes
• High blood pressure
• Drugs
• Heredity
• Possible diseases

Some of these puffy-eye-givers can only be gotten rid of by visiting a doctor, having yourself properly diagnosed, and getting a prescription. Other entries in the list however can be easily fixed by making a few adjustments to our lifestyle.

Below you will find some steps you can take to prevent getting puffy eyes in the morning.

• Stay hydrated: The step you should start out with is drinking plenty of water. Staying hydrated can not only help with puffy eyes but prevent other common conditions and give you a fresh, glowing look. Carry a water bottle with you wherever you go and simply start sipping if you find yourself free.
• Sleep well: A healthy sleep duration for normal adults is 6-8 hours. Try not fluctuating from that limit. More than the duration however, sleeping well includes a good position. Sleep on your back with your head elevated. This will prevent any fluids accumulating around your eyes and consequently prevent puffy eyes.
• Salt consumption: Salt is store by the body suspended in our fluids. It can gather around the eyes and cause the puffy effect. Therefore lowering your salt intake will help with you puffy eyes.
• Makeup: Use makeup that is not very old. Using expired eye makeup or sharing your eye makeup with other people is an easy way for bacteria to reach your eyes. Once it reaches, puffy eyes are only one of the numerous eye conditions you can get. Take caution while using eye makeup and never go to bed with it on – always remove it before going to sleep.

Start out with these simple steps and experience the satisfying difference they will make in your morning puffy eyes.

If you want not to fall prey to bad habits that will cause you to look tired in the workplace, then follow these useful tips religiously and do not deviate:

Sleep: For adults, the healthy sleep duration is six to eight hours. If you sleep too little or oversleep, then tiredness takes over. Make sure your schedule lets you sleep for at least six hours every day.
Wash: Give your face a good wash with an exfoliant. All that scrubbing and rubbing will rid your face of the tiredness to a great degree.
Water: Start drinking water as soon as you wake up. Keep a water bottle with yourself and drink throughout the day. Keeping your body hydrated like that will keep your skin glowing and not give you a dried out look.
Food: Starting from your breakfast, make sure you eat healthy. Try incorporating a lot of fruits into your diet. Consult your doctor and start taking multivitamins to give your body the nutrients you are not able to provide through your routine diet. Healthy skin, hair, and nails are essential for a good appearance.
Exercise: Exercise is not a habit rather a way to live. Daily exercise will keep you mentally active and physically fit both of which will benefit you hugely in the long run.
Dress: Your dress communicates a major part of your attitude. Wearing well pressed clothes which are stainless due to proper washing sends an impression of freshness and activeness. The color of your clothes also plays an important role. Instead of trying to make a wild fashion statement and raising alarms in the workplace, focus on simplicity and cleanliness.

Follow the abovementioned steps and excel not only in the workplace but in your everyday activities, giving all of them your hundred percent.

If you are looking for the ultimate exercise regimen that will not only keep you in shape but help you out in situations when you most need a fit body, then your search should start and end at CrossFit.

CrossFit is a fitness website like no other. The training available on the website delivers a program that is not specific but broad. If your regimen mean specializing in rowing exercises then you will not be as effective in climbing; therefore in most situations being a ‘specialized’ fitness machine is disadvantageous. CrossFit’s training ranges over various exercises and sports ensuring that you are truly fit.

From their own website: “CrossFit is the principal strength and conditioning program for many police academies and tactical operations teams, military special operations units, champion martial artists, and hundreds of other elite and professional athletes worldwide.”

To start taking advantage of CrossFit’s amazing fitness training program, you can either go to one of their licensed affiliates or work out on your own.

People who decide to work on their own should know which category they lie in:

“If you are largely familiar with the stable of CrossFit exercises then start with the WOD (Workout of the Day). If you’ve had exposure to Olympic weightlifting, power lifting, and gymnastics, then jump right in.”
“If some or many of the exercises are unfamiliar to you (only modestly acquainted with elite athletic training), it is recommended that you follow the WOD and substitute other exercises for those where you don’t have either the equipment or skill and then devise a plan for acquisition of the necessary skills or equipment needed to participate completely.”
“If many or most of the exercises are relatively or completely unknown to you, then you should begin learning the movements for a month or two until you can either perform CrossFit’s common exercises.”

CrossFit is not just another fitness site; it is a way to slowly build your body up into a machine. Numerous people from all over the world have benefited from the plans on the site and so can you.

While these forums are highly useful, the site we review today, MedHelp, is so much more than a simple health forum.

First one of MedHelp’s features is letting the user search for different health conditions and learn as much about them as possible. If somebody close to you was diagnosed with some serious illness, it would be wise to learn about that particular condition. Equipped with knowledge you might be able to help your sick loved ones in ways others cannot.

In a way, MedHelp does behave like other health forums. It does have an actual forum with a huge number of people sharing their experiences about particular diseases. Talking it out with other is particularly comforting to somebody seeking guidance. A cancer patient can talk to recovered cancer victims or read their experiences and be hopeful about the future. These forums are expertly categorized disease-wise which makes it easier to find the relevant place to read other people’s stories.

At times you simply need to know what an expert has to say. You have already gone to the nearby doctor but now you want another expert’s opinion. On MedHelp you can post a question for actual experts to answer.

The doctors answering your posts are all highly trained and experienced in their respective fields so your queries are answered in the most accurate way possible. The list of these professional doctors can be found here.

By signing up for a free account on MedHelp, not only are you able to find out about diseases, converse with members, and have your queries answered by doctors, but you can also have keep your health in check with the help of various easy-to-use tools available right there on the site. The Weight Tracker, for example, by taking the input from you can track your exercise routine or the calories consumed and keep you updated on what is going on with your weight. Similarly other Trackers (which include almost all conditions, from pregnancy to Hepatitis-C) allow you to monitor your conditions effectively and easily.

In short, this website can immensely help you in all your health related issues. Sign up for a free account today and start effectively taking better care of your health.

iMedix is a free Health community site that helps you find and share health information with patients around the world. Here’s how it works:

1. You create an iMedix account for free.
2. If you aren’t able to find your health issue by searching for it on iMedix, simply post your question.
3. iMedix informs you when your question has been answered. Your answer might have been answered by more than one person. You can choose a best answer as well so that other people who have the same query know what helped you out best. If need be, for easy future accessibility you can store the answers in the inbox that iMedix provides.

Alternatively, you can get the support you need via iMedix’s support forums for particular conditions:

After spending some time the forum you’ll be able to find helpful members with significant health-knowhow and you can chat with them live. A live chat with somebody who know about your issue will satisfy you a lot more than the forum responses.

iMedix is one of those few forums which are providing really helpful services to patients and anybody concerned for free. Give it a try any time you have a health query; you’ll be very happy you gave it a shot.

For this sort of pre-diagnosis, Symptom Checker can be employed.

With the free web service, Symptom Checker, you can select what symptoms you’re facing and reach a conclusion as to what might be ailing you. If you already know the illness you’re in, you can find the source of it.

The way it works is really simple: let’s say you have a sore throat. Click on the ‘Sore throat’ link and after checking the factors that apply to your system, click on ‘Find Causes’.

With that one click, your possible ailments will be displayed:

Whilst it is by no means a substitute for a doctor, Symptom Checker is quite a useful tool for getting to know your condition better.

Two Foods lets you compare the nutritional value of two foods. Let us take the apple and milk example; simply enter them in the fields, and click on ‘Compare:’

You are instantly shown the levels of calories, carbohydrates, fats, and proteins that a hundred grams of each food contains. You can cross check the food with your diet and make the proper decision as to which food will be best to eat.

Two Foods is not just for people on strict diets, but for everybody who is health conscious.

Hundred PushUps is a website that can help us mere mortals achieve the unbelievable goal of doing a hundred consecutive pushups.

The website provides the user with a six week plan to achieve the mentioned goal. The homepage acknowledges the fact that most people cannot even do 10 pushups and to them the aim of doing a hundred might seem unrealistic. Contrary to what it seem however, the aim is very much possible.

The plan starts off with testing your current shape i.e. it asks you to do as many complete pushups as you can; according to your number, you are assignened a plan which if you follow, in only six weeks’ time will lead you to being able to successfully complete a hundred consecutive pushups.

For everybody who wants to be fit, and even for people who want to remain in their excellent form, this website is a must see.