National Granola Bar Day

Today is a day to celebrate the granola bar and the nutrition and energy found in them. There are many different kinds available at grocery stores but recipes for homemade ones are plentiful too.

Granola bars are known for their energy and ease of travel.  They can be high in calories but granola bars are a healthier alternative to other processed snacks. Your body gets more energy and nutrients.  They come in bars but they can also come in energy balls.

Private Home Health Care loves healthy granola bars.  We’d love to share this healthy recipe:

1 cup of oatmeal

½ cup peanut butter

¼ cup honey

1 scoop of either Chocolate or Vanilla Juice Plus Complete Shake Mix

Mix together and form into balls. Roll them in either coconut or melted chocolate chips to finish.  Refrigerate for half an hour and enjoy!

Coffee Breaks

What is the first thing you think about when you think about coffee breaks?  Do you think about caffeine?  What about coffee breaks bringing people together?  

Coffee breaks started in 1900 so they’ve been around for a long time.  At work, they can generate conversation around challenges in the workplace or personal stories. Friendships and bonds can be created.

It can also be nice to share a coffee outside of work with a friend to catch up on life.  A slow pace and sharing stories is good for the soul.

John Hopkins Medicine has research showing possible health benefits to drinking coffee too.  A couple of cups a day may make you less likely to develop heart or Parkinson’s disease.  Liver enzymes could be higher as well.  Women aged 65 and older who drink two to three cups a day may be less likely to develop dementia.

Try taking a coffee break and share stories with a friend or co-worker.  Watch the sugar and cream but enjoy yourself and your coffee, regular or decaf!

Martin Luther King Jr.

Today we honor Martin Luther King, Jr. and his legacy.  It is the 27th anniversary of the national day of service created in his name.

Martin Luther King, Jr. worked tirelessly to bring equality to all people in America at a time when there were great racial divisions.  He strove to bring dignity to all people, no matter the color of their skin, through peaceful protests, not violence.  

Private Home Health Care commemorates his life today. We will continue to look for ways to help and improve the communities that we serve.

Organization

Do you ever feel like you have a lot of clutter where you live?

A new year can be a time to try and get a bit more organized.  The weather is cold and you are often inside so you might find it’s the perfect setting.

Paperwork can accumulate fast.  Review the rules for how long you need to keep important papers like bank and credit card statements. Go through other papers and decide if you still feel they are needed.  Any sensitive papers should be shredded. 

This should be done over a period of time because it’s hard to accomplish in one day. You can start with one room and decide if there is anything you don’t need anymore.  Donate items to a local thrift store or shelter.  Then move on to the next room.

If you need guidance there are resources.  “Good Housekeeping, first published in 1885, can be helpful.  Amazon also lists titles like “Better Home and Gardens”, “Real Simple” and “HGTV Magazine.”  Check the television for shows and if you need motivation you could try watching TED Talks.

Private Home Health Care hopes that you can get a bit more organized if you feel it’s needed.  It’s on our list for 2022!

Poetry

Tomorrow is Poetry Break Day.  A day to celebrate poetry! 

Poetry has a long history.  Did you know that many consider the first poem to be created 4,000 years ago?  The “Epic of Gilgamesh” is the name and was the retelling of the story of Noah’s Ark.  The poetry genres of epic, tragic and comic were determined by Aristotle way back in 350 B.C.

Poets and poetry have flourished all over the world.  Poets like William Shakespeare and Walt Whitman.  In the 19th century we know the names of Emily Dickinsin, Henry David Thoreau, Walt Whitman, WB Yeats and Robert Browning.  Let’s not forget Robert Frost!  Poetry continues to be very popular to this day!

Private Home Health Care hopes that you will have a chance to enjoy the day by taking a moment to write poetry, read a favorite poem or learn more about the life of your favorite poet.

To get you started here is a poem by William Wordsworth:

“My Heart Leaps Up”

My heart leaps up when I behold

 A rainbow in the sky;

So was it when my life began;

So be it when I shall grow old,

 Or let me die?

The Child is the father of the Man;

And I could wish my days to be 

Bound each to each by natural

  piety.

Milk

Tomorrow is National Milk Day.  Why should you drink milk? 

According to verywell fit.com, milk has many nutrients and vitamins to help us as we age.  There is some fat but there’s also 8 grams of protein and all the essential amino acids needed.

Milk also provides calcium, phosphorus, vitamin D, riboflavin and vitamin B12.  Vitamin D and calcium help with bone strength to help fight against osteoporosis.  Our US milk is also fortified with vitamin D.

“A 2013 study of elderly women (ages 70-85) found those who consumed 2.2 daily servings of milk, yogurt and cheese had improved body composition compared to those who ate 1.5 or fewer a day.” (Check the website to reference the study.) 

Whether you like whole, 2%, 1%, skim, almond or soy milk you are guaranteed to get lots of nutrients to nurture your body.  

Private Home Health Care hopes that you enjoy milk tomorrow whether it’s by the glass or added to oatmeal or your favorite cereal.

Winter

Snowstorms for those of us in the northeast tells us that we are truly in the month of winter.  Snow makes for fun activities like skiing, tubing, building forts or making snow angels.  It can be beautiful and a great time to enjoy the outdoors.

Winter and the cold outdoors can also wreak havoc on our skin.  As we age our skin naturally dries out.  The cold outside and the heat inside can add to the dryness.

Private Home Health Care would like to share some things we’ve learned that can help keep skin from getting too dry.

Keep hydrated.  The Mayo Clinic recommends daily liquid intakes of 3.7 liters for men and 2.7 liters for women.

Avoid taking long, hot showers which can take away natural oils.  Take shorter, warm showers and use gentle soaps. 

Pat dry your skin after bathing and use a moisturizer before leaving the warmth of the bathroom.

As John Steinbeck said, “What good is the warmth of summer, without the cold of winter to give it sweetness.”

National Bean Day

What do kidney, chickpea, black-eyed peas, lentils, edamame, fava and soy all have in common?  You guessed it!  They are all beans/legumes.

Tomorrow is National Bean Day, a day to celebrate the wide variety of healthy beans we can available.  Adding beans to your diet will supply lots of vitamins, protein and fiber which are important to a well-rounded diet.

Lentil beans for example supply 17g of protein, 11g of fiber and between 43-90% of Manganese, Copper and Folate (Vitamin B9). Manganese is important to your kidneys, liver, pancreas and bones.  Copper helps with your metabolism and immune system.  Folate helps with basic cell function.

Tomorrow on National Bean Day, Private Home Health Care hopes you can learn about some of these amazing beans.  Once you find a bean you’d like to try, look for a recipe that you can enjoy and share to spread the goodness.

#NationalBeanDay

Celebration of Life Week

The first week in January often starts with new year’s resolutions.  Did you also know that this week is the Celebration of Life Week?

The holidays and the new year can bring us to a time of reflection. This week it’s important to celebrate the big and little things in your life.  Perhaps you earned a degree or got hired for a new job.  Perhaps you learned a new recipe or discovered a new book.  Celebrate those moments and the people in your life.  

Some ways to celebrate life this week include telling people in your life how you care about them, playing a new game or watching a good movie.  You can think of other ways too.

Private Home Health Care hopes that you take time for a celebration this week, including celebrating you!

#CelebrationOfLifeWeek

Happy New Year

We at Private Home Health Care want to extend our warmest wishes for a happy, healthy and hope filled new year.

As we close out 2021, we wait expectantly for a lessening of the pandemic and pray for peace in our communities and our world.  Life is precious and the people in our lives so important.  It can be filled with gifts along with challenges and difficult times.  

Our hope for 2022 is that each of us is able to see the beauty of each day, manage the good times along with those difficult times and find an inner peace and happiness.