The coronavirus pandemic has forced all of us to work from home and thus health experts advice us to take care of our health during this outbreak. A John Hopkins health expert advice daily routines like early morning 10-15 minutes of breathing and stress relief exercise, moving and stretching, eating well and staying focused.

• Why a wellness routine is your top priority amid protests and the pandemic — and how to start
• A Single Session of Exercise Alters 9,815 Molecules in Our Blood
• American Cancer Society Guideline for Diet and Physical Activity for cancer prevention

Benefits From Exercises

In The New York Times, its PhyEd section editor writes: “A Single Session of Exercise Alters 9,815 Molecules in Our Blood. The extensive molecular changes that occur during and after working out underscore how consequential activity is for our bodies and health. When we exercise, the levels of thousands of substances in our bloodstream rise and drop, according to an eye-opening new study of the immediate, interior impacts of working out. The study is the most comprehensive cataloging to date of the molecular changes that occur during and after exercise and underscores how consequential activity — and inactivity — may be for our bodies and health.”

It was like a symphony. First you have the brass section coming in, then the strings, then all the sections joining in. I had thought, it’s only about nine minutes of exercise, how much is going to change? A lot, as it turns out. It’s beautiful music and it’s yours.

Dr Michael Snyder, Stanford University (source: The Times)

Cancer Society Guidelines

In MinnPost, opinion writer Susan Perry writes: “The American Cancer Society released on Tuesday its updated “Diet and Physical Activity Guideline” for cancer prevention. It raises the recommended amount of weekly physical activity from a minimum of 150 minutes a week to 150-300 minutes — with an emphasis on the upper number. It also now suggests that people reduce their consumption of certain foods: processed and red meat, sugar-sweetened beverages, processed foods and alcohol.”

Coping with Emotional Wellbeing

The Psychiatric Times recommends the following Tips for Healthy Routines to stay on track during major life disruptions such as the COVID-19 pandemic:

• Set up a routine for yourself while you are in quarantine or working from home; routines help stabilize body clocks
• Get up at the same time every day: a regular wake time is the most important input for stabilizing your body clock
• Make sure you spend some time outdoors every day, especially in the early morning; your body clock is regulated by the light – dark cycle
• If you can’t go outside try to spend at least 2 hours by a window, looking into the daylight, and focusing on being calm
• Set times for a few regular activities each day such as home tutoring, telephone calls with a friend, or cooking; do these activities at the same time each day
• Exercise every day, ideally at the same time each day
• Eat meals at the same time every day; if you’re not hungry, at least eat a small snack
• Social interactions are important, even during social distancing; seek out “back and forth” social interactions where you share thoughts and feelings with another person in real time; videoconferencing, telephone, or real-time text-messaging is preferred to scrolling through messages; schedule these interactions at the same time every day
• Avoid naps during daylight hours, especially later in the day; if you must nap, restrict the nap to 30 minutes-napping can make it hard to fall asleep at night
• Avoid bright light (especially blue light) in the evening (eg, computer screens, smartphones); blue spectrum light suppresses the hormone that helps us sleep
• Stick to a consistent sleep and wake time that fits your natural rhythms; if you are a night owl, it’s ok to stay up a little bit later and get up a little bit later than others in the household, but make sure you go to sleep and get up at the same time every day.