1 . Something You Should Know About Balance Exercises

You need balance to perform just about any task, from walking, standing, sitting down in your chair, to every workout. Good balance helps prevent falls and therefore injuries, and simply makes daily activities easier and safer to perform. How steady you are on your feet can indicate how likely you are to live a longer, healthy life.     1    , you should take some balance exercises. Don’t wait until it’s too late.

·What exercises should you take?

    2    . Other things that work your balance slightly differently, but again are really good, are ball games. It can be anything involving hand-eye coordination, such as tennis or table tennis.

·How often should you perform balance exercises?

Balance exercises are often low-impact, controlled movements, so there’s not really any risk of over-training. Older adults who are at risk of falls should try to do balance training at least three times a week to reduce risk.     3    .

·    4    ?

Training your balance three to six times each week should start to show results in 11 to 12 weeks. So, if you perform these exercises multiple times a week, you should see improvements in your balance in as few as three months.

·How long should you hold balance exercise positions?

The key to successful balance exercises is control and form. Move slowly with intention, focusing on bracing your core (稳住重心).     5    . For the movements that require a hold, try to hang on for at least 30 seconds, increasing each week as you improve.

2 . Plants are of greater importance in our lives than we think whether or not we are keen gardeners.     1    

Large, leafy plants placed indoors provide some shade and reduce heat from sunlight inside a room when we don’t necessarily always want to keep curtains shut. Indoor plants will also cool the air around them slightly as they transpire (水分蒸发). This can help to keep humidity (湿度) within the human comfort zone of around 30% to 60%.     2    .

While placing plants indoors is not going to solve all air quality issues, certain plants are known to be effective in improving air quality within a home.     3     Outdoors, plants also help improve air quality, especially where there is a particular issue such as busy roads or industrial areas nearby.

    4     Modern rooms with lots of hard surfaces are sometimes acoustically (听觉上) uncomfortable, noisy spaces when poorly designed. Interestingly, indoor plants may help to reduce indoor noise levels. Placing potted plants in certain places —or, better yet, creating green walls indoors —can help provide acoustic comfort.

It has been shown in numerous studies that being around greenery and plants helps us to feel calmer and reduce stress. We feel calmer in natural environments.     5     This may be a simple thing, but the ability to connect with nature right outside our doors, and even inside our homes, can make a surprisingly big difference when it comes to how comfortable we feel.

5 . If you’ve ever walked around the streets of a Chinese city and seen sticks of brightly colored fruit shining in the winter sun, chances are that you’ve been at a tanghulu stall.

    1    ? Also called bingtanghulu, it’s a traditional northern Chinese snack made of skewered (串起的) fresh fruit dipped into syrup that hardens quickly, creating a hard shell. Crunchy and sweet on the outside, soft and sour on the inside, this sugarcoated special ty of northern China is a winter favorite with young and old alike.

    2    , many creative traders — and tanghulu lovers at home — will also make it with any number of other diverse fruits like strawberries, grapes, mandarin oranges and pineapple segments (瓣；片).

Tanghulu dates back to the Song Dynasty when it was a favorite with the Chinese imperial family. Legend has it that when a princess in the court fell sick, a doctor suggested she eat hawthorn (山楂) fruit fried in brown sugar every day for two weeks. On her recovery, the doctor became famous.     3    .

Nowadays it’s perhaps the most popular street sweet in China.     4    . When the weather cools, the vendors (小贩) increase, and you can’t avoid seeing them.     5    .

6 . Keeping clean is an important part of a healthy lifestyle.     1     You should keep yourself clean as well as your living area, such as your home or apartment. You should also keep clean when you are at work or when you are traveling.     2     Here are some tips to help you.

    3     Cleaning your body often is an important part of healthy habits. You should try to shower once or twice a week, as showering once a day can dry out your skin. You should also shower after a workout (锻炼) or after spending a hot day outside.

Keep your mouth clean. To keep your mouth clean, you should brush your teeth twice a day.     4     Besides, you should get in the habit of gargling (漱口) after meals.

Wash your hands.     5     First, wet your hands, turn off the water and keep the soap on your hands for at least 20 seconds. Then wash your hands under clean running water. Finally, dry them.

9 . Ways the Pandemic Has Changed Our Relationship with Food for the Better

Some of food-related behavior changes have the potential to become new habits with long-term benefits. Here are five eating-related behaviors that might be kept after the pandemic.

For the first time, some kids now have two parents home for weeknight dinners.     1     That highlights the importance of eating together when you can. Research has found that eating as a family helps kids have better self-esteem, more success in school, and lower risk of depression.

Some families are making time to get kids involved in the kitchen.     2     Start with the basics by letting your child arrange simple snacks on a plate. It’s never too title, too early or too late to start giving kids some things to do in the kitchen.

People are trying tofu and homemade veggie burgers and finding out that, with the right recipes, these foods can be delicious. Alternatives to animal protein benefit the health of individuals and our planet.     3    

Problems in the food supply chain that-have been significant during the pandemic have prompted people to seek local sources of food.     4     Hopefully this trend deepens our appreciation for who and what it takes to bring food to our table.

Eating is one of the most basic ways we take care of ourselves, and recent things have people rethinking how they define fitness. Take pride in both big and small changes you’ve recently put into practice.     5     It is hoped that what people maintain after the pandemic is more friendliness toward themselves as eaters.

10 . Having a regular dentist check up is as essential for ensuring healthy teeth and gums (牙龈) as regular brushing and flossing. Here’s why you should make the trip.

Prevention is better than cure. Regular dental check-ups are recommended to maintain healthy teeth and gums.     1     Your dentist will advise you on what’s right for you. The aim of a check-up is to nip any problems in the bud, before you experience pain, lose teeth or have other health problems.

You’ve had a new medical diagnosis.     2     For example, high blood sugar levels in saliva caused by diabetes favour bacteria which can cause cavities (蛀牙). Some medications can cause oral problems ranging from dry mouth to stained teeth.

    3     More and more adults are having orthodontic (正畸) treatment to straighten their teeth. Not only does it make a huge difference to your smile, it can also prevent gum disease, which is more likely to take hold if you struggle to clean crooked teeth.

You’ve got bad breath. Halitosis (口臭) is embarrassing and can sometimes leave a nasty taste in your mouth. You might have a hole in your tooth, an infection or gum disease.     4     Your family and friends will thank you for it.

Check for cancer. Dentists don’t just look for cavities and unhealthy gums. They can also spot mouth cancer and refer patients to hospital to see a specialist. Cases have risen by 34 per cent in the past decade, according to the Oral Health Foundation.     5