NEW JERSEY – A new study found New Jersey is the No. 10 healthiest state in America, which is welcomed news those who want to go up for seconds on Thanksgiving.
The holidays are the perfect time to eat, drink, and be merry but Americans should be mindful not to fall off the wagon completely. Excessive drinking, eating, stress, and travel causes more emergency room visits, and a 4% increase in cardiac deaths from holiday heart attacks.
Life Extension Tuesday released a study on the Healthiest States This Holiday Season after analyzing eight key metrics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention spanning diet, exercise, alcohol intake, and mental health in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
Key findings that led to New Jersey’s No. 10 ranking show 85.9% of adults are in good overall health, 59% have good mental health, 76.7% exercise regularly, 78.5% eat vegetables daily, 5.4% are heavy drinkers and 10.8% smoke.
The 10 healthiest states are Utah, Massachusetts, D.C., Connecticut, Maryland, Hawaii, Illinois, Colorado, New Hampshire, and New Jersey.
3 tips to indulge intelligently this Thanksgiving:
- Swap Decadent Dishes for Healthier Version: Enjoy all the flavors but watch your portion size and swap some decadent dishes for healthier versions. For example, oat cookies instead of sugar cookies, or mashed cauliflower instead of mashed potatoes.
- Do Not Skip the Thanksgiving Turkey: Some people stay away from turkey because they think it makes them tired – this is a myth! It is the overeating and heavy carbs in side dishes causing the post-meal food coma. In fact, the tryptophan in turkey offers multiple health benefits, particularly when it comes to improving your mood.
- Do Not Eat Your Emotions: Spending time with family on Thanksgiving can be stressful which leads to overeating. To offset culinary excess, exercise regularly, take herbal supplements that promote weight loss, and eat healthy snacks throughout the day.
