The Natural Path to Happiness

Exercise stimulates the release of the feel-good chemical dopamine in your brain. Just 30 minutes of walking each day can improve your mood. Even stretching has been proven to boost levels of a neurotransmitter called gamma-aminobutyric acid that helps alleviate depression. 

Eating good food like fish that contains omega 3 fatty acids enhances areas of the brain that affect your mood. Eat wild salmon, arctic char or sardines, which are also low in mercury. Have a baked potato for vitamin B6, which lowers your risk of depression. Spinach, beans and oranges are rich in folate and filled with blues-busting serotonin.

Sleep seven to eight hours per night. People with insomnia are more likely to develop depression.

Quiet Time is effective at reducing depression. Meditating and deep breathing help you relax, reduce stress and lift your mood.   

Lighten your day by spending more time outside. Natural light can lift your spirits.

Drink More Water

Here are 9 important reasons to drink more water:

1) Weight loss. Water is one of the best tools for weight loss, first of all because it often replaces high-calorie drinks like soda and juice and alcohol with a drink that doesn't have any calories. But it's also a great appetite suppressant, and often when we think we're hungry, we're actually just thirsty. Water has no fat, no calories, no carbs, no sugar. Drink plenty to help your weight-loss regimen.

2) Heart Healthy. Drinking a good amount of water could lower your risks of a heart attack. A six-year study published in American Journal of Epidemiology found that those who drink more than 5 glasses of water a day were 41% less likely to die from a heart attack than those who drank less than two glasses.

3) Energy. Being dehydrated can sap your energy and make you feel tired -- even mild dehydration of as little as 1 or 2 percent of your body weight. If you're thirsty, you're already dehydrated -- and this can lead to fatigue, muscle weakness, dizziness and other symptoms.

4) Headache cure. Another symptom of dehydration is headaches. In fact, often when we have headaches it's simply a matter of not drinking enough water. There are lots of other causes of heahaches of course, but dehydration is a common one.

5) Healthy skin. Drinking water can clear up your skin and people often report a healthy glow after drinking water. It won't happen overnight, of course, but just a week of drinking a healthy amount of water can have good effects on your skin.

6) Digestive problems. Our digestive systems need a good amount of water to digest food properly. Often water can help cure stomach acid problems, and water along with fiber can cure constipation (often a result of dehydration).

7) Cleansing. Water is used by the body to help flush out toxins and waste products from the body.

8) Cancer risk. Related to the digestive system item above, drinking a healthy amount of water has also been found to reduce the risk of colon cancer by 45%. Drinking lots of water can also reduce the risk of bladder cancer by 50% and potentially reduce the risk of breast cancer.

9) Better exercise. Being dehydrated can severely hamper your athletic activities, slowing you down and making it harder to lift weights. Exercise requires additional water, so be sure to hydrate before, during and after exercise.