Rosh Hashanah is an excellent opportunity to recalculate a course and adopt healthier habits. The problem is that most of us usually decide on a total makeover - and fail at it even before the High Holidays are over.
The right way to change habits and adopt a healthier lifestyle is to start small, with one really practical decision that you can stick to. So this year we asked 7 doctors who truly understand our health to tell us what one healthy decision we should adopt in the New Year.
Dr. Moran Levin: Add some fruit to the menu
Be sure to eat fresh fruits such as pomegranates and apples. They are rich in antioxidants (even more than red wine) and reduce the risk of inflammation and various cancers, pomegranates will also help you if you suffer from diarrhea.
Dates will give you the sweet bite you crave, and they are better than a common chocolate snack. The date fibers help to stabilize the blood sugar, and can also help in the treatment of constipation. So for the next new year, let's get better, at the habit of eating 2 fruits and 2 vegetables every day.
Dr. Moran Levin is a senior physician at the Institute of Gastroenterology at the Hillel Yaffe Medical Center
Dr. Yael Dreznik: Take all scooters out of the house
It's much more than a healthy decision, it's a life-saving decision, electric scooters and bicycles have swept the roads and sidewalks in recent years.
Thousands of teenagers, some of them under the legal age for riding motorized vehicles, and without a helmet in many other cases, have become part of the landscape, and we watch them from the side in amazement - at the breakneck speed with which they drive, holding a phone in one hand and increasing the speed, driving between cars and on sidewalks, endangering themselves and the environment.
It's already an epidemic, and this is not an epidemic that we have a way to fight with drugs and vaccines, unfortunately, and it turns out that enforcement is not enough either.
The result is hundreds of injured and some even killed, tragedies that could have been avoided, and thousands of devastated families whose lives will never be the same again.
And we, the medical team, always conduct the conversation after we hear about the desire to buy a fast means of transportation for a child, because all the friends have one, because he asks for it, or because you want to give him a cool gift.
So dear parents, this is the decision you will make this year: Don't. Don't buy it, do not agree to buy it, take these dangerous devices out of the house, the scooter, the electric bicycle. It's not worth the phone call from the hospital, the "Hello, we're talking from the emergency room. Come quickly."
Dr. Yael Dreznik is an expert in pediatric surgery at the Schneider Pediatric Center
Dr. Yariv Stebholtz: Drink more water, a lot more
During the daily rush and stress we all experience, how many of us are alert to our daily drinking amount? How many of us examine the type of drinks that are put into our bodies? Continuous and orderly drinking of water throughout the day helps prevent various diseases in the urinary system such as stones, infections, irritable bladder syndrome and more.
Avoid dehydration and substances that irritate the nerve endings in the urinary system, as well as avoid drinking excessive caffeine (coffee, tea, Coca-Cola), alcoholic beverages and sugary drinks - this is critical to maintaining a healthy physical environment.
Buy yourself and your family members a personal water bottle that will accompany you throughout the day, will help monitor the amount being drunk and will be a reminder, at least until you develop the habit. It takes a person 21 days to develop a new habit, and the holiday season is a great opportunity to start.
Dr. Yariv Shtabholz is the director of functional urology in the urology department at the Ichilov Hospital.
Prof. Itai Shavit: Just get vaccinated
My recommendation every year - but this year in particular - is to vaccinate the whole family with the flu vaccine. This is my advice to all parents and children who wish for themselves an easier year in terms of winter illnesses, and dealing with these illnesses in a lesser degree of severity that is not severe or one that does not require hospitalization. I believe with all my heart that it will be a successful start to the new year for everyone.
The strain of flu that is expected to reach us in the winter is the same strain of flu that has been observed in recent weeks in Australia, and reports from there indicate severe morbidity.
Since the morbidity from COVID continues, although in moderation and is not accompanied by severe cases, the exposure to both viruses at the same time puts the children in certain danger, so my recommendation is to vaccinate children also for COVID-19, of course.
Prof. Itai Shavit is the director of the children's department at the Hadassah Medical Center
Shani Ben Aharon Beckerman: Don't Start a diet
At the beginning of the year, like on a birthday or at any significant milestone in life, we tend to stop and evaluate our situation - what we have accomplished, what we lack and what we want to change. This is a fertile ground for impulsive decisions, one of the most prominent of which is: a diet tomorrow. so no. No diet tomorrow.
With any process of weight loss, balanced or extreme, our body also breaks down muscle mass into fat mass. In any trend of weight gain - mainly fat mass is added to the body.
The result is that over the years and with many attempts to lose weight, the muscle mass in the body is damaged, and it actually weakens.
We have no way to prevent muscle breakdown, but it is possible to reduce it by choosing the right foods and by reducing false attempts to lose weight.
So it is possible to change lifestyles and even go on a diet if it helps us, but arrive prepared conceptually, emotionally, mentally and physically. You should make small, realistic decisions that you can stick to over time even if they seem insignificant - pay attention to drinking water, add vegetables to the menu, exercise, reduce stress in life.
Shani Ben Aharon Beckerman is the coordinator of the internal division and the bariatric clinic at the Kaplan Medical Center of the Klalit Group.
Dr. Tali Kapua: Learn CPR
As a pediatrician in an emergency room, I was exposed many times to unfortunate cases that could have ended differently if only one of the parents knew how to perform basic CPR.
A case of a baby who choked on a toy he put in his mouth, a case of a girl allergic to milk who was exposed to milk ice cream and luckily a passerby performed CPR on her, and other cases that scare every parent. I recommend that every parent take a CPR course to know how to act in an emergency and save their loved one.
Dr. Tali Kapua is a senior doctor in the "Dana Duak" children's emergency room at the Ichilov Hospital
Dr. Liora Barzeg-Peru: Try to be happier
My New Year's resolution is to simply be happy, and I recommend everyone to adopt it as well. Many studies link depression to various health conditions, which can manifest in various physical pains, chronic fatigue, poor appetite and various sleep disorders.
The state of stress in the body may also lead to cardiovascular diseases, autoimmune diseases, stroke, diabetes, cancer and more. It is also a vicious circle, because the worse the physical condition is, the worse the depression may become.
Therefore, this year I will try to be happier and more satisfied with my life, I will change my job if I am not happy, I will try to spend more time with my family, I will be with friends who make me happy, and in general I will be a better person.
Dr. Liora Barzag-Peru is a doctor specializing in oncology and the house doctor of Walla! Health