“You can infuse your life with the power of prevention incrementally and fairly painlessly, and yes, doing something, no matter how small, is infinitely better for you than doing nothing,” says David Katz, MD, MPH, director of Yale University’s Prevention Research Center and of the Yale Preventive Medicine Center. Katz is also co-author of the book Stealth Health: How to Sneak Age-Defying, Disease-Fighting Habits into Your Life without Really Trying.

Living healthier isn’t as hard as you think! By making small changes here and there in your lifestyle, you can make a big difference in your overall health! Here are some ideas that you can start implementing into your new healthy lifestyle today!

• Start walking 30 minutes per day. A study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine in 2004 found that adding just 30 minutes of walking per day was enough to prevent weight gain and encourage moderate weight loss.
• Skip the foods and drinks made with high fructose corn syrup! Many nutritionists believe this is worse for your body than sugar.
• Start each dinner with a mixed green salad. This will reduce your appetite and add vegetables to your meal.
• Limit your intake of trans-fats, found in most margarines, snack foods, heavily processed foods and some cooking oils. Trans-fats can reduce your “good” cholesterol levels and raise your “bad” ones.
• Limit your intake of salt (sodium). Read the label. Your sodium intake should be less than 1,500 mg per day. Excessive salt in the diet has been linked to high blood pressure and heart disease.
• Breathe deeply to improve stress control. Try it twice a day for three to five minutes.
• Avoid smoking. And do not breathe in second hand smoke.
• Get a good night’s sleep. Adequate sleep is essential to maintain a healthy body.
• Wash your hands frequently. This will help stop the spread of germs.