If you're around someone who smiles a lot, chances are you'll be quicker to smile too. And in fact, smiling relieves stress, boosts the immune system, is good for the heart and reduces pain.
The authentic smile must come from within, connected to your "self". In today's fast-paced world, it's common to try to please others in order to gain some recognition. Smiling from within means rediscovering your integrity and what's important to you, and reconnecting with your fundamental values. And in this beautiful adventure of reunion, we make room for flexibility by allowing ourselves respites, gentleness and the unexpected. These inner smiles will evolve with time, the seasons and your life. It's about trusting the process of returning to yourself.
The power of a smile
A smile is a way of saying yes to life. It can sometimes convey a difficult message, it can lighten the mood, it can be therapeutic. For yourself and those around you, it has a noble power. A smile can comfort someone going through a difficult time. A little morning exercise to get you in the right mood to start the day: smile in the mirror.
Smiling is good for your health
- Smiling brings confidence and makes us more effective in the workplace.
- Numerous studies have demonstrated the impact of smiling on blood pressure and heart health
- Smiling can significantly help relieve stress
- Smiling releases happy hormones such as serotonin
- Smiling stimulates the immune system, including our white blood cells, which fight foreign invaders like viruses.
- Smiling is a natural way to release endorphins, our pain-relieving hormones..1, 3, 6, 7
In short, smiling keeps us young!
Smile with your eyes
For almost two years now, when we're in public, we've been learning to smile with our eyes, also known as the Duchenne smile, recognized as the most sincere smile. It's the one we have access to at the moment and, at this particular time, it's all the more important. It's like giving ourselves courage through our smiling eyes. The reason this smile is more sincere is that the muscles involved in smiling work involuntarily, which is not the result of a polite smile..6
Being kind to yourself makes you smile from the inside out.
Eye health: "Contour des yeux" by Simplement Naturel
Take care of your eyes with Eye Contour from Simplement Naturel. A local product, more precisely from Aylmer (Gatineau). While we're on the subject of eye contact, this cream with its nourishing and moisturizing properties will take good care of your eyes.
Visit Eye Contour Cream with sea elastin, has been formulated to reduce puffiness, dark circles and firm the skin. It's all about making a little routine by applying this cream morning and night. It's essential to protect and maintain this area every day. What's more, this product will help combat the action of free radicals.5
Eye health: Immunia Vision
Our eyes need antioxidants to fight free radicals, the highly unstable molecules involved in the onset of many diseases. What is the role of antioxidants? Antioxidants act as a shield to neutralize free radical activity and combat cellular aging. The formation of free radicals is part of a normal process in human metabolism, but they are harmful to health by creating oxidation.
Immunia Vision is a concentrate of antioxidants for eye health. Polyphenols are powerful antioxidants that protect our cells against oxidative stress (free radicals). Polyphenols are a family of water-soluble molecules widely present in the plant kingdom. Fruits rich in polyphenols are dark in color, as found in the product Immunia Vision product: wild blueberries, chamomile and elderberries.
Immunia Vision also contains lutein from Marigold flowers. A fruit-flavoured liquid formula that preserves vision and eye health. Our products Immunia products Fruitomed are from Thetford Mines, Quebec. One teaspoon a day of Immunia Vision to help protect your eyes.
The power of polyphenols for our overall health.10
Eye health: focus on AMD
Antioxidants and zinc can reduce the risk of developing advanced age-related macular degeneration (AMD) by 25%.
The macula lutea or yellow spot is the center of the retina at the back of the eye, in line with the pupil, with a diameter of 5.5mm. This area is free of blood vessels. The macula is made up of photoreceptors that capture light and enable us to see fine details.
Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a disease that progressively destroys the central vision needed to distinguish the details of objects and perform everyday tasks such as reading, sewing, driving and so on.
For some, AMD progresses insidiously, with only slight changes in vision as a symptom. For others, it can be devastating, leading to vision loss in both eyes. It is most common in people aged 50 and over.
Deux types of AMD
With dry AMD, the macula's light-sensitive cells slowly deteriorate, and central vision is reduced.
Wet AMD occurs when the formation of blood vessels at the back of the retina and macula causes hemorrhaging and inflammation, resulting in distorted central vision. This type of AMD rapidly leads to blindness.
The risk factors for macular degeneration (AMD) are linked to external aggressions such as prolonged exposure to the sun (cyclists, farmers, skiers), and are more threatening with the depletion of the ozone layer, exposure to blue light from screens (computer, television, etc.), age, smoking, obesity, family history, etc. They are all responsible for the formation of macular degeneration. They are all responsible for the formation of oxidative stress, which reduces blood circulation in the eye by increasing the formation of free radicals (unstable, aggressive molecules produced in small quantities by the body and synthesized in the cell during reactions with oxygen). This chemical instability means that these highly reactive substances cause damage.
Natural sunlight is the conductor of our biological clock
Our sleep is directly linked to our exposure to sunlight throughout the day. This light penetrates our eyes and skin and has a direct effect on our cellular functioning. When our exposure to natural sunlight is limited or non-existent, we deprive our cells of signals essential to their proper functioning.
We notice a direct impact on our biological clock between wakefulness and sleep, on the secretion of various hormones including melatonin, and we can quickly feel the impact on our cognitive abilities and mood.
From autumn onwards, the days get shorter and the light is much less intense.
Light levels drop from an average of 100,000 lux at the height of summer to as little as 1,000 lux on winter days (lux is the unit for measuring light intensity).
Light therapy
Prevent or relieve the winter blues with a Day Break light therapy lamp to regain vitality and a good mood. This lamp will bring a sense of well-being that will make a big difference to daily energy, such as having more drive and/or motivation.
Two choices of white light, either warm or cool:
- Warm white light: 2500°K and 3000°K for a warm ambience
- Cool white light: 4600°K and 6500°K, bright lighting that positively influences our sense of well-being and supports our concentration and motivation levels.
Daily exposure to Day Break lamp can change your days and nights..4, 2, 6, 11
When our health is good and supported by our little and big attentions, smiling comes naturally!
About the author
Marie Couture, Certified Naturopath
Specialized in :
- Digestive disorders
- Inflammation
- Hormonal problems
- Stress management
References :
- Binet Chantal, Dare, Transform, CelebrateChantal Binet Coach de Gestion, 2012, 108 pages
- Habib Dr.Navaz, Activate your vagus nerveÉditions Thierry Souccar, 2020, 238 pages
- Simard Élisabeth, Simply livingÉditeur Guy Saint-Jean, 2018, 285 pages
- https://healthfirstnetwork.ca/fr/produit/vision-supreme/
- https://www.simplynatural.ca/traitement-anti-age
- https://www.yogadesyeux.com/manque-de-lumiere-naturelle-attention-au-blues-de-lhiver-et-a-la-depression-saisonniere
- https://www.fortinpoirier.com/10-bonnes-raisons-de-sourire/
- https://www.lesoleil.com/a9e958a2d52d50b6fe0c4833abd4e256
- https://www.simplynatural.ca/boutique/crme-contour-des-yeux-elastine-de-mer
- https://www.fruitomed.com/produit/luteine-yeux-bonne-vision-immunia-vision-degenerescence-maculaire/
- https://laboiteagrains.com/products/lampe-de-luminotherapie-day-break-la-luna
