Secrets Of Success For 2017

We asked experts for their insider tips to make the coming year fantastic.

- Charlea Sieberhagen

IT’s a brand-new year and your calendar is waiting to be filled with all things meaningful and memorable. You’re determined to learn from 2016’s mistakes and be thriftier, healthier and smarter.

Sadly, though, turning over a new leaf is easier said than done. Too often new year’s resolutions fly out the window, bad habits start rearing their naughty heads again and before you know it you’re back to square one.

What to do? We rounded up a group of experts and asked them what advice they’d give their nearest and dearest to set their year on the right track from the word go. Be inspired!

WHAT THE DOCTOR SAYS

Laugh more! “It’s the best medicine,” says Dr Martha Landman, a general practitioner from Randburg. Laughter decreases stress hormones and increases immune cells and infection-fighting antibodies, improving your resistance to disease. Dr Landman also says:

Work on your close relationships. People with healthy relationships live longer.

Eat five servings of vegetables and fruit a day. You know you should, but how often do you forget?

Exercise regularly. A fast walk for 30 to 45 minutes a day for five to seven days a week is all you need to keep healthy and fight the sedentary spread.

WHAT THE DERMATOLOGIST SAYS

Have your moles examined. “Make an appointment with your doctor, especially if you have a family history of melanoma or if you use sunbeds,” Cape Town dermatologist Dr Suretha Kannenberg says. She says you should also:

Wear sunblock every day regardless of the weather and make sure the product you apply is approved by the Cancer Association of South Africa. Apply it again after swimming or if you’ve perspired a lot. Avoid the sun between 10 am and 3 pm and always remember to put sunblock on your kids. “Sun damage starts in childhood.”