MLBeal Consulting, LLC was created to help individuals, families, faith-based, non-profit, and small business organizations improve their overall quality of life, and to inspire their members and associates to do likewise. In addition to data provided on this website, our goal is to offer a series of workshops, forums and discussions on various ‘quality of life’ criteria.
Pause and think with me a moment. How do you define ‘quality of life’? Name some of your ‘quality of life’ standards? What factors in your world contribute to the requirements for developing and maintaining a desirable, pleasurable ‘quality of life’? This post – as well as those that immediately follow it – will provide detailed, pertinent information for achieving a genuine ‘quality of life’.
Knowledge shared with you will be derived from research, collaboration with public health officials, personal testimonies, health and wellness practitioners including providers of long-term care. A crucial source of knowledge will derive from interviews conducted with healthy senior citizens. They contain a wealth of untapped experience and instructions. Knowledge is still very powerful and life-saving. As my mother, the late Luella Campbell Beal demonstrated, seniors are an excellent source of health and wellness wisdom.
As we survey our world, a glaring reality is that our people are needlessly being destroyed because of a “lack of knowledge”. Countless, senseless tragedies and losses of lives occur daily. This is why it is a necessary goal of MLBeal Consulting, LLC to enlighten, inspire and ensure our readers have every opportunity to live with vitality and excitement.
Studies have shown that a healthy lifestyle contributes substantially to longevity. After writing a tribute to my mother in my very first book, Luella Campbell Beal – A Force to Reckon With, for celebrating a century of living, I became more intrigued with the subject of longevity. Subsequently, I was inspired to examine my own family history to analyze the effects of genetics on healthy lifestyles. Many, many of my ancestors have lived to be in their 80s, 90s and 100s. To my surprise, although several of my relatives attributed longevity to their genetics, I discovered that healthy lifestyles passed on through successive generations supported their longevity more than the common gene pool actually did.
Common sense tells us that good life habits help us stay healthy; but, to what degree? Japanese researchers wanted to know if living a healthy lifestyle was worth all the effort, so they measured a marker of immune function in a large population. They found that high immune function was strongly correlated with “good health practices” which included:
- Not smoking cigarettes,
- Eating green leafy vegetables,
- Eating balanced, nutritious meals regularly
- Sleeping at least seven (7) or more hours nightly, and
- Maintaining moderate body weight
My mother’s good life habits included several additional healthy lifestyle elements not included on the Japanese List. They focused on high immune function. She taught us to (1) Put God FIRST (maintain a faithful prayer life and a devoted relationship with Him, (2) Drink at least 6 t0 8 glasses of water daily each day, (3) Get daily sunshine and circulation air, (4) Love much, love often, (5) Laugh a lot, (6) Enjoy humor, (7) Maintain a positive-based Circle of Friends, (8) Exercise frequently, (9) Work diligently within your natural skillset, and (10) Maintain a clean mind, body and soul.
Mom displayed a vast amount of knowledge, skills, and abilities when preparing nutritious meals for her family. She not only knew organic gardening, mother was very adept in canning, preserving, and freezing fruits and vegetables. Mom also had a vast knowledge of natural remedies including herbs, vegetables, and minerals.
During an interview with a local newspaper reporter on her ninety-ninth birthday Mom was asked, “Mrs. Beal, what do you contribute your longevity to?” She responded, “I live and raise my children like my parents raised me.
Mom raised her children by ensuring that they consumed nutritious meals daily, obtained adequate sleep, exercised cleanliness in body and in their environment. She instilled a philosophy compassion, caring, and love for one another amongst her descendants.
You may not be able to alter your genetics; but, you can certainly control your lifestyle choices. My mother lived for 101 years, seven months, and fifteen days. She never underwent a medical surgery. She gave birth to ten children naturally. Beginning in her late sixties she raised eight grandchildren for her widowed oldest son; served as care giver to numerous family members and friends. She had a strong, healthy mind when she departed this life. Five of her natural born children preceded her in death. Two died as teenagers; one from an epileptic seizure and the other one from an accidental gunshot. A daughter died in her twenties from a brain tumor. Another son died at the age of 47. His lifestyle habits may have shortened his life; likewise, the fifth child who preceded his mother in death may not have implemented the good life habits mentioned above.
Hopefully this information has motivated you to review and upgrade your ‘quality of life” as needed to assure your own longevity and happiness. Come back and visit with us often. Future blog articles will share information on how emotions, nutrition, exercise, weight control, and prayer can boost or hinder your immune functions and impact mental and physical health. Stress, smoking and sleep deprivation can diminish your health and longevity. Mom taught us how to overcome stress by possessing a healthy spiritual life, helping and assisting others, and by surrounding ourselves with positive, optimistic friends and acquaintances – always putting God first.
On the night mother transitioned into Heaven, she was so physically, mentally, and spiritually alert. I said to myself, Mom is speaking as if she has a PhD degree in Speech, Philosophy, and Theology. Her articulation was so very sharp and clear as she described her journey into God’s inner circle. Goose bumps began to appear on my arms as Mom testified and prophesied. The only other person who I had physically seen transition from this life was my Dad. Witnessing his transition did not prepare me for the experience I encountered in witnessing Mom’s transition.
It is apparent to me that the prophetic words Mom spoke to me on the night of her transition is being manifested daily in my life. Jimmy Fortune’s song,” I Believe” helps me to maintain an upbeat and humble attitude about life. While true belief in something places us on the road to success, only taking actions on those beliefs will propel us forward to reaching our desired goals.
Leave comment on Facebook or Twitter. You can also email us at mlbealconsultingllc@gmail.com.