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People have all kinds of excuses for living an unhealthy life style, but those excuses do not hold up as well when you put them in perspective of doing harm not only to yourself, but to others. Being good to others is a good way to be good to yourself simultaneously. Although being good to others is often thought of as a charitable, totally altruistic thing, it reaps benefits for the actor as much as the receiver. Ever give someone a gift unexpectedly? Open a door for someone who had their hands full? Even small actions get you a heartfelt thanks and brings a smile to your own face. If that is not enough, there are some things anyone can do in their everyday actions that give more tangible and larger rewards to you and others.

• Buy the right food: Help the planet and the people we share it with by choosing “good” food. Organic foods are a hot item right now, but fair trade and local foods are important to a good lifestyle also. Organic foods do not use pesticides, which cause health problems for farm workers and can also have detrimental effects on the environment. Watch out though, look for food that is certified USDA Organic or you might be getting something you do not want. The next item on my list, fair trade goods help out the workers who often are taken advantaged of and give them a livable wage. Coffee is the most commonly known fair trade food, but even chocolate can be fair trade. The last item, local food supports your local economy and reduces the carbon footprint of your food. Basically, most of the food people buy are shipped in from hundreds or even thousands of miles away causing a lot of pollution. If you really want to reduce pollution though, plant your own garden and save money and the earth. It will get you outside more, which is good for your heart, and the only shipping will be carrying it from the backyard to the kitchen, a true zero pollution solution.
• Slow down: In a culture of efficiency, we end up doing a lot of things that are pretty inefficient or sacrifice at the expense of the planet. Enjoy the small things in life by walking or biking around. 30 minutes of walking everyday is almost all you need to stay in relatively good health and mentally it will let you clear your mind and enjoy some fresh air. If you do drive, stop wasting time finding parking and just take the first open spot. Most people I know drive around the lot looking for the very closest spot, no matter if the distance of walking is negligible. They end up wasting time searching, when parking at the first spot and walking would take about the same amount of time or less. Reduce the stress of finding the “optimum” spot and get yourself walking more by parking a little farther than normal. Lastly, drive smart. For every 5 MPH over 60, it is like paying an $.20 extra per gallon and rapid acceleration and braking reduces fuel efficiency by up to 33%. Kicking into high gear saves you only a few minutes at most on a regular drive anyway.
• Give Good: Instead of buying something for yourself, give a gift. Not only that, consider buying sustainable, recycled or used goods or at least support local artists and stores. You can even buy, my favorite, items in which proceeds are donated to various charities. Some online shops I’ve found are:
  • Branch - Home
  • Greenloop* - Clothing
  • Hip & Zen - Home
    
  • Elsewares - Home, Clothing, Jewelry
  • Etsy - eBay for handcrafted items
  • Off Your Back Shirts* - T-Shirts w/ designs
  • Green Nest* - Home
    *Affiliate links

  And check out SustainLane to check reviews of products and businesses. It’s pretty new and so content may be sparse in some places, but it is growing everyday.

Is there anything I am missing? What Good do you do that also brings side benefits? Or are there anything you enjoy doing for yourself or others that just happens to be good?