Earlier this year, Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health reported that business travelers who spend the most time on the road have higher rates of obesity and rate their health as worse than those who travel infrequently. If you’re a frequent road warrior, you don’t have to become part of the grim statistics. While you can’t control where your boss sends you, the good news is that you can control the choices you make at your destination. In between the fast paced agenda and long meetings, here are five ways business travelers can stay fit and healthy on the road.

1. Choose Meals Wisely

Resist the urge to splurge on high calorie entrees at your client’s favorite restaurant and opt for healthy, lower calorie menu options. Other tips for tips for eating healthy on the road include stopping at a grocery store on the way to the hotel and stocking up on high protein snacks like cheese, fruit and nuts, peanut butter, and crackers. And if you’re flying, avoid the symptoms of dehydration by drinking plenty of water.

2. Fit in Fitness Time

A lack of physical activity can increases the risk of dying from cancer and heart disease by more than 30%, and sitting for hours on an airplane and in meetings doesn’t help. When traveling, bring along exercise gear and clothing, even if it’s as simple as running shoes and a jump rope. If the hotel has a workout room, take advantage of it. Or, find a nearby park and go for a walk or run. Even a short walk will help combat the stress of traveling.

3. Sleep like You’re at Home

Losing even one hour of sleep a night can reduce productivity and cause attention problems, slower reaction times and reduce the ability to think clearly and process information. Earlier this week, our blog talked about the health risks faced by long distance truckers and travelers when their sleep patterns are continually disrupted. How do you get a good night’s sleep on the road? Bring a few items from home that help you relax like soothing music, earplugs, and a good book. Turn off lights and all electronic devices and try going to sleep and waking up at the same time every day.

4. Keep Germs at Arms Length

The discovery that cord blood has a goodly percentage of stem cells that can be used in the treatment of variety of conditions is set to revolutionize medical practice around the globe. The sample is extracted from the umbilical cord and the placenta before, during or after the birth of an infant. The mother will have given her consent for this to be done prior to delivery.

Instead of discarding the afterbirth as medical trash, doctors instead extract the stem cells present in the material and preserve it. When there is need to use these cells in treatment, a match is identified from those stem cells in storage and if a match is identified, the treatment can proceed. There is more research being conducted to discover even newer treatment approaches.

The range of conditions for which this revolutionary technique is suited for is impressively long. The list includes both malignant and non malignant ailments reported in both children and adults. They range from sickle cell disease, non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, leukemia, Fanconi’s anemia to brain disorders like Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s disease as well as heart attacks, strokes, spinal injuries, osteoporosis and even diabetes.

Granted, research in this brand of treatment has not been as far ranging as is the case in the use of bone marrow. However, there are adequate cases of success that have created widespread interest in medical circles. Since they are undifferentiated cells, they can be applied in treatment of many cellular deficiencies where they will transform to whatever tissue is needed.

In comparison to donations made from the bone marrow, this method has a couple of advantages. For one, the extraction process is far much easier as there is no need to anesthetize the donor before collection of a sample is done. Furthermore, there is no risk of infection as the extraction is done after the umbilical cord has been severed from both the mother and child.

There are generally two methods by which the extraction and collection can be done. If the procedure is done before delivery, this is referred to as ‘in-utero’, if this is done after birth of the baby has occurred, it referred to as ‘ex-utero’. The risks are minimal whether delivery is vaginal or cesarean.

Once the collection has been done, the sample is delivered by a medical courier to a blood-bank. It will be scanned to ensure that it does not contain any infectious disease pathogens before storage. The red blood cells will also be separated and removed from the extract.

Physiotherapy, many people have discovered, is great when it comes to healing or managing a variety of bodily aches and pains. Increasingly more athletes are also using the services of sports physiotherapists nowadays. Given the rise in the number of appearances sports stars have to make these days, as well as the tough competition, many succumb to injuries often. Here are some benefits to be derived from seeing a physiotherapist specializing in dealing with sports injuries.

First of all, these are individuals highly knowledgeable and skilled as far as the body in motion is concerned. Anyone that’s physically active on a daily basis increases the chances of picking up injuries, even if it’s the odd twisted ankle or pulled hamstring. So, seeing such a professional is apt to help sports people especially adopt lifestyles that are healthier, given the new awareness of posture and movement.

These specialist physical therapists are ideal to assist coaches and trainers in taking care of athletes. The expertise of the body’s mechanics as it involves movement is something coaching staff would do well to make use of. So, aside from helping to manage injuries, information on how to leverage gravity and posture in improving performance and staying injury-free are priceless.

These are also the best people to consult with on how to avoid bodily injuries. Sometimes the wrong approach to warm-up exercises contributes to the pulling of ligaments and bruising of muscles during training or performance. Consulting a sports physiotherapist for advice about such routines might help to avoid such incidences.

It’s advisable to make an appointment with these individuals prior to picking up an injury. It is perfectly legitimate and wise to go for such consultation, without having to wait for a painful body to justify a visit. This is an excellent way to stay injury-free.

Everyone, no matter what age, that’s physically active stands to benefit from these visits. Coaches and trainers of various sporting codes would do well to call on the expertise of these professionals from time to time. The fresh and new perspectives physical therapists bring to the job are likely to benefit everyone involved.

Being proactive about steering clear of actions that might contribute to bodily harm is a wise approach to adopt. At times one might be troubled by injuries from the past, and wouldn’t know where it comes from or where exactly the trouble is internally located. Some of the people best able to offer expert diagnosis and advice in such cases would be sports physiotherapists.