T’is the season for colds and flu… It seems that everywhere I turn, someone is blowing their nose, coughing or has a temperature.
It is truly no great surprise…This is the season when the most sugar is consumed and it sets the stage for colds and flu to overwhelm the immune system. Add a hefty dose of stress to the mix…and voila! Think about it: the season starts with Halloween and the over-consumption of cheap candy, often made of high fructose corn syrup, it goes on to Thanksgiving where we indulge in many kinds of pies and it culminates right about now, with Christmas and the New Year festivities, with chocolate and an abundance of alcohol. All sugar to the body! Sugar depresses immunity, it puts white blood cells to sleep! The white blood cells are the garbage collectors of the body, and right when it matters most, we give them a day off to snooze and leave the garbage uncollected. Not a good time for them to be on vacation, there is work to do! Whether to prevent or to help get over a cold or flu, follow these steps to a healthier you!
1. Step one is to shore up your immune system. Stop eating sugar, right now! You are feeding the beast, the goal is to starve it! Sugar comes in many forms: any ingredient ending in -ose is sugar, i.e: lactose, fructose, sucrose, etc. But so is honey, maple syrup, alcohol, very sweet fruit, pastries and pasta! They all turn into sugar in your body! We are profoundly addicted to sugar. This is as good a time as any to wean yourself off and say good bye, this relationship is hazardous to your health!
2. Increase your hydration. The goal is to drink half your body weight in ounces. Ex: A 200lb man should drink a minimum of 100 ounces of water, that’s about 3 quarts a day. The body requires a minimum of 64 ounces to function: sweat, urine, saliva, tears…all of this requires water. Add a dash of lemon to your water. It tastes great and it is very alkalizing, a good thing for overall health. You can also add homeopathic drops to your water to increase the levels of hydration, and maintain good fluid balance in the body. We have the drops available in the office.
3. At the very first sign of a sniffle or a sore throat, use salt! Clean your nasal passages with a neti pot, gargle with lukewarm salt water. Don’t know how to use a neti pot? Check out this Chopra Center video to learn how.
4. Protect yourself with common sense habits: wash your hands a few more times than usual, do not touch your eyes, mouth or nose until you have washed your hands. When planning to be in a crowded place, use Nasya, the technique described in the video above. By placing a drop of herbalized oil in your nostrils, you effectively create a barrier to the germs and viruses. You can easily make your own oil by using a good quality olive or jojoba oil and adding an essential oil of your choice to it. I would be happy to help you pick the best oil for you, just contact me.
5. Get your Zzzz’s! Sleep is the best rejuvenation and your immune system will thank you for a good night sleep. If you are sick, it is even more important to sleep and let your body do the healing. Advertisements that show a sick person taking a few pills and being able to go about their daily tasks are very misleading, or even dangerous. They completely miss how the body works! Rest and sleep will go a long way to ensure a speedier recovery and will allow the body to do what it is designed to do: heal itself when given the proper tools.
6. Take probiotics. Nourish your gut flora, it will help you fight the infection and absorb the vitamins from your food. Drink kombucha or kefir, eat sauerkraut or take a good probiotic. We have great ones for sale in the office, just ask!
We have a few more tricks up our sleeve if you don’t feel any better, but by practicing these, you are sure to decrease your risks of getting sick in the first place.
Make 2014 your healthiest year!
Christine
Satya Wellness, come and see us for the Health of it!
