With the start of each New Year, I always reflect on how I can make this year better. What can I do to take better care of myself and work towards my own wellness goals? Wellness has come to mean so many different things to each of us. As a chiropractor, I am always striving to do what I can to help keep my family healthy in the year to come. During winter we are typically outside less, and our immune system tends to be put to the test now more than ever. Our children are more prone to come down with the flu or a cold during the winter.
Our immune system helps to recognize and destroy bacteria, viruses and germs. It is not composed of just one organ but many structures within our body. All of our cells, bone marrow, lymph system and tissues must work together to fight off our exposure to infections and disease.
Most of us can tell when our body’s start to feel run down or weaker. We tend to have chronic infections, frequent colds or flu, and sore or swollen lymph glands. Often times after the holidays are bodies are run down more than normal. We may not have received as much sleep as our bodies are accustomed to getting each night. Our diets are often challenged as it can be hard to not become overloaded on sweets this time of year. When our immune systems become challenged, our bodies ability to respond and adapt appropriately decreases.
What can you do for you and your family during this time of year to boost your immunity?
- Increase your water intake. Water helps hydrate the body and flush out toxins. I always encourage people to drink half of your body weight in ounces of water. Don’t like plain water? Mix it up. Change your glass. I love drinking out of mason jars. Add some vitality essential oils to your water to mix up the taste of plain water. Add lemon, orange or tangerine to spizz up your water.
- Take daily supplements with additional immune support. Our family favorites include the following: Ningxia Red is full of powerful antioxidants to support your body’s natural immune response, vitamin C daily helps increase your immune system, and probiotics are beneficial to balance a healthy gut flora to support immunity as well.
- Exercise daily. Physical activity for 30 minutes each day will help boost your overall health and immunity. Being outside exposes us to natural sunlight and vitamin D.
- Manage your stress. For most people, stress can be a huge trigger to wear down your body’s natural immune response. Need Tips on managing stress? Schedule time for yourself into your daily routine. Even 10-15 minutes of time to decompress, journal, write in a gratitude journal can have a positive impact on your stress level.
- Get adjusted regularly. People don’t realize that their immune system has a direct relationship with your nervous system. When your nervous system is under more stress, your body’s ability to fight off infections and viruses decrease. Many of our families report back that their families have noticed less sickness by receiving regular chiropractic care.
There are many different areas of our lives that we can make changes in to improve our overall health and wellness. Identify one or two areas that you would like to work on and implement those changes. Think about how you can take baby steps and make changes to your family’s wellness goals. Remember that making small changes over a period of time will help you be more successful.
