As we enter this new year, never has it been more important to ensure a healthy diet and lifestyle to support one’s optimum health. Naturopath practitioner and mindfulness teacher, Susan Nove, shares a few tips as a reminder of the simple things that best contribute to our health and vitality on a daily basis.
Every individual has a particular set of specific health challenges and needs so please take time to invest in your health by seeing a Naturopath/Health Practitioner to maximise your health and vitality.
Simple Habits to Support Your Optimum Health
Keep Well Hydrated – In these winter months maintenance of adequate fluid intake can slip away, leading a drop in one’s pH, and this creates additional acidity in tissues and cells. When this happens cells lose their zeta potential, their positive/negative charge, diminishing cellular health and function, which in turn affects our overall wellbeing. Keep yourself well hydrated with approx 2 litres of fluids throughout the day such as warm herbal teas. Linseed tea is deeply hydrating to the gut and colon, or you could enjoy a big pot of fresh ginger tea on waking to support good digestive health. A fresh green juice of celery/cucumber/fennel/mint or another fresh vegetable juice is recommended ideally daily or at least 3-4 times a week using a slow masticating juicer or Nutri-bullet – throw in a knob of turmeric or ginger per juice. Hydrate with other green alkalizing drinks such as sinking a good scoop of Beyond Greens Udo’s Choice in 600-800 mls of purified water with a splash of coconut kefir and/or almond milk. However you choose to obtain your 2 litres a day – whether you pour it out on your kitchen counter every morning, or map it out in your head – ensure it goes in the tank. Add extra glasses if you are drinking caffeine – an extra glass of water per caffeine drink! Lastly – choose good quality filtered drinking water – install a reverse osmosis purifier in your home or seek a good desktop filter that removes hormones, heavy metals, pesticides, other chemicals and toxins from tap water. Install a mineral block or ionising block with this system. Or Healthy House have lovely desktop varieties. Do not buy water in plastic bottles for health and environmental reasons- GLASS only.
Maintain Good GUT Health – Ensure good gut microbiome by taking a multi-strain probiotic, eating prebiotics foods daily such like kimchi (1 tbsp) , kombucha, sauerkraut (1 tbsp), kefir (a small glass or a dash in soups/smoothies) along with eating good fibre. Limit your eating hours to 8 – 10 hours a day to allow the gut to rest and repair, if your system is healthy enough to allow for this (some clients need to balance blood sugar levels first before implementing intermittent fasting: see your practitioner). Chew your food well, eating in a relaxed environment, and balance your blood sugars by eating adequate protein with each meal: 25% protein per main meal and 50% protein in every snack. Fill the rest of your plate with vegetables/salads – allow 25% for more starchy veg, and 5% healthy fats/oils. Avoid gut irritants like wheat, sugar, alcohol, refined grains etc. Avoid overeating this winter: those additional calories tax your health and overload your digestive capacity creating inflammation in the system. If you suffer from digestive symptoms please see your Naturopath.
Sleep – Ensure adequate rest. Sleep allows the body to recalibrate and repair, so receive your 7 – 8 hours, and ideally get a few good hours before midnight to tone the liver. Sleep is absolutely critical to good health. If you have sleeping problems see your Naturopath/Health Practitioner for immediate support – do not leave this untreated. Whether it’s ensuring a good dose of Mg before bed, or a lovely Epsom Salt bath, or receiving some herbal support, nightly meditation practice before bed, or a combination … address sleep issues if present.
Immune Supports – Good nutrition and digestive function ensures your immune system has the ingredients it needs to function optimally. Vitamins such C, D, Zinc, A, E, B’s, plus minerals such as Selenium and Iron all contribute to our immune health, hence being deficient in any of these will impact your immune system and its function. Take immune enhancing and stimulating herbs to support the body’s resistance to infection such as Echinacea Root, Andrographis, Astragalus and Medicinal Mushrooms (Mediherb – offers a lovely product). Use fresh garlic clove/s, ginger, turmeric, spices, cinnamon in your cooking. Remove sugar, alcohol, toxins and processed foods from your diet. Eat the colour of the rainbow – lots of fruit and vegetables, every day – enjoy lots of those life enhancing Polyphenols to ensure adequate nutrient reserves and to generally support your immune function.
Exercise – Get out and about – bust that stress! Do what moves you…dance, running, yoga, Pilates (Maika Klaukien Online Triyoga Pilates classes are a must!), walk and bathe in nature, or sweat it out: enjoy your vitality in whichever way inspires and calls you.
Meditate – Unburden your heart and nervous system each day with a short sit. Whether it’s 5 minutes, 20 or 40 minutes, take time to be grateful for what you have in this day. Rest and restore in regular silence (Join Jonathan Sattin Mondays at 6.30pm for Meditation or myself on Fridays 11.30am, or 12.00pm on Saturdays and Sundays for online Mindfulness Meditation classes – triyoga online)
Laughs & Hugs – Lastly yet most importantly – do not take yourself too seriously. Laughing is a fabulous stress-busting activity, whether it’s watching funny movies or taking time to be light-hearted, to play, to have fun, play cards, or word games – enjoyable social interactions are fundamental to our health and wellbeing. A happy heart is a happy system. Hugging is also key for good health; my mother always used to say ‘4 Hugs a day keeps the doctor away!!’ She definitely was onto something – so hang in on that hug for a good 20 seconds or more to benefit from the release of those endorphins. Hug your pet, a friend in your bubble, a partner, or family member, or book a massage with one of the incredible bodyworkers at Triyoga. Hugs reduce tension, soothe aches and pains, elevate one’s mood and get the dopamine and serotonin flowing!
A little footnote for those preparing for the MRNA vaccine: ensure you are in good health before receiving the vaccine. If immune support is needed take Echinacea Root tincture and Medicinal Mushrooms therapeutically for 2 – 3 weeks prior to the vaccine, in between the two doses and for 2 – 3 weeks after the second dose. Ensure you take adequate Vitamin C and D prior to and post-vaccine. It is best not to receive the vaccine if you have low levels of Vitamin D. If you are unwell or poorly on the day of your scheduled vaccine, reschedule vaccination to a day when you are healthy. Ensure good gut microbiome before and after vaccination.
If you develop a fever from the vaccine, drink diaphoretic herbs as teas throughout the day – good diaphoretic herbs are peppermint, elderflower, yarrow, chamomile, lime blossom – steep 5 – 10 minutes and drink hot. To assist in chelating out any adjuvants used in vaccines, drink nettle tea and absorbable silica i.e FIJI mineral water which is high in silica, or seek further assistance.
Susan is a naturopath and has been meditating for more than 30 years. She has completed a Meditation and Yin yoga teacher training and is an accredited mindfulness teacher with the Mindfulness Training Institute. Her enthusiasm and dedication to the positive effects of meditation can be seen in her teaching, showing how the simple act of bringing your attention back to the present moment has an ability to heal and transform our lives and the world in which we live.