Follow these Tips for a Healthier Lifestyle

We are always on the lookout for ways to improve our lifestyles - and ultimately our health and general wellbeing...

Here are our suggested top ten tips

1. Change and wash your bedding regularly - ideally, this should be done every week.  When we sleep, we sweat and shed dead skin cells.  If bedding is not washed, these dead skin cells accumulate and encourage mites to build up as well as dirt.  And don't forget the pillows and duvets!
2. Include more turmeric in your diet - you can take turmeric as a supplement in a capsule or you can add it to dishes like curries or pop some into your cup of tea.  Turmeric is a natural anti-inflammatory.  Turmeric has enormous health benefits. Although often thought of as just a spice, it is a traditional natural home remedy and particularly rich in anti-inflammatory and anti-carcinogenic properties.
3. Get out into nature every day - getting outside for a walk as early as possible to set your circadian rhythm for the day, promoting melatonin production to help you sleep more soundly that night.  It also boosts the mood, tops up your vitamin D levels and improves immunity.  New research has pointed to green spaces helping to boost cognitive function and at the same time reduce the risk of dementia.  It does this by curbing depression.  Just five minutes – yes five minutes – of exercise in a park, working in a backyard garden, on a nature trail or other green space will benefit mental health. Of course, the longer you spend the more benefits you can accrue.
4. Intermittent fasting is proving popular - it is said to have some amazing health benefits as not only does it help with weight loss but also provides an enormous sense of wellbeing.  The concept for intermittent fasting is to eat normally with an eight hour window but then for sixteen hours, only drink water.
5. Add fermented foods to your diet - these include sauerkraut, kimchi, kombucha and more.  The naturally occurring bacteria in the ingredients in these foods will covert sugars and carbohydrates into alcohol, lactic acid or acetic acid.  And this is a good thing because they create enzymes, vitamins and probiotics to improve our gut health and overall wellbeing.  Even beer could be considered good for your gut health.
6. Avoiding sugar spikes - we have written before on how sugar is a sweet poison. Sugar spikes can occur when you eat white bread for example.  Instead opt for a good sourdough or whole grain and seeded bread.  It will be more nutritious and full of fiber too.  At the same time, ditch the cereals as many are ultra processed with lots of sugars, emulsifiers and almost unrecognizable ingredients that can lead to a sugar crash.  At the same time, they can kill off many of the healthy bugs in your gut microbiome that would normally produce those substances that keep you healthy, support your immune system and boost mood.
7. Cleanliness can be too much of a good thing - we have been brainwashed into using hand sanitizers and antibacterial cleaning products to such an extent that we have ended up living in a sterile environment.  Time to change this and start exposing ourselves and our children to germs again.  We amass microbes through every interaction with family members and friends as well as dogs, cats and germs in nature.  Allowing unfamiliar germs into our world and letting our children get down and dirty helps to train the immune system not to over react to common allergens such as dust and pollen.  And our soil comes complete with mycobacterium vaccae (a microorganism found in soil, in compost and in leaf mold) that lights up neurotransmitters that release serotonin, helping the brain and nervous system cells communicate when they help to stabilize your mood, as well as your feelings of happiness and well-being. 
8. Getting rid of the clutter in your life - clutter can cover a range of things, it can be too many clothes bursting out of the closet, too much furniture and ornaments taking up too much space or it can be to much time spent on devices and phones.  You might need help from an expert or perhaps a close friend to help you de-clutter and remove those things that are not essential, allowing more space in your lives both physically and mentally.  If you can engage in phone- and device-free days, it can mean silence and stillness for a time.
9. Enjoy a cold shower if you can - having a cold shower for thirty seconds to a minute has been proven to raise energy levels while boosting metabolism and reducing pain and inflammation.  There are definitely anti-inflammatory benefits.  You can start with ten seconds and gradually build up.  You can even go further by progressing to ice baths!
10. Watch your posture - You might be surprised how many health problems can be caused by poor posture.  For example, sitting or standing incorrectly can lead to headaches, back pain, poor digestion and even decreased lung capacity.  When we have good posture, the muscles surrounding the spine are balanced and supporting the body equally.  It is important to check throughout the day how you are sitting or standing, adjusting as necessary.  The longer you work at strengthening your core and straightening your posture, the easier it will become.

This link will take you to our image gallery, showing images of the various symptoms that can be treated with our specific Healing Natural Oils products.

And this link will take you to our health articles covering all the conditions for which we have products. 

Sources:

http://www.arthritis.org/living-with-arthritis/treatments/natural/supplements-herbs/guide/turmeric.php

Exploring the role of gut bacteria in digestion. (2010). .
phys.org/news/2010-08-exploring-role-gut-bacteria-digestion.html. (Accessed, 2 October 2021).

Zedler Ł, Burger P, Wang S, Formela K.Materials (Basel). 2020 Oct 20;13(20):4669. doi: 10.3390/ma13204669.PMID: 33092105