Hello, it's Mary Sheila, from BioYouth Labs and I wanted to welcome the fall in with you and give you some tips for staying healthy in the fall.
It is a changing of the season, we just celebrated the equinox, which means the day and night were equal times and now the night is becoming longer. It's time for us to make some changes to stay healthy.
Generally, it is cooler and when it's cooler we might be inside more with the heater or the wood stove, which means we’re exposed to a drier heat.
It’s the time of year elementally of ether and air, of the lungs, and a time to protect the lungs as flu and cold season kicks in.
I'm going to give you some tips to stay healthy and to protect yourself against those elements.
Part of my background is in Ayurveda, and according to Ayurveda, we talk about remedies, and usually our remedies are in response to the elements, and the elements of air and ether can cause cold and dry symptoms, so we want to keep the body hydrated, lubricated, and warm.
One of the first things that I want to recommend is to drink and sip hot water during the day.
You can get a little personal sippy cup or just a thermos cup, boil up some water, let it boil for a few minutes, and put it into your hot thermos.
It could be big or small, and if it's bigger, you can always pour it into a cup so you don't burn yourself. Let it cool a little and then sip it. When we boil the water, there's more negative ions that develop, so it alkalizes the water a little and it helps to attract and neutralize acidity in the body. Warm liquids are also good as it gets colder.
It’s a simple remedy to sip on hot water, not just lukewarm water, but hot water. I always recommend drinking and hydrating in between meals, not with them. A lot of people tend to think of hydrating with meals, cold or ice water. Try to do something hot in between meals.
Hydrate your largest organ from the outside in.
Because people can be exposed to more dryness, from the inside and from the outside during the change of seasons, you can hydrate your skin with oils. The best kind of oil that you could use is the kind that you find in your kitchen cupboards.
You could use olive oil, avocado oil, coconut oil, sesame oil, or almond oil. Those are my 5 top favorites. You could do this before or after a shower. Traditionally in Ayurveda we would recommend before a shower.
Warm the oil up and you give yourself a nice massage. I’m not talking about a two second slather and jump in the shower. You can really massage the oil all over your whole body and then throw a robe on for 10-15 minutes and let everything absorb and then shower. That will keep your skin, ligaments, tendons, bones, and your muscles more hydrated.
And then the third thing I want to tell you today is to prioritize sleep.
Personally, I just love getting to sleep earlier this time of year, and I'm always grateful for it. I'm grateful for my bed and my pillows. So if you need to spruce anything up, like a new pillow, or new sheets or mattress, whatever it is, you’re worth it.
Sleep is something that I struggle with here and there, so I have lots of remedies around sleep up my sleeve. As summer ends, you can probably look back at more parties, maybe some weddings, travel, desserts, you name it.
Now’s the time to get to sleep and let the body recuperate. When we get good sleep, our cravings go down and our immune system rises, it's a win win.
If you really struggle with sleep, I would say try to get to bed earlier so you can capture some sleep earlier in the evening, because if you catch that second wind then it's harder to fall asleep.
Honor this change of season.
Stay hydrated with hot water to help you eliminate extra acids in the body and cleanse in a really gentle, natural way.
Keep yourself from getting too dry with the elements of air and ether by keeping your body and tissues warm, moist and hydrated by oiling your body.
Prioritize your sleep by getting to bed earlier which will boost your immune system and help keep you balanced.
These are simple yet profound natural remedies that you can do on a daily basis to support yourself and your health.
Thanks for your time, please let me know any other fall strategies you might have too, by posting below.
