3 HEALTHY HABITS TO HELP YOU EMBRACE THE FALL SEASON

With the last day of summer past and the onset of fall upon us, the leaves begin changing into bright colours and the weather shifts to a brisk fall coolness. We find ourselves preparing for our winter routine and some of our daily habits shift along with season change.  Here are 5 healthy ways I like that embrace fall!


ARM YOUR IMMUNE FORCES  - As soon as fall hits I always find myself checking my vitamin collection for those herbs and nutrients that ensure my immune system is ready for a fight. These are a few of my must-haves:

• Andrographis - this is a very potent antimicrobial herb that is fantastic at fighting a cold when you feeling it coming on. I find this herb extremely effective!
• Astragalus - known to help modulate the immune system - essentially it helps to keep your immune system on guard and ready for a potential fight.
• Vitamin D - an essential nutrient that has been scientifically verified to reduce the incidences of colds and flus (upper respiratory tract infections).
• Vitamin C - a water soluble vitamin that helps keep your immune system in good shape.
• A custom-made botanical tincture - I often keep a bottle of my own custom formula on my bedroom side table and one in my purse for those occasions where a scratchy throat catches me off guard and I need to nip it in the butt right away!
• Zinc - a mineral known to help stimulate your immune system - I rarely recommend regular use of zinc but, it is a super nutrient to use to give your immune function a jump start. 

FIND THE PERFECT WARM AND COZY WINTER TEA - the other day I found myself having the desire to head to David's Tea to pick out some warming teas. Here are a few warming herbs to look for in your tea selections:

• Cinnamon - good to balance blood sugars and a natural sweetener in teas
• Cardamom - warming herb that is a member of the ginger family and often used to help digestion
• Cloves - in addition to being warming this herb also has some potent antibacterial properties
• Ginger - a super warming herb that is also good to help settle your stomach
• Apple - not much beats a cup of hot apple cider - I usually make mine in the crock pot!
• Chili pepper - can be added to some teas to help give them a nice warm pep up! Chili is a great circulatory stimulant which is useful for keeping warm in the colder weather

GETTING BACK INTO THE SWING OF THINGS - when September hits everything starts up again, whether this means school, new deadlines at work or other activities. The fall schedule always has us working harder than during the lazy summer. Some key things to consider for a successful fall schedule are:

• Ensure you get adequate sleep - When changing your sleep schedule back to those earlier mornings and earlier nights, sometimes a little help can make the transition easier. I often use herbs such as Passionflower or Chamomile to help initiate sleep and reset the sleep cycle. I am also a big fan of occasional use of melatonin (in adults only) to help regulate circadian rhythm and get your body used to falling asleep at the earlier time.
• Exercise routine - Find the perfect exercise routine to help you keep a healthy life balance. I recently started taking Pilates again as it is a fantastic way to strengthen my core and give my body overall strength and tone which will help with muscle balance and prevention of injury.
• Make lists - It is very important in this busy time to make a good list of things to do. When you make a list it allows your mind to prioritize the items you have to do and promotes it to rest knowing you will not forget anything. I am always making lists as otherwise I find my mind never stops!
• Find a good book - I am such a fan of finding a good book to read for the rainy and cold winter days. Make it a fun experience and look for something you actually find interesting or a good fictional story you will get pulled into. 
• Health action plan - With life getting back on schedule it is the perfect time to get back into a healthy routine and get you back to feeling your best! I also think now is a great time to be preventive for the stresses to come and get yourself on some nourishing adrenal supplements! Visit your local Naturopathic Physician for a program best suited to you.

Hope this blog post gives you either some fun new ideas of how to embrace fall or even reminds you of things you already knew! 

For a personalized fall health action plan and get you feeling your best please come visit me any time!

---