Staying healthy during lockdown

CoronaVirus has impacted us all. It's so important to stay both physically and mentally well at this time, so here are some top tips to get you through a challenging few months.

Have you found yourself spending a little too much time watching the news lately? Can you feel your anxiety level increasing? Are you finding that you are in a continual cycle of negativity? While it can be really difficult to pull ourselves away from what is happening in the world, it's important to ask 'does watching this impact my health positively?'. The answer is very likely no.

So what can you do to help yourself at this time?

1. Turn off the TV: There is nothing at all that you can do to change what is currently happening, so obsessing over it won't help. Restrict your news time to a max 30 minutes a day and find other activities to keep your mind distracted.

2. Focus on stress reduction: find a few minutes each day to do some breathing exercises, or a little meditation. There is so much currently available. Here are some resources for you from two of my favourite sites: Headspace: https://www.headspace.com/covid-19 Ten Percent Happier: https://www.tenpercent.com/coronavirussanityguide 3. Improve your immune strength: There are so many ways in which we can improve our immunity, to make sure we are as strong and healthy as we can be, should we contract CoronaVirus. Here are some tips: Make sure you are sleeping well. Take a look at our blog on sleep tips for some advice on how to improve your sleep hygiene.

Get some sunshine, or make sure you are getting at least 1,000 IU of Vitamin D daily in supplement form. And if you are vegetarian or vegan, make sure you are taking a combined Vitamin D with K2 supplement* Increase your Vitamin C intake by consuming plenty of citrus fruits, kiwi's and berries. If you would like to top up with a supplement, 1000 mg / day is a good dose*, although this can lead to some gastrointestinal issues, so take with care!

Make sure you are getting plenty of zinc in your diet. Great sources include meat, shellfish, eggs, beans, nuts and seeds.

*Check with your health care provider before taking any new supplements, especially if you are taking any medications!*

Finally, it's so important that while we are staying physically isolated, we stay socially connected, so skype, zoom, facetime and call all of your friends and family as regularly as you can, to make sure you are not feeling isolated. Stay safe!

Kirstie and Deborah