Here are five tips to keep you and your family healthy this winter:
1. Wash your hands – especially before and after you eat, and if someone in your home or office is sick. I know this one is a no brainer but you’d be surprised how important this is. Most germs get into our system when we touch a contaminated object and them touch our eyes, nose or mouth. A recent study found that college students sitting at their computers touched their faces on average 40 times an hour. For small children this number is nearly 60 times an hour.
2. Follow the new ‘cough etiquette’, which the American Academy of Pediatrics describes as teaching children to turn their heads and cough or sneeze into a disposable tissue or the inside of their elbow if they don’t have a tissue, instead of simply coughing or sneezing onto their hands, which will then spread their germs onto everything they touch.
3. Avoid close contact with people when you are sick. It isn’t really possible to completely avoid people who are sick, so it is likely better if you just avoid exposing other people to your germs when you or your kids are sick. So don’t go to school, daycare, work, etc., if you are sick with the flu.
4. Drink Water. Lots of water. I shoot for at least 60 -80 ounces per day. If you get sick of drinking plain water jazz it up with a shot of juice or kombucha.
5. Get a massage. Regular massage treatments are not only for pain relief and relaxation. Massage increases your circulation and lymph flow which in turn boosts your immune system. I receive massage at least once or twice a month.
What is your wellness plan for this winter?