Health Insights
General Interest
The change in seasons warrants a new plan of action to ensure peak mental and physical wellbeing for the months ahead as well as a consideration of how to combat seasonally related ailments. Dr Colin Ding of Grahams Road Medical Practice has some handy hints and top tips for helping to stay healthy as we put the colder days behind us and embrace the warmer weather.
• While it may be synonymous with chillier temperatures, the flu - influenza - can be transmitted all year round. The viral illness, which is spread through the air, can be caught when exposed to sufferers sneezing, coughing and nose blowing, and also by touching a contaminated surface or object. Dr Ding suggests taking advantage of the flu vaccination which is available up until 31 December 2017. It is available FREE to those over 65 years old.
• Take Vitamin D - the benefits of Vitamin D ‘the sunshine vitamin’ are multitudinous including regulating the absorption of calcium and phosphorus and supporting a healthy immune system. It is also credited for helping to improve resistance against certain diseases and boosting mood and weight loss.
• Moving into allergy season - associated with warmer weather - Dr Ding suggests non-sedating allergy tablets like cetirizine. An effective antihistamine like this can be used on its own for milder cases, or in tandem with eyedrops and nasal sprays for more intense allergies - see your GP for advice.
• For those suffering from lingering colds, Dr Ding suggests a high dose of Vitamin C - it supports a healthy immune system and is purported to have cold-reducing benefits.
• Probiotics - Dr Ding extols the virtues of introducing probiotics into the diet given how good live bacteria and yeasts are for health. Probiotics is a generic name for various strains of life promoting living bacteria which are of benefit to the digestive tract. Stores like Health 2000 have options and there are yogurts on the market that contain probiotics too. If in doubt, always consult your GP first.
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