Tips for a Healthy Holiday

By Deborah Ray

Many a magazine cover will be emblazoned this month and next with titles that promise to tell us the inside tips for a healthy holiday. Every article will mention fairly consistently the following:

• wash your hands often
• get check-ups and vaccinations
• manage stress
• eat healthy and be active
• travel safely
• handle and prepare food safely

Washing your hands and making your healthcare providers wash their hands is critical to stop the spread of infection and prevent antibiotic-resistance from flourishing when antibacterial sprays and wipes are used. If you travel to see family during the holidays, wash your hands before meals, meal preparation, after using the bathroom and even after you get off a train or plane.

Beware of the hype to buy antibacterial soaps, wipes, and sprays. There is a growing body of evidence thanks to groups like the Alliance for the Prudent Use of Antibiotics that we set the stage for more bugs to be resistant to antibiotics with the liberal use of antibacterial products. Also, be mindful of the animal products you consume this holiday time of year. Choose ones where animals were not fed antibiotics. It does make a difference. Labels like “keep antibiotics working” are one measure you can use to make wise food choices.

These steps will insure your meal preparation remains healthy and contaminant free. I have one cutting board for meat and one for fruits and vegetables. Cross-contamination resulting in GI distress can be a bummer when everyone else is enjoying the holidays. Don’t forget sponges and dish rags can be sources of contamination if not regularly washed in hot, soapy water.

One of the most important things you can do for your immune system (and bones, and heart, and mind, and skin) is to have your health care provider check your Vitamin 25-OH D level and supplement to keep your level optimal. Every tissue in your body has a receptor for vitamin D which is a pro-hormone precursor essential for optimal immune system balance. Also keep in mind that recent studies found you are more likely to suffer from wrinkles and aging from the sun if your vitamin D level is not optimal. We find vitamin D in cod liver oil, mushrooms, and some fortified foods. Most experts agree vitamin D supplementation is important to consider. At the equator where vitamin D deficiency is unknown, we would get the equivalent of 5000 IU daily of Vitamin D3.

Our Creator had a wonderful plan to not only nourish our souls but also our bodies. Paleontologists such as Dr. Loren Cordain who wrote “The Paleo Diet” teaches us lean protein, fruits and vegetables in season, with good fats from fish and plant sources is the ideal diet for keeping each one of our cells healthy. Are you getting the optimal 9-11 servings of fruit and vegetables a day? It is one of the basic “top 5” steps you can do daily for your body’s health. While all of us say we are too busy especially during the holidays, I routinely take one ounce of Fruit of the Spirit every day to add an additional 5 servings of fruits and veggies to my diet and provide lots of antioxidant-rich whole fruits from a puree with special minerals and herbs. As a busy family member tells me “I can tell when I don’t take Fruit of the Spirit each day.” Fruits picked at the height of their ripeness contain naturally-occurring plant chemicals that are fascinating. Pick up Jean Carper “The Food Pharmacy” over the holidays and you will be amazed of the healing benefits created from foods grown in God’s garden. Cranberries alone will help keep bacteria from sticking to our teeth, our urinary bladder wall, and our GI tracts. I try to keep cranberries on my table all year round. Frankincense or boswellia is an herb with profound anti-inflammatory effects.

Two of the three legs of the stool of good health are spiritual and emotional health. Only one focuses on physical health. Our bodies can store the molecules of stress and they can affect our immune system (think of the flu when you are run down during the holidays), our heart (emotional attacks can be as real as a heart attack according to cardiologists), our skin, and so on. Don’t forget a time of daily peace. For many of us it will be prayer; for others it may be mindful meditation or gathering our thoughts during a walk. The stress of what you don’t have time to do will look much different after a short 30-minute walk. Walk five minutes after each meal and in one year you will have covered the distance between LA and San Francisco. That’s a great new year’s resolution.

Many of us will mention family members who are travelling during the holidays in our prayers. Our relationship with our Heavenly Father has many, many scientific studies to confirm the health benefits. Harvard researchers even state our brains are “hardwired” for spirituality.

The most important tip of which I know to stay healthy in the holiday is the perspective of why we celebrate this time of year. His love for all of us and the gift of salvation puts “finding the right gift no matter what the cost” in perspective. How blessed we are for the gifts we have received. Celebrate, enjoy your family and friends, and give thanks for “the reason for the season.”

1. gi diet meal plan says:

   November 21, 2010 at 8:26 pm

   Thanks for the amazing diet techniques, I will definitely give them a try!