It’s simple to keep busy with Christmas preparations as winter approaches. But in the middle of all the festivities, remember to look after your health as well.
The winter months might be detrimental to your health, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine. During that time of year, it was easy to get pneumonia, the flu, the common cold, and many other illnesses.
Additionally, the cold and dark hours might negatively affect your mental health.
Try these suggestions if you want to maintain your physical and emotional well-being this winter.
How can I stay healthier during the winter? Try these 5 healthful routines
1. Increase your wintertime immunity
Winter is germ season, which explains why we become sick. Fortunately, there are actions you can take right now to maintain your health.
Adopting a healthy lifestyle is your first line of protection, according to Harvard Health. To strengthen your immune system, you can:
- consuming a diet rich in fruits and vegetables and well-balanced
- get adequate rest
- reducing your level of tension
- keeping your immunizations current
- frequent hand washing.
Bastyr University specialists also advise increasing your vitamin intake. They advise including zinc and vitamins A, C, and D in your diet.
2. In chilly weather, remain active
The last thing you want to do is leave your house to go for a run or to the gym when it’s chilly and dark outside.
However, physical activity is beneficial for mental health, which is frequently affected by wintertime seasonal affective disorder.
According to the Mental Health Foundation, exercise can assist with melancholy, anxiety, dementia, and cognitive loss in older adults. It also helps the body control stress levels, mood, and self-esteem.
How, therefore, can you exercise throughout the winter? Here are some pointers:
- Start small: To motivate yourself to workout during cold and dark weather, set small, realistic goals like 10 minutes of exercise daily or 1,000 extra steps, and gradually build a consistent routine by January.
- Workout at home: YouTube videos, apps, and subscription services provide various home workout options, but ensure you have necessary equipment like yoga mats, resistance bands, and dumbbells.
- Go on walks—inside: Winter walking can be challenging, but indoor walks can be beneficial. Consider malls, gym tracks, or using elliptical, treadmill, or stepper machines to increase steps during snowy days.
- Enlist your friends: Engage in outdoor or gym workouts with friends for a fun and accountable experience.
3. Take a look at these wintertime sleeping suggestions
Sleep is essential for maintaining good health and warding off infections. Additionally, Healthline states that people require more sleep throughout the winter than usual.
According to Healthline, a 2023 study that was published in “Frontiers in Neuroscience” discovered that “even in artificially lit urban areas, humans experience longer REM sleep in winter than summer—and less deep sleep in autumn.”
Researchers from Charité Medical University of Berlin claim that because the sun sets our body clocks, the amount and quality of our sleep can be affected by changes in the length of the day and the amount of light we are exposed to throughout the year.
4. Sources of vitamin D in the winter
Vitamin D is essential for your “overall health,” according to Baylor College of Medicine, but it can be hard to absorb in the fall and winter.
The sun must be high in the sky, not rising or setting, for your body to efficiently absorb sunshine and produce vitamin D, according to Mike Ren, an assistant professor at the institution.
According to Baylor College of Medicine, getting the 800 international units of vitamin D each day, or roughly 15 to 30 minutes of sun exposure, will be more difficult than ever as the darker months approach.
5. Establish a skincare regimen for the winter
The University of Nebraska-Lincoln states that “dry, itchy skin can be caused by cold air and low humidity.”
To maintain healthy, happy skin during the winter, you may want to make a particularly hydrating skincare routine a priority.
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You can take care of your dry skin in the following ways:
- Incorporate a humidifier into your space.
- Apply lotion to your hands several times during the day, and as soon as you step out of the shower or bathtub, put it on.
- Glamour Magazine UK advises prioritizing hyaluronic acid-containing skincare products and applying them on wet skin.
- Always have a hydrating lip balm on hand.
- Avoid washing your face too much.
