How to naturally minimise and deal with the symptoms of colds and flu?

Healthy eating, exercise, sleep, stress and Vitamin D levels are all factors that should be addressed to keep you well this flu season.  Vitamin D is also known to have a direct immune-modulating effect on CD8 T cells. A study published in 2010 proposed that deprivation of sunlight and vitamin D at higher latitudes worsens CD8 T-cell deficiency. Lack of Vitamin D is responsible for Rickets, a childhood disease which slows long bone growth, Osteomalacia, a bone-thinning disorder which occurs in adults and Osteoporosis, a condition characterized by brittle bones and loss of calcium including other chronic health problems such as High Blood Pressure, Depression, Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), Cancer, Periodontal Disease, Multiple Sclerosis and Chronic Pain Syndrome.

 If you are lucky enough to be able to enjoy a trip away take your essential oils (liquid light) with you, massage on or use all over as a body moisturiser and enjoy the extra benefits of sweet almond oil which contains calcium, magnesium, vitamin E and D.  Another benefit?  Healthy skin is less likely to burn or be damaged by the sun. And include it in your diet by adding half a teaspoon in addition to any other oil you use for cooking or in a salad.

As I reach for my essential oils each and every day I’m reminded of a saying:

“The best six doctors anywhere
And no one can deny it
Are sunshine, water, rest, and air
Exercise and diet.
These six will gladly you attend
If only you are willing
Your mind they’ll ease
Your will they’ll mend
And charge you not a shilling.
~Nursery rhyme quoted by Wayne Fields, What the River Knows, 1990

As winter is upon us, the challenges of staying healthy can be even greater. We are encouraged by the media and daily life pressures to deny our bodies the rest and support they need. A daily application of essential oils will help to boost your metabolism, bolster your immune system and lift your spirits!