Tuesday, January 10, 2012

Health tips for care in winter

Win the winter and go into the spring with health tips:

- In general, immunity-boosting foods include those that are fresh, organic, easy to digest, pure and wholesome. These include fresh, organic milk and yogurt, vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and ghee (clarified butter).

- Foods that nourish and balance the body in the cold, dry, winter season are the sweet, sour and salty tastes. It's best to eat less of the astringent, bitter, and pungent tastes in winter, although all six tastes should be included in the diet.

- Warm, home-cooked, unctuous foods are ideal, as long as they are not deep-fried and are cooked with easy-to-digest oils such as ghee or olive oil.

- Drinking ginger tea helps to keep the body warm.

- Chew a small slice of fresh ginger root dipped in sea salt before meals to keep the digestive fire balanced.

- Avoid heavy foods & eating in excess to exaggerate kapha humor.

- Avoid cold drinks and drafts.

- Add ghee or good oils to your food to counterbalance dryness.

- Avoid excess mucus forming foods such as dairy and sugar;

- Add warming spices to your diet

- Maintain a disciplined routine that includes exercise, yoga and meditation;

- Practice Pranayama (breathing techniques) to strengthen and cleanse your respiratory tract.

- Doing a daily self-massage (Abhyanga) will also help enhance immunity. Self-massage stimulates all of the organs of the body, flushes out impurities, and builds resistance to stress and disease.

- Pamper your skin in winter with face mask of paste made from one teaspoon of honey with half a teaspoon of lemon juice. The paste imparts bright color usually masked by the cold temperature.

- To get rid of Dryness apply mixture of rose water & turmeric with few drops of olive oil.

So this winter, try giving your immunity a shot in the arm--and spend the cold season staying warm and healthy!