The X-mas holidays at the end of each year can be a good time to review your past year and give some energy to making changes and create new habits to help make the new year an even better one.

The fast pace of modern life makes it challenging to remain happy, calm and healthy. It may be time to review your priorities and decide if your lifestyle needs to be tweaked with any changes needing to be made such as an improved exercise program, making more time for yourself and your family or look at bringing in more healthy food options or mini detox programs.time to reflect

Making time for yourself along the journey of life is crucial to being able to stay connected to your own needs. There is much truth to the saying that charity begins at home but it also starts with being able to be kind to yourself. If you are emotionally and physically depleted then you have little to give to others. Exercise produces positive brain endorphin’s and is a great stress outlet. Moderate exercise enhances energy and helps the body produce antioxidants that reduce the risk of inflammatory degenerative diseases.

Health and happiness go together. It’s very hard to feel happy in a body that is acidic, toxic and tired. As 75% of our happy brain chemical serotonin is made in our gut, nutritional medicine has found that giving the digestive system a spring clean with a detox program enhances our happiness levels. Maybe consider having mini detoxes throughout the year. This can be a gentler and more manageable option than doing longer time periods less often. The well known 5:2 program lends itself to this style of life where 5 days a week are “normal” days and 2 days a week would be “clean” days focusing on mostly liquid foods only to rest the digestive system. The liquids should preferably be nutrient dense foods such as soups, vegetable juices, protein shakes or green smoothies.

This is not only very beneficial to our physical body but also gives a great lift to our mental well being. It helps increase serotonin levels and reduces inflammation that can keep our energy levels higher and our mood happier. This makes it easier to stay on top of all life’s demands.

“Wishing you all the best for 2016. I hope it’s everything you wish for” – Dr Elen Holistic Doctor @ The Medical Sanctuary

 

 

 

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