Chicago Healers.com Practitioner Dr. Tom Bayne offers these preventative measures for staying health while traveling:
- Stay hydrated: Drink plenty of water especially while flying to keep your immune system strong. Water helps keep mucous membranes moist enough to combat the viruses they encounter. Dry mucus membranes are a breeding ground for infection
- Say no to dessert: Sugar decreases immune response and provides an environment in the body where infection can thrive. When white blood cells are exposed to high levels of sugar in the bloodstream, they have a decreased ability to fight infections.
- Sleep it off: For many people vacation is a lot of visiting and doing, and not much different from the stress of their normal life. Plan things for later in the day and sleep in a little. Get to bed before midnight.
- Stock up on your D: Vitamin D is necessary for your body to mount a defense against viruses. The dark winter months keep our body’s covered and inside most of the time. Unable to process Vitamin D from the sun our body loses the ability to fight viruses when we come in contact with them.
- Go easy on the holiday cheer: A glass of wine or two can be very positive to your immune health, but many days of heavy alcohol consumption can leave your body fatigued, toxic, and susceptible to infection. When it comes to booze a little really can go a long way, in keeping you healthy.
I so agree with this, especially the part about staying hydrated which I think everyone has a tough time with. That and getting enough sleep on holiday are the two killers. Thanks for the beneficial post. Julian
I agree with this too – I always try to eat light, drink lots of water and get plenty of sleep to reduce the stress of traveling.
Those are great set of tips.
Prior to your departure, it’s important to think that the good eating and exercise habits that you have developed is not going to fly out just because you are away from home.
* You may be in a social function where you find an irresistible dish that can’t be avoided. That is not a problem. It is ok and permit yourself to let go occasionally. (Remember your limits).
* When you are away and if you do not get to choose the proper restaurant, at least choose proper meals. Buffets are usually dangerous for people with a weight problem.
* Getting hungry and not having too many choices, usually results in poor choices. Plan ahead. Do not skip breakfast.
* Make sure you drink plenty of water. Thirst can often be confused for hunger.
* Avoiding pre dinner drinks may not always be possible or desirable, so at least keep your pre dinner drinks to minimum.
These are all excellent ideas of how to control your calorie intake while traveling, but let us not forget the other side of the weight management equation… burning calories. You can burn calories while traveling too. Whether it’s by doing yoga, taking the stairs instead of the elevator, or just doing some sit ups and push ups in your room, there are easy ways to burn calories while traveling too!