Natural remedies for the winter blues – Part 1

The basis of our health and wellbeing is our guts ability to digest what we eat and absorb all the nutrients.  However it is common for people to have digestive issues such as gas, bloating, food intolerances and IBS.  Given the guts importance to wellbeing, I would like to focus on digestion and guts in the next few articles which will include tips for healthy stomachs, large intestine and small intestine. Lets start with talking about bowels.  Your bowel movements reflect both your lifestyle and gut health.  So how should you judge your bowel movements:

1. There should be no discomfort or straining when you go to the loo, and no smell of gas.
2. Stools should come out easily, smoothly and all in one piece.
3. Stools should be 10 - 15 cm long, medium brown in colur and shouldn't be smelly, stick to the lavoratory bowl or float.
4. If your stool floats it could be due to too much fat or gas in your diet - usually from excess sugar, fizzy drinks or beans.
5. A very smelly stool can be a sign of undigested food or waster that has been sitting in your bowel for a long time.  It can also be a sign of poor absorbtions or lactose intolerance.  If your stool is smelly and looks greasy it may be a sign of coeliac disease so you need to book a check up with your doctor.
6. Going to the toilet 2 -3 times a day is optimal but anything from 2 - 3 times per day to 2 - 3 times per weeks in normal.
7. Any changes to your normal pattern should be reported to your doctor.

In our day to day lives, during the times when we are deciding what to eat or whether to watch TV or take a walk, who is more likely to be around us, our family, friends, flat mates or a doctor?  Even for individuals living with a chronic condition who will probably only spend a few hours a year with medical professionals compared to the thousands of waking hours with family and friends. Recently researches discovered that women are more likely to survive breast cancer if they have a strong social network of friends and family, whereas those who are more isolated are twice as likely to die of the disease. University of Pennsylvania have found that good health is more likely if people see fewer doctors and more of their family and friends especially if they get their support and help.  They discovered that people are more likely to make healthier choices - like going for a walk over watching TV if they are around family and friends.  In addition people are more likely to go to the gym if they have someone to go with. Being part of a group e.g. family, friends, book club, tennis club, social group, religious/spiritual practice seems to aid our motivation to be healthier in terms of diet, exercise, smoking or drinking.  This could be because being part of a group enhances your sense of meaning in life, which in turn leads you to better take care of yourself.  Or it could be down to feeling a sense of responsibility towards other or even just wanting to fit in. References D A. Asch, and R Rosin, Engineering Social Incentives for Health, N Engl J Med 2016; 375:2511-2513 Kroenke, C. H., Michael, Y. L., Poole, E. M., Kwan, M. L., Nechuta, S., Leas, E., Caan, B. J., Pierce, J., Shu, X.-O., Zheng, Y. and Chen, W. Y. (2017), Postdiagnosis social networks and breast cancer mortality in the After Breast Cancer Pooling Project. Cancer, 123: 1228–1237. doi:10.1002/cncr.30440 Tarrant, M., Warmoth, K., Code, C., Dean, S., Goodwin, V. A., Stein, K., & Sugavanam, T. (2016). Creating psychological connections between intervention recipients: development and focus group evaluation of a group singing session for people with aphasia. BMJ Open, 6(2), e009652.  

In my last blog article, I explored how your social network including your friends and family impact your motivation to be healthy. Being part of a group, or better yet, lots of groups is good for your health.  The kind of groups doesn't seem to matter - it could be a family group, friendship group, religious or spiritual group, tennis or book club.  What is important is that you identify with it and see it as a meaningful part of your life. Here are five good reasons why?

1. It can help you live longer
   • "As a rule of thumb if you belong to no groups but decide to join one, you cut the risk of dying over the next year in half" R Putman, Bowling Alone.
   • An adequate social life provides health benefits on a par with quitting smoking
   • The benefits of social ties are akin to those of exercise once you retire.  In one study retirees belonging to two social groups had a 2% risk of death but if they lost touch with both groups it jumps to 12%.
2. It can protect your heart
   • Heart disease is generally lower for those who are members of a social group.
   • The risk of death from heart disease diminishes if you belong to more than one social group.
3. It can cut your risk of a cold
   • Those belonging to a wide range of social groups e.g family friends, work, recreation or religious groups are least likely to come down with a cold.  Six or more types of diverse groups cut the risk of a cold more than four times.
4. It can alleviate depression
   • The more social groups you belong to the less likely you are to suffer from depression.
   • If you are depressed, joining a group can help you recover and cut the risk of a relapse by nearly a 1/4 if you join one group or by almost 2/3 if you join three.
   • If you are a member of a religious or spiritual group you are less likely to have depressive symptoms and more likely to have feelings of well being.
5. It motivates you to be healthy