Are You Winter Ready?

Photo by Marcin Jozwiak on Unsplash

With the deadly pandemic around, this winter is going to be highly crucial especially for families with kids and senior citizens. All possible safety measures are to be taken well in advance to ensure their safety, as they are highly vulnerable to infections. When compared to other seasons of the year winters are very much favorable for the spread of respiratory viral infections like Flu. Particularly with very poor air quality in the metropolitan cities winters turn deadly because of an increase in fog and AQI (Air Quality Index). The increase in AQI is potentially hazardous for people with breathing and immunity issues as they are easily prone to infections. Additional to fog and AQI, the persisting coronavirus infection adds upon to our bundles of worry, as this is also a respiratory tract infection and has deadly effects if timely treatment isn't provided. But let's not spoil our health by just taking stress, instead let us stay alert and look at ideas to keep our families safe. 

Wearing masks and following social distancing guidelines is the need of the hour. Along with this, maintaining proper personal hygiene, using sanitizers, avoiding outside food and unnecessary traveling is also important. By keeping these points in mind, let us see what best can be done at home to ensure family safety this winter. 

1. Get your cupboard all set. 

Check for the availability of winter clothes at home. Make sure that you have at least 2-3 sets of winter clothing like sweaters, socks, jackets, scarves, gloves, etc. for every member of the house. In case you are supposed to buy them, shop before the winter starts and keep them ready. It's better to choose pure cotton or woolen clothing as they provide better insulation and help you to stay warm even at low temperatures. Multi-layer clothing provides better water resistance so that you can wear them out in mist or fog. For kids and aged people clothes that cover their ears are very much essential as they are easily prone to infections that enter through the ears. 

2. Your kitchen can do the wonder.

It is not just enough if we keep our body warm using winter clothing. We should also stay warm internally and remove dampness from the body. It is very important to maintain high-level immunity in the winter seasons and your kitchen can help you in a great way to do the same. Avoid ice-creams, cold drinks, or any other forms of refrigerated food items. Instead, add hot and spicy food to your menu. Hot soups spiced up with your favorite flavors are the best choice for your winter carvings.

Turmeric milk can do wonders as they are the perfect choice to boost your immunity. Increase the intake of spices like pepper, ginger, garlic, and cloves as they have very good anti-microbial properties. Honey is one another best home medicine, especially for children. As children enjoy sweets, you can easily make them eat this tasty yet healthy sweet. They can consume honey directly or you can serve honey with roti, dosa, or pancakes. It has very high levels of antioxidants and is very effective against bacterial infections. It can have a highly soothing effect on sore throat and related symptoms.  

Intake of Vitamin-C rich foods is of course the best way to increase your immune levels. Vitamin-C helps to improve cellular immune response and increase the production and functioning of antibodies. Citrus fruits are the best source of Vitamin-C. Include lots of fresh Citrus fruits and other sources of Vitamin-C like berries, pineapples, and chili peppers. 

3. Maintain fitness

Generally in winters we often choose to stay indoors because of the harsh weather conditions. This leads to very less physical activity and in turn, we are at greater risk of developing obesity, blood pressure, and other related health issues. A sedentary lifestyle is very dangerous as this causes adverse effects on your body. So, regular practice of exercises, yoga, dance, or any other form of physical activity is very important to keep ourselves fit and healthy even when starting indoors. Make sure that you engage yourself in any form of moderate or vigorous physical activity at least for 60-90 mins in a day. 

Another detrimental effect of staying indoors is that we remain deprived of the most essential vitamin - the Vitamin-D. Vitamin-D deficiency can increase the risk of autoimmune disorders and cause weakness of muscles and bones. The availability of this vitamin is very crucial for growing children. So ensure that your family members get enough of this vitamin even while staying indoors. See that your house has enough ventilation and includes lots of Vitamin-D rich foods in your diet. Some Mushrooms, Soya, Salmon, fortified milk, yogurt, and eggs can be consumed to overcome Vitamin-D deficiency. 

Apart from following these steps, it is important to stay happy and stress-free too. Think good, keep your mind calm, do regular prayers or meditation, and practice breathing exercises to keep up your mental health status. Of course, staying happy is the best way to stay healthy. Eat well, think well, dress well, and exercise well. Happy winters!