I think we all pay a little more attention to our health, particularly our immune system and resiliency, in the middle of cold and flu season. Layer on a global pandemic, and suddenly you’re lathering in hand sanitizer, guzzling elderberry, and hanging on every vitamin and mineral recommendation published. I get it – one sniffle, sneeze, or scratch of your nose and people are treating you like a leper. Trust me, I got a cold (seriously, a cold) and my mom and boss were busting out the hazmat suits.
A little (okay, a lot) of rest, tea, help from my essential friends, and extra spoons of homemade elderberry syrup had me on the mend within a couple days. I am as healthy (and spicy) as ever, and my concerned compadres have (temporarily) hung up their suits. Every few years I come down with a cold that kicks my butt for a few days, and am otherwise a pretty healthy person. I attribute my lack of colds and sicknesses to plenty of exercise, lots of fresh air, a well-balanced diet, and more recently, some natural immune-boosting tools.
Some of these wellness tools are new to my health cabinet, but they’ve each been chosen very intentionally. I enjoy each of them, and get excited knowing I’m building up my defense system. I love sharing anything new and delightful I find, plus I don’t want a prospective cough or runny nose to have you exiled by your family and friends…
So here are a few things you can add to your cabinet to stay healthy –
- Homemade Elderberry Syrup
- Essential Oils
- Humboldt Herbals Tea Blends
- Goji Berry Juice
- Beekeeper’s Naturals Propolis Spray and B. Powered Honey
- Mary Ruth’s
Elderberry Syrup: I think we’ve all heard about the benefits of elderberry on our immune system, with fear of sickness this year it has become very popular. And for good reason! It is a natural source of many antioxidants and vitamins, and has been used for years as a natural remedy to reduce the impact and length of colds. I found this interesting as well –
“Many of elderberry’s health benefits can be attributed to anthocyanin. As an antioxidant, anthocyanin works by clearing the body of free radicals that damage cells at the DNA level.1 It also has antiviral properties that may prevent or reduce the severity of certain common infections.
Elderberry also exerts anti-inflammatory effects, reducing swelling and pain by tempering the body’s immune response.” (verywellhealth.com)
Love those qualities! And as important and beneficial as elderberry is itself, I also believe the source of the syrup to be critical. Which is why I bought mine from my college friend Sierra! Sierra harvests her own elderberries and makes the syrup in small batches. I love supporting my friends and small businesses, plus I trust the freshness, purity, and quality of her product above anything generic on store shelves. You can contact her here, to get your own syrup!
If you weren’t sold on the benefits of elderberry syrup, the taste will have you hooked. I look forward to taking my teaspoon each morning, not just because it’s good for me, but because it tastes like a sweet treat!
Essential oils: You already know how much I love my oils and how I use them for whole body support, but never hurts to mention them again! Thieves is the king of germ-fighting, so my Thieves products are always nearby. I love the Young Living Thieves Hand Sanitizer when I’m out and about, and the Spray for things I want to sanitize that can’t effectively be squirted with the hand sanitizer. They’re small and easily fit in my purse and car. Not only do I feel like they are softer on my body’s microbiome, but I also love that they have a pleasant smell, not the harsh, tequila-esque scent of most sanitizers. Don’t get me wrong, I still love tequila, just not burning my nostrils at all hours of the day. (Note: the effects of hand sanitizer on our microbiome is a personal opinion. Long-term, I believe ridding our body of all bacteria and germs impacts our body’s natural armor and ability to fight off potential contaminants, which in turn makes us more susceptible to sickness.)
Other oily things I use, both preventative and if I’m feeling symptomatic, are: Thieves oil, Rosemary oil, RC oil, Raven oil, Oregano oil, Peppermint oil, and Eucalyptus oil. I lean on these oils for their antiviral and antibacterial properties, as well as their ability to help relieve congestion. If you use oils I highly recommend you get an oil reference guide, as oils can easily be used to curb a myriad of symptoms and ailments. This is the one I use – Quick Reference Guide for Using Essential Oils. To order oils: Young Living.
Next up on my list: Humboldt Herbals Tea Blends. I love, love, love Humboldt Herbals. They are so informative and helpful! The tea world is a new to me, I didn’t even know there were different methods of brewing tea depending on the type! (But seriously, did anyone else know that?) It’s clear I knew nothing about teas and their benefits (still don’t really know anything!), but by explaining what support I was looking for the Humboldt Herbals team were able to guide me. They also have a detailed menu of tea blends that they create, which helps take the guesswork when choosing teas that support different areas of the body. Good news: there is a tea for just about everything! I keep: Kidney Care Tea, Detoxify Tea, Cold and Crud Relief (so good when you’re feeling under the weather!), Horsetail (kidney support per my energy healer), Metabolism Magic Tea, and Polari Tea on hand. I was feeling great (and need to get back to it!) when I was having a yummy cup of tea each morning before my coffee. Tea is an amazing, natural form of support for your body.
Since I don’t know much about anything, it is super helpful that each bag of tea comes with instructions for how to seep that particular type of tea (steep vs. simmer). They also have every tea accessory you can think of. I picked up a few things so I could brew my tea properly!
Goji Berry Juice: a yummy addition to my afternoons! I love adding a couple tablespoons of goji berry juice to my sparkling water for a refreshing treat. I have not perfected my consistency on this one, but try to take it as often as I remember (palm to forehead). It is just another tool I use to bolster my overall health, which over time strengthens my natural defense system and keeps me from getting brought down by every bug. What got me adding goji berry juice to my diet is the fact that –
Goji berry juice “is a natural source of trace amounts of minerals, enzymes, antioxidants, vitamins and amino acids. It also contains naturally occurring phytonutrients and unique polysaccharides”.
Antioxidants are great for “[preventing] or [slowing] damage to cells caused by free radicals” (medicalnewstoday.com), and phytonutrients are “chemicals produced by plants”, and offer “antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities” (livescience.com).
A tasty, whole body wellness treat! I ordered mine from Amazon, here.
Beekeeper’s Naturals Propolis Spray and B. Powered Honey: Probably the products I am most excited to share about! These are new for me and so far I love them and am blown away by the benefits.
Let’s start with propolis spray – propolis is a compound produced by bees. It is used to seal the hive and protect it from destructive bacteria, fungus, viruses, etc. Based on its use in the hive, it is believed to have “antibacterial, antiviral, antifungal, and anti-inflammatory properties” (healthline.com). Propolis has also been found to have “more than 300 compounds” many of which are “forms of polyphenols. Polyphenols are antioxidants that fight disease and damage in the body.” (healthline.com)
There are so many cool properties and uses of propolis (I am always learning new things!), and was blown away when I heard this specific example of its use in nature: if a rat or other animal invades the hive and dies, the bees seal the animal with propolis which effectively incapsulates it and prevents the queen and hive structure from getting sick, dying, or deteriorating.
With this evidence of it’s power and effectiveness, propolis spray is used to to coat the throat and eliminate/prevent bacteria, viruses, or infections from getting us down. It has historically been used to heal wounds, too. Some mornings I will routinely do a few sprays, and if I feel any scratchiness or tickling in my throat I am sure to use it.
Next up, B. Powered Honey – so delicious! And I am not someone who usually likes honey. I think it is because this B. Powered Honey doesn’t have the sickly sweet taste of traditional honeys, and has a thicker, almost grittier, consistency (which I actually really like). This honey is a combination of honey, royal jelly, and propolis. This combination is believed to provide sustained energy, mental clarity, and energy (I put mine in my coffee!). You already know what honey and propolis are, so a few notes about the third ingredient, royal jelly, are –
It is fed to the queen bee, and “may support hormonal balance & brain health”. It also “contains 10-HDA—an ultra unique fatty acid that nourishes the brain & supports the production of BDNF, which actively fends off brain fog” (beekeepersnaturals.com).
Yum! I am really enjoying both of these, and will be exploring the rest of the bee-powered cold remedies. I ordered both of these from Beekeeper’s Naturals, and encourage you to take a look at the rest of their products.
Obviously if you have any adversity or reactions to bees, talk to your doctor.
Last but not least, Mary Ruth’s Liquid Morning Vitamin! I have been hesitant to add a multivitamin to my routine, as I wanted something that was high quality and effective.
My goal is to always consume nutrients through food, as food typically offers the most bioavailable form of vitamins and minerals. Vitamins and minerals are part of a very complex and dependent network that must be taken into consideration to ensure your body can actually use the vitamin or mineral you’re supplementing. Often the absorption and usability of one is dependent on the presence of one or more other nutrients.
While I am not typically a big fan of supplements, I chose Mary’s Ruth’s Liquid Morning Vitamin intentionally. I believe it to be a quality product, and I really wanted a multivitamin that was in liquid form! My understanding and impression has always been that liquid forms of vitamins and nutrients are more bioavailable by the body than than traditional gummies or capsules. Here is what Mary Ruth says –
“There are many studies on the bioavailability of liquid supplements as opposed to capsules. In general, liquids are more bioavailable than capsules and some studies have shown liquids to have a 97% absorption rate, with capsules at only three percent.”
That will have you rethinking your viti-game…
Overall, I really enjoy this multivitamin and am more prone to take it since it is one of the first things I see in my fridge each morning. It is a bit thick and takes some getting used to, but I find the raspberry flavor to be pretty palatable.
Other products in my cabinet that are great for whole body wellness and keeping me healthy, are: CBD oil (I love Nectar Stick! Both mint and original), and mushroom blends! CBD oil has been really helpful with my stress and sleep. Both stress and a lack of sleep can impair your body’s ability to fight off colds and infections, so managing stress and prioritizing sleep are always a work in progress for me. By now I’m sure you also know how much I love incorporating mushroom blends into my diet (which reminds me – I need to get consistent and incorporate these back into my everyday!). Mushrooms are known for their positive impacts on the entire body. I have both Mushroom Revival Mush10 Powder and just purchased Mud\Wtr. Mushroom Revival has updated their products, and it doesn’t appear the powder I have is available anymore, but they do have a number of tinctures available (including the Mush10 combination)! As far as Mud\Wtr, I purchased this as a replacement to one of my cups of coffee each day. My goal is to reduce my dependence on coffee and caffeine, and at the same time boost my immune system. Wish me luck – you know how much I enjoy my coffee!
Well there you have it, a few tools to take care of yourself and support your immune system. I hope you learned something, are encouraged to do some of your own research, and please share what you’re doing to keep yourself healthy! I am always looking to try new things and support my body.
Stay healthy, stay active, and stay happy!
Beer in a Martini World 