4 free tools for a healthy holiday

In my home, Thanksgiving involves the gathering of family and friends for a mega cooking event and the once-a-year pie baking contest. This Thanksgiving, more than ever, we will pause and appreciate our good health, and many blessings.

Beginning this holiday season, I also want to take a moment to appreciate you, my readers.  I’m very thankful that my work gives me an opportunity to connect with you and all of the women (and men too) on their journey to better health.  You challenge me every single day with your experiences and thoughtful questions, which I truly appreciate.

I’m also grateful for your openness to new ways of bringing health and joy into your lives.  Keeping that in mind, I invite you to try some more ideas to help you maintain wellness in body, mind, and spirit this holiday season.  These simple tools below will help you prepare holiday meals, deal with the frenzy of the season, or think about resolutions for the New Year.

Find Thanksgiving wellness

1. Choose healthy produce. Each year, the Environmental Working Group (EWG) creates its Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides in produce known as the Dirty Dozen (fruits and vegetables with the most pesticide residue) and the Clean Fifteen (fruits and vegetables with the least pesticide residue).  After looking at this list, you may want to include extra sweet potatoes in your Thanksgiving dinner.

2. Reduce worry. Many of the women I talk with feel a little out of control. Meditation is one way to relax, and also to alkalize. In this 8-minute meditation, I guide you through the Alkaline Breath Detox Exercise.

3. Test your vitamin C levels with this new free tool I developed! This winter more than ever we need to actively support our immune system and two of the most effective ways to do this are to give yourself therapeutic doses of immune-boosting, anti-viral vitamin C ascorbate, and to take adequate vitamin D. The good news is that you can assess your vitamin C status with the simple, free tool I developed. Detecting your vitamin D level, however, is a bit trickier.  Your doctor can order a blood test or you can purchase our at-home vitamin D test kit.

4. Take 10 action steps to build bone naturally. With this free booklet you can learn the same 10 steps I use with my clients at the Center for Better Bones. I wrote this booklet to empower women who are worried about bone loss, osteoporosis, or osteopenia. There is too much information out there designed to create fear and self-doubt. Instead, I believe women should be encouraged to take positive action to increase their self-care programs. You have more power than you realize!

Sending you my warmest wishes for a happy and healthy Thanksgiving.

 -Dr. Susan Brown, PhD