i have a lot of people ask me what kind of things we do to try and stay healthy especially during the winter. the last time we had a child at the doctor for being sick was almost 3 years ago. now that's not to say they haven't been sick in that time... they have had pink eye and a couple ear infections but before i took them in i tried alternative heath treatments and they cleared up.
okay.. truth: i put breastmilk on everything. it is AMAZING! it has seriously worked big time for all sorts of things.. it is a natural antibiotic and has saved me many a trip to the doctor over that kind of thing. lucienne and grayson have never had a 'real' antibiotic actually... extended breastfeeding also plays a critical role in their immune system and in our family so i pretty much have access to it all the time. :)
they have had some typical congestion, mild illnesses, short lived stomach bugs etc., but i do natural treatments at home unless it meets my criteria for going in... which so far it hasn't. now i can't go into this stuff without first saying that there is no golden ticket to perfect health. you can do everything right and make every best choice and still... well still hear the doctors saying your little 2 year old daughter most likely won't survive the week.. it is coming up on the 3 year anniversary of hearing those words.. i will never again think i can be in charge of the miracle that is my immune system. i take to heart the mantra 'i do the best i can with the knowledge i have'. i thank our western medicine system for having the tools and the skills to save arianna's life. there was a day not so long ago when she wouldn't have had a chance.. the doctors and nurses were incredible. where this system fails is actual healthCARE.
thus my top 5 things we do to stay healthy
1. education
getting outside of the drug companies pocket books is critical if you are looking to improve your health instead of just manage your symptoms. so much of our 'health news' is funded by drug companies... it should be criminal. the more people that are sick and take their drugs the more money they make. period. start by reading some alternative health news... i like the mercola newsletter for general health articles.. and dr. sears website and books for everything baby/kid related. he has some fantastic information for vaccine related questions and ADHD stuff.. attachment parenting resources. etc. good stuff. learn to look beyond the surface.
see an interesting study? find out who funded it.
trust your friendly FDA? good luck with that. ;)
does this seem crazy? like a lot of extra time and work? i think of it this way... this body... this machine that houses my soul... it is the one thing i will have my entire life. it was with me for my first cry of life and it will be with me as i draw my last breath. then why do i take care of dry clean only sweaters better than i do my body sometimes?
2. clean eating
i try to cook 'clean'. that means no white flours or sugars, no dyes or preservatives. lots of raw foods.. mostly from scratch, minimal processing, etc. the key word here is try. we are so far from perfect it's not even funny. i am way better with the kids than with me. my thing is if it comes in the house i eat it. done. gone. it's over. so i can't have it in the house. seriously.. those people with candy dishes. they may as well be aliens in my book. if you can live with candy in your face all day and not being fighting the urge to eat it every single moment of the day.. well you are a way better person than i am. so i just don't buy it. i have trained myself to see those cookies and candy and junk. like i am literally throwing money in the trash... i may as well just toss a twenty in the garbage. same thing. i have found substitutions for my cravings.. nutella anyone?? um hello yum. i love it on apples with some all natural peanut butter. i buy dark chocolate chips and eat them with raw almonds.. also yummy. i buy as much organic in the 'dirty dozen foods' as possible. now we definitely do 'treats' for special occasions etc... i see this more as cumulative load... if i do pretty well most of the time i don't feel bad about the times i let it go. it's a fine balance for sure...
3.
we see an alternative health practitioner who also prescribes our vitamins. it is incredible.
he does something called reflex analysis. feel free to google it and find out all about why it is such a quack... blah blah blah. it has been a life changer. it really has. it is so much more than calcium and vitamin c. he does vitamins for my thyroid and adrenal glands.. nate has some that support heart health. the kids have a certain immuno booster they take in the winter..
.
all of our vitamins our individualized so they are specific in amount and type to our needs. he can also evaluate how we are responding to them..they are completely non synthetic and preservavtive free. it has been so fantastic .. i would totally recommend it. and do.. to all my friends and random people in the grocery store.:) it's possible i might be that crazy girl in the produce section chatting over the spinach about why you want to just say no to the drugs and get your self some whole food vitamins. :)
3. a quality probiotic is invaluable. did you know that up to 80 % of your immune system is located in your digestive track? did you know that any time you take antibiotic you kill all the bacteria not just the bad guys? that leaves you vulnerable to every little bug that you get exposed to. a quality probiotic strengthens and adds to the good bacteria and improves your immune system significantly.
5. vitamin D is something i just added this winter. wow. seriously wow. not one of us got anything this winter besides a little congestion. that would be the first year ever. nate is our weakest link as he has the greatest exposure to the most people but we even managed to keep him healthy this year. i have noticed a significant difference in mood this winter as well... i have been able to rally on those long cold winter days/weeks much better than in past years. so we take this only on days when we can't get our 20 minutes outside per day... dr. mercola has some great easy to understand information on vitamin D and dosage etc. but it has definitely been a wonder worker for us this winter. :)
so that is my list. i am not a doctor. i only play one in real life. :) i am sure this list is not conclusive nor would it work for everyone. we are not working with underlying conditions or chronic illnesses.
my best advice is to find your balance. if you err on the side of ignorance is bliss realize that no one should have more at stake than you when it comes to being proactive and caring for your health. there are lots of different ways to get old... some involve vitality and enjoying the end of your days while others involve a list of prescriptions too numerous to remember.
but i also constantly remind myself to just do the best i can with the knowledge that i have. there are no guarantees.. we are each given a different story to read... some involve sickness that we had no control over. you can make every right choice and bad things can still happen... so the balance of it is to do the best we can but to not take the full weight upon ourselves... in the end it's grace that keeps my lungs moving and my heart beating. simply grace.
note: this has been edited for length, crazy ramblings, and the mentioning of monsanto which brings the author's blood pressure up to unhealthy levels. thank you for your understanding. :)
Love...love...love this post. I did something similar on my dinky site a couple weeks ago. We are making big changes in the way we eat/what we bring into our home. From the whole food vitamins to whole foods and staying away from as much processed foods and conventional medicine as possible (which is much easier to do if we take care of ourselves!). My chiropractor started me on Standard Process supplements for various needs and also introduced me to the Western A. Price Foundation. I've learned a lot about what we put into our bodies. Don't get me started on Monsanto either...absolutely unbelievable!!!! We've watched several movies...Beautiful Truth, King Corn, Future of Food, etc. Very eye opening. Okay, sorry to babble:) Just found your site through Clover Lane recently. Thanks again!
ReplyDeleteWe've been doing a whole foods vitamin suppliment for since Ben was a baby and it has helped tremendously. For 2 years, were were not sick. That said, 2 yeas ago, we took a financial hit as a family and I had to quit giving the kids the whole food vitamin supplement we were all taking. For the next 2 years we were in and out of the hospital and doctors offices with everything under the sun including severe allergies that are under control as long as the immune system is built up. We are back on the probiotic regularly and have ousted from the house all dyes and preservatives, etc.... Since Christmas, no one has been sick and I'm praying we can soon afford the GOOD vitamins again.
ReplyDeleteAWESOME and ON TARGET POST!
ReplyDeleteI would add eliminating pork [or all meat if possible ;)] from your diet and limiting tap water to as little as possible. I haven't been sick in years ---which I hate to even say out loud and get jinxed! ---- and I attribute it a lot to what I eat and drink. I'm also of the school of thought that a little food from a nasty dive diner in small quantities builds up your immune system but I have nothing formal to site on this theory :)
ReplyDeleteI love you....and this post. :) this is the reason we are friends... :)
ReplyDeleteOMG, dr mercola? don't worry, i love him. and i love whole food vitamins. and dr. sears. we're made to be besties.
ReplyDelete