Keep proper nutrients in your diet:

Now that all of those fresh delicious garden veggies and farmers markets are gone until next summer it's time to focus on fall and winter fruits and veggies.Root vegetables such as parsnips, carrots, and turnips are now coming into their natural season. Make some homemade veggie soup and include some of these "fall and winter" veggies to be sure you are still getting your proper servings of vegetables and the valuable nutrition that you need. A great resource guide I like to use is called "Staying Healthy with the Seasons" by Elson M. Haas.  It's an excellent guide to using available seasonal resources to our greatest benefit and a nice reminder that although you can buy a tomato in January that doesn't mean you will be receiving the same nutritional value as a tomato that you would eat during it's natural harvest time of July and August.

Another quick and easy immune support  (albeit a mildly unpleasant one) is utilizing alternating hot and cold hydrotherapy. This is a fancy way of saying, when you are taking a shower turn the water up as hot as you can tolerate (without harming your skin of course) for at least 3 minutes. This causes vasodilation, or opening or widening of the blood vessels leading to an increase in blood flow. Then quickly turn the water to as cold as you can tolerate for at least 30 seconds, which causes vasoconstriction. You guessed it, this means those wide open blood vessels just cinched themselves tight. This helps to carry more nutrients, via your circulatory system, throughout your body boosting your immune system. It also makes you feel warmer when you step out of the shower instead of running for your warm snugly bath robe. You can repeat this in a series of at least 3 sets for even better results. Just be sure to always end on cold. I've been doing this for over 12 years, ever since I learned about it in massage school. My husband always wonders why I don't catch the colds he gets or at least never get them as full fledged as he does and I try to convince him to try this..... But I guess he prefers his way.

Now we come to my favorite and easiest immune booster. At PCCHH we use an Amethyst In fared heat mat. The FAR In-fared light penetrates the body at a depth of 6-8 inches and increases cellular movement and metabolism. This increased cellular metabolism supports our immune system and core body temperature so we don't have to deplete our own energy sources to keep warm and  germ free by ourselves. Why is this my favorite way you ask? Well that's easy, because who doesn't want to lie on a warm heat mat that is also helping their body to heal itself. And better yet, you can add the Amethyst In-fared mat to any of our massage or energy sessions. That's like a double whammy of effortless health an wellness!