Spring is just around the corner. According to Almanac.com, the spring equinox (first day of spring) occurred on March 20 this year. By now, you must be ready for this season. What spring health tips should you follow to make the most out of the season?
Spring is the liveliest of all seasons – quite literally. It is the season when most flowers bloom, when the earth becomes green once again, when the sun shines just right, and rivers are flowing with clear freshwater.
What are your plans this spring? It is the perfect season to rejuvenate your health, to give it a boost. Join the earth in restoring its youthful and fresh beauty. Here are four practical spring health tips for seniors.
1. Soak Up Sunshine
Spring is right at the stage where the earth is suitable in the Goldilocks zone of all Goldilocks zones. The sun is not too near the planet for the weather to be too warm, like in the summer. Likewise, it’s also not so far that the earth is freezing.
Spring is the perfect season for walks, picnics in the park, and just basically getting your healthy dose of vitamin D. Vitamin D is essential for a robust immune system; it helps keep diseases at bay. If you bathe in the sunshine during summer, you’re at risk of too much sun exposure – which has adverse effects such as skin cancer.
Walks in the park or picnics with your family are two examples of how you can maximize absorbing the spring sunshine. So make sure you get enough sunlight during the spring and strengthen your body for the rest of the year.
2. Eat Spring Seasonal Foods
During the spring, all sorts of fruits and vegetables are in season. Collard greens, kiwifruit, avocados, broccoli, bananas, lettuce, and spinach are all in season this time of year. The US Department of Agriculture gives a detailed list here.
During the spring, you have a chance to cut down on heavy meals such as red meat and processed foods. Replacing these kinds of foods with salads, light soups, or other lightly cooked meals yields tons of health benefits, especially for seniors.
You cut down your risks of developing the following diseases by developing this habit during the spring:
- Heart disease
- Arthritis
- Diabetes
- Cancer
3. Take Up Gardening
Spring is the perfect time of the year to cultivate the hobby of gardening. As was explained above, this is the time of year when plants in general grow and bloom. Gardening opens up opportunities for boosting both your physical and mental health.
As mentioned above, bathing in the sunshine during the spring is a lot more beneficial than when doing it during the summer. Gardening gives you a reason to go outside and absorb all that vitamin D sunlight.
Aside from sunshine, gardening also necessitates physical movement. It’s not a particularly demanding activity, but it does get the body moving. It’s perfect for seniors.
“Gardening adds years to your life and life to your years.” How accurate is this statement? It so happens that the peaceful spaces of a garden have a refreshing quality to people under pressure or anxiety.
Gardening reduces stress. The simple activity of caring for a life form – grooming, feeding, and seeing it grow – improves our mental health quality. Just this mental health benefit prevents many diseases, including:
- Depression
- Anxiety
- Dementia
- High blood pressure
Of course, a stable mindset also increases the ability to concentrate and reduces reliance on self-medication. It is also known to improve memory.
4. Take Care of Seasonal Allergies
As incredible as spring is, it has its drawbacks. It is perhaps the worst season for allergies. The biggest spring allergy trigger is pollen, which, surprise, surprise, is in abundance during the spring. Blooming trees and growing weeds and grasses all releasing pollen. So if you are allergic to pollen, it’s best to start preparing for the onslaught on your system.
It may be high time for you to get your stock of antihistamines to battle sneezing, itching, and sniffling.
5. Spring Cleaning
Believe it or not, spring cleaning has health benefits. Here are a few of them.
- Cleaner air is better for your breathing. This is pretty much self-explanatory. Common sense dictates that clean air means easier breathing. By cleaning your home, you are also effectively removing allergy triggers.
- Less clutter means a more stable mind. Clutter is found to be associated with an anxious mind. Multiple pieces of research see the causality between a messy environment and an unhealthy mental disposition. Cleaning your home thoroughly and organizing it reflects a stable mind. It helps improve mental health.
- Spring cleaning gets you moving. It may not be as physically demanding as your Thursday Zumba class; spring cleaning still gets you moving. For seniors, every little physical activity counts toward better keeping physical deterioration at bay.
Seniors Need Help
Although the tips discussed here are relatively easy to do, no one can underestimate the dangers of letting an aging parent do these things alone, especially if they’re living with a disease.
Infinite Love Homecare offers the best home care services in Orange County, California, at an affordable price. Reliable and compassionate, our caregivers are fully equipped to help your elderly parents raise their living quality.
Our caregivers can assist seniors in mobility in case your seniors would like to walk around the garden. They can help with meal preparation, including going to and from the grocery. They are also helpful in reminding seniors of their medications. And, of course, they can assist stay-at-home seniors with light housekeeping.
Whatever your senior parents need, Infinite Love Homecare is ready to assist you. We offer free consultations. You can reach us at (949) 529-4130. You can also message us via our Contact Us page. If you need details on what our services are, see our Services webpage.
References:
https://www.almanac.com/content/first-day-spring-vernal-equinox
https://snaped.fns.usda.gov/seasonal-produce-guide
https://www.webmd.com/allergies/spring-allergies
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21228167/
https://www.pnas.org/content/early/2016/02/17/1523471113
