How to survive the winter with pleasure: Expert Tips
Although winter can bring joy - here and the New Year holidays, and the smell of tangerines, and weekends at the rink, - most often we tend to be sad and "hibernate" at this particular time of year. There is a lack of sunlight and fresh berries, clothes become heavy and multi-layered, it is getting harder and harder to wake up, but I don’t feel like moving. We talked with experts, such as general practitioners, dermatologist and cosmetologist, nutritionist, trainer and psychotherapist, about how it is easier to survive the winter while maintaining mood and health.
How not to get sick
According to the World Health Organization, up to 100 million people suffer from influenza in the world every year, and the best (with an efficiency of 70-90%) protection against it is vaccination. After vaccination, immunity is produced in 14-28 days, it is short-term (6-12 months) and specific. It is especially important to vaccinate the elderly, children, health workers and those who have a lot of contact with people (for example, in transport - that is, all of us), as well as people with chronic diseases.
For other acute respiratory viral infections vaccination will not help: there are too many pathogens. But these infections are not as dangerous as the flu. Of course, it is important to follow general preventive measures: avoid contact with people who are ill and stay at home if you yourself are sick, so as not to infect others. Use disposable face masks, wash your hands regularly, or carry antibacterial hand gels. Try not to touch your nose or eyes again, so as not to carry microorganisms. Get enough sleep, exercise, do exercises, adhere to rational principles of nutrition, drink enough fluids, reduce stress levels - these measures, and not immunomodulators without proven efficacy, support the immune system healthy and strong.
How not to yearn
The lack of sunshine, the need to put on a lot of clothes and other winter difficulties have a great effect on many people - especially since in most places in Russia the winter period lasts more than six months. The main ways to maintain a healthy mood and mood are: firstly, if you are clearly worse in winter than in summer, then it is possible that your mind really depends on the amount of light. Buy a special light lamp, they are now used around the world for the treatment of depression and other diseases. Turn it on every day or almost.
The second way - get yourself some big deal, but not a working draft, but rather something interesting, which can be returned to constantly. For example, a large embroidery, learning a new language, a huge puzzle, a quilt, changing the interior of an apartment, and so on. This helps to refocus - it is important, of course, to choose the "project" that you can do.
The third way is to move. There are many kinds of sports that do not require going outside, in case you do not like frost and snow, and there are even more of them on the street. It is not necessary to bump into the achievement of records, it is enough to warm up your body, accelerating this despondency at least a couple of times a week at a reasonable pace. If the sport is not at all for you - find something that requires physical activity at home, or go for a walk.
It is also important to spend time with people with whom you are well - it does not hurt in the summer, but in winter this time is even more valuable. Some experts advise eating more vegetables and fruits than meat and heavy food - unfortunately, in the middle of Russia, vegetables and fruits are not completely unavailable in winter, but they can be difficult, including because of taste. So at your discretion.
Another point - to make your home so that it was nice to "dig in" in bad weather or a blizzard: some scented candles, blankets and funny socks, books, a cozy lamp light and even mulled wine. The last thing I would like to mention is that it is important to dress warm enough, so get good winter clothes that will not let you freeze even in extreme cold. Heat is very important for the inner feeling that “all is well”.
How to care for skin and hair
In order to keep the skin in order in winter, the most important thing is to minimize the stress that it suffers from frost, sudden temperature changes, dry air from batteries and much more. The first thing you should pay attention to is cleansing. I recommend replacing gels, foams and other soapy textures with milk, micellar water and hydrophilic oil - they cleanse the skin more delicately and dry it much less.
The second item is hydration and nutrition. The main rule is to apply the cream at least 20-40 minutes before leaving the house. I also advise you to switch to fatter and nourishing textures during the day, and leave moisturizing creams and masks for the day and evening, but not late, so as not to provoke edema in the morning. If you spend a lot of time on the street, like to walk or ski, be sure to get yourself a protective cream with the note "Cold Cream" or "Winter Protect Cream", many brands now have it. These are nourishing and moisturizing agents that prevent moisture loss and create a protective film on the skin from wind and snow.
The skin of the body is also very dry because of the working batteries, so it is advisable to use nourishing creams every day, which include vitamins A, B, C or E. If you like butter more, choose, for example, grape seed, but remember that Some synthetic oils can dry the skin.
As for the hair, there are several basic rules. First, do not neglect the cap. In the cold, the capillaries of the scalp narrow, the nutrition of the follicles weakens, and hair can become brittle and start to fall out. So do not overcool the head and try to massage it with a wooden brush every couple of days - this will improve the nourishment of the hair follicles. In addition, put colder modes on hair dryers and curling irons: in winter, temperature drops are felt more strongly and cause more damage to the hair. And, of course, do not go out with a wet or just dried head. The remains of water will freeze between the scales of hair - and, believe me, this will affect their quality very quickly.
How to keep shape
According to a study conducted in 2000, people on average are gaining up to 0.5 kilograms over the winter. Objectively, these are not very big numbers, but do not forget about the cumulative effect.
People recover in the winter for various reasons, partly due to a change in diet: this time comes New Year and Christmas, a period when it is impossible (and why) to avoid long feasts with high-calorie food and alcohol. In the cold season, the appetite increases: according to scientists from the University of Massachusetts, with the onset of autumn, people consume daily an average of 86 kilocalories more than in spring. From the point of view of evolution, seasonal changes in appetite are predictable: during the cold season, many members of the animal world face a lack of food, therefore either they are constantly in search of food, or they significantly decrease their activity (for example, hibernate). Increased hunger is also associated with the level of serotonin - it decreases in proportion to the length of the day. Another explanation is that in the winter we often spend time in physical proximity to food, which means that the temptation to eat more and more often than necessary is increased.
Thus, in the winter it is worth monitoring the diet. Hunger can be quenched by eating fruit or vegetables, and not necessarily fresh - dried or thawed foods also fit. Soups and soups of various kinds will also help to improve the diet and warm after the street; moreover, they can be prepared for several days at once and even taken with you to work or study. Festive dinner is recommended to start with herbal products. The feeling of fullness comes faster when eating high protein foods - this also needs to be borne in mind.
Another reason for gaining weight is a sedentary lifestyle. Short daylight hours, cold and snow make us spend more time indoors, but we don’t feel like playing sports. However, this problem can be solved without leaving a warm apartment. Begin the morning with a light charge, which will help to cheer up and warm up before going to work. Instead of an elevator, you can always climb the stairs on foot, or at least reach several floors earlier if the office is very high. If the weather allows, go through the extra station or stop to the house, while accelerating step. Recall that WHO recommends spending at least 150 minutes a week on aerobic exercise of medium intensity, or at least 75 minutes on high-intensity ones, and at least 10 minutes should be spent on each session. Examples of ten-minute workouts are available, for example, on the UK National Health Service website.
How to stay vigorous
For a good mood and vitality, sleep is crucial. It is very important to get enough sleep and to go to bed is best until midnight. If possible, it is necessary to be in the fresh air as often as possible, and not passively, but performing light or moderate physical exertion - this could be running, walking, skiing in the woods or the park. Try to stick to a balanced diet and drink natural hot drinks like tea with hawthorn, wild rose or black currant berries.
Winter is the time to regularly go to the bath and temper. In addition to the overall health benefits, it helps to relieve stress. And, of course, you should always dress according to the weather, not overheating and not overcooling the body. It really helps to stay healthy during the cold season.
If you constantly freeze, the body throws all its strength to keep warm, and it becomes difficult for it to fight infections. Therefore, it is very important to adequately dress and refuse to wear torn jeans or bare ankles for the winter. On the other hand, it is also not necessary to dress too warmly: you will sweat and eventually overcool, despite all your efforts. Running on the street makes sense at a temperature of minus 15: if the frost is stronger, exercise will not bring benefit. If you are back from the cold, try to get warm more quickly: warm your legs in a basin of hot water and sea salt, or at least hold your feet on the battery. True, this can be done only in a healthy state - legs do not need to soar with temperature.
Even in winter it is especially important to observe the daily routine. Since daylight hours are shorter, late ups guarantee a lack of melatonin and an excess of cortisol, the second name of which is the stress hormone. If you feel a constant breakdown and apathy - just try to force yourself to get up at least a week at the same time. Food in the winter should be more nutritious. Meat, butter, dairy products - all this can be abandoned in the summer if desired, but it is better not to risk in the winter. To my patients who practice vegetarianism or raw foods, I remind you that these food systems are invented in countries with a fundamentally different climate - and our winter is not very suitable. But if you are already cold, it is better to switch to light food, so as not to overload the body.
How to keep warm drinks without harm to health
Hot drinks in the winter is the fastest and most popular way to keep warm during and after a long time outside. However, a large amount of hot can lead to exactly the opposite results - it will cause sweating, which will lower body temperature. Nevertheless, tea and coffee contain caffeine, which, as studies show, is able to warm the body, stimulating the release of adrenaline. The same effect is observed when using ginger. Even cool water will stimulate thermogenesis, since the body will spend energy to heat it, increasing body temperature. Therefore, it is most effective to simply drink any liquid - before or after a long walk.
But alcohol, by contrast, can lower body temperature, despite the sensation of heat after it is consumed. This substance blunts one of the main mechanisms of warming - shivering - and dilates blood vessels, including those that are close to the surface of the skin. These processes lead to rapid heat loss, and high concentrations of alcohol in the blood can even lead to hypothermia and frostbite. In temperate climates, such as in Austria or France, alcoholic warming beverages like mulled wine in small quantities will not be harmful. In a more severe climate, the risk of hypothermia increases significantly, so if your time spent in the cold involves drinking alcohol, it is recommended that you dress warmer than usual and control the amount of alcohol you have drunk.
Illustration: Dasha Chertanova Photo:gamelover- stock.adobe.com, Nikolaj Kondratenko - stock.adobe.com, lexuss - stock.adobe.com