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Category: Health

Nourishing Your Body Through the Menopause Transition

Posted on by venadmin

Are you feeling overwhelmed by the amount of information on managing your menopausal transition, or confused about the best path forward? Let’s keep it beautifully simple today and focus on gentle, whole-food strategies that support your body’s natural balance.

Understanding the Ecosystem

The human body is an intricate ecosystem, and every small shift has a ripple effect. This is particularly true during menopause. As your natural production of oestrogen, progesterone, and testosterone shifts, several common changes may occur:

  • Temperature Regulation: Oestrogen naturally supports the body’s ability to dissipate heat. When levels gently decline, it can impact your internal thermostat, leading to those familiar sudden feelings of warmth or night-time flushing.
  • Shifts in Body Composition: Oestrogen and progesterone play a role in regulating how our bodies store energy. As these levels adjust, many people notice a natural shift in where their body prefers to hold fat.
  • Skin Hydration: Oestrogen helps maintain skin moisture and elasticity. As it declines, you might notice your skin feeling a little drier or less supple than usual.
  • Bone Density: Oestrogen is vital for supporting bone mass. As it decreases, paying close attention to bone health becomes incredibly important for your long-term skeletal strength.
  • Mood and Serotonin: Our “feel-good” neurotransmitter, serotonin, works hand-in-hand with oestrogen to support a stable mood. When oestrogen levels shift, it can sometimes leave us feeling a little more easily frustrated or out of sorts.

Gentle Steps to Cool and Support Your System

Making small, mindful adjustments to your daily routine can make a profound difference in how you experience this transition:

  • Cool Your Environment: Sip on cool water throughout the day, dress in breathable layers, and keep a gentle fan by your bedside to support your body’s temperature regulation.
  • Mind Your Triggers: For many, alcohol, caffeine, and very spicy foods can act as internal triggers that increase the frequency of flushing.
  • Focus on Whole Fats over Extracted Oils: To support your vascular system and maintain a balanced weight, try to limit free-flowing oils (like butter and vegetable oils) and focus instead on whole-food fats.
  • Embrace Resistant Starch: Enjoying cold, cooked white potatoes (baked without oil) provides your gut with resistant starch, which beautifully supports a healthy microbiome!
  • Incorporate Flaxseeds: Flaxseeds are rich in plant lignans, which offer gentle, plant-based support for hormonal harmony. Try grinding fresh flaxseeds and enjoying 2–3 tablespoons spread throughout your day.

The Flourish Philosophy for Vitality

At Flourish, we believe that providing your body with clean, plant-powered nutrition is the ultimate way to navigate any life transition with grace.

Nourishing your system with a rich variety of colourful produce and botanical blends is a wonderful way to manage the natural oxidative stress that can accompany hormonal shifts.

This article is for educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Menopause is a natural biological transition, but severe symptoms should always be discussed with your GP or a qualified women’s health specialist. Always read the label and follow the directions for use. Consult with your healthcare professional before starting any new nutritional protocol or supplement.

Navigating Nutrition: Is Fish Still a Healthy Choice?

Posted on by venadmin

As you know by now, the Flourish philosophy focuses on the incredible power of plants. Because of this, we get asked continually: “Why shouldn’t we eat fish? Surely it’s okay?”

Fair warning before you continue reading: once you know this information, it is hard to look at your dinner plate the same way! Let’s get into the modern realities of consuming seafood.

Problem #1: The Reality of Fish Farming

Many moons ago, the fish we consumed were caught in our clean, wild oceans. Today, a vast amount of the fish presented to us in supermarkets is farmed.

Wild, ocean-caught oily fish are famous for being a rich source of anti-inflammatory Omega-3 fatty acids. However, farmed fish are predominantly fed a diet based around grain pellets. This shift in diet means the fish develop a higher ratio of Omega-6 fatty acids. While we need both, a diet too high in Omega-6 can promote the body’s natural inflammatory response, which is the exact opposite of what we want to achieve!

Problem #2: Environmental Pollutants in Our Oceans

Even when you seek out wild-caught fish, our modern oceans are facing massive environmental challenges. When plastic waste finds its way into our waterways, it slowly breaks down into microscopic particles.

Research has shown that microplastics and nanoplastics are now frequently found within the muscular structure of ocean-caught fish. When we consume the fish, we inadvertently ingest these particles. Emerging science suggests that microplastics may act as endocrine disruptors, which can place extra stress on our thyroid, metabolic rate, and natural hormonal balance.

Problem #3: The Gut Microbiome and TMAO

Our gut microbiome consists of different families of microbes—some thrive on plants, and others thrive on animal products. The microbes we know best support our long-term vitality are the plant-loving ones.

When we consume animal proteins like fish, it can promote an increase in the types of microbes that produce a compound called TMA (trimethylamine). This is transported to the liver and converted into TMAO (trimethylamine N-oxide). High levels of TMAO have been heavily studied by cardiologists and are linked to promoting cholesterol buildup in the arteries.

Problem #4: It is Still Animal Protein

To put it succinctly, fish is still animal meat. While the nutritional profile looks slightly different from red meat, it is still a dense animal protein that requires significant digestive effort from your body. Compare this to eating vibrant vegetables, which are phytonutrient-rich and naturally gentle on your digestive tract.

So, What is the Verdict?

What if you don’t want to be 100% plant-based? Which animal product is the best to choose on occasion?

Despite the challenges listed above, our answer is still… Fish! If you choose to incorporate animal protein into your lifestyle, high-quality, wild-caught fish remains one of the cleaner options available. We simply recommend treating it as a rare delicacy. Enjoy small amounts of wild, ocean-caught oily fish (like sardines or mackerel) just one to two times per month to give your body the best of both worlds!

 This article is for educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always read the label and follow the directions for use. Consult with your healthcare professional before starting any new nutritional protocol.

5 Gentle Ways to Support Your Body’s Natural Detoxification Every Day

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Supporting your body’s natural detoxification pathways daily gives your organs and microbiome the gentle boost they need to work optimally. By turning these simple lifestyle tips into daily habits, your body will feel noticeably lighter, brighter, and ready for anything!

1. Embrace Natural Anti-Inflammatory Foods

If your system is working hard to manage daily stress or physical strain, it could definitely benefit from some extra nutritional love. Incorporating more natural, anti-inflammatory foods into your diet helps support your body’s natural defences. Wonderful foods to include are fresh tomatoes, baby spinach, creamy avocado, blueberries, raw almonds, and turmeric.

Having studied the incredible properties of turmeric, we understand the power this golden spice contains. That’s why it is a key ingredient in our Anti-Inflammatory Blend, a carefully crafted formula designed to support your body’s natural balance and vitality.

2. Nourish Your Gut with Prebiotics

Digestion and natural elimination go hand-in-hand! Giving your gut the tools it needs to efficiently process and remove waste means packing your diet full of prebiotic fibres.

Prebiotics act as the ultimate fuel for the beneficial probiotics in your gut, helping to maintain a thriving, balanced microbiome. Eating prebiotic-rich foods like chicory root and green bananas helps keep your digestive tract happy and moving smoothly. Taking a regular supplement like our Prebiotic Blend is a fantastic way to ensure your gut gets the rich nutrients it needs to flourish.

3. Show Your Liver Some Gratitude

As the body’s primary filtration system, the liver has a huge job to do in separating nutrients from waste products. To support your liver’s hard work every day, it is essential to eat foods that promote natural metabolic pathways.

Beetroot is a magnificent, deep-red source of antioxidants that perfectly supports liver vitality. We love using pure beetroot powder in our Daily Detox Blend to compliment your body’s natural filtration processes and keep you feeling vibrant.

4. Prioritise Pure Hydration

We need water to survive! By staying beautifully hydrated, our body has a much easier time performing its natural functions and clearing out metabolic waste.

Drinking filtered water regularly aids smooth digestion, promotes comfortable joint movement, and regulates your body temperature. It truly is nature’s ultimate drink for daily renewal!

5. Enjoy a Good Sweat

Sweating is one of the skin’s natural ways to help the body eliminate waste products. Because this process requires plenty of fluid, make sure you are drinking lots of water before and after!

There are many different ways to get your glow on, so simply choose your favourite. Try doing some intentional movement, taking a hot yoga class, or relaxing in a warm sauna. The choice is yours!

Embrace Your Daily Renewal Ritual

Giving your body daily lifestyle support reaps a myriad of rewards. By focusing on these five gentle habits, you can look forward to more consistent energy, smoother digestion, and a more upbeat, positive attitude. Sounds like a total wellness dream come true!

This article is for educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always read the label and follow the directions for use. Consult with your healthcare professional before starting any new nutritional protocol or supplement.

Nourishing the Mind: How Your Diet Can Support a Positive Outlook

Posted on by venadmin

Feeling a little flat or low on energy could have more to do with your daily menu than you might think. Emerging research is showing that leaning into vibrant, plant-based whole foods is a magnificent way to support your natural vitality, clear the mental fog, and foster a brighter outlook!

If eating an unbalanced diet has the power to leave us feeling sluggish, just imagine what loading up on nutrient-dense meals could do for your overall wellbeing. Here are a few of our favourite foods to help support your mind and body.

Beetroot

Beets are already one of our absolute go-to veggies for supporting liver vitality, but they can also be a wonderful asset for your daily energy. These deep-purple roots are packed with betaine and tryptophan—two compounds heavily studied for their role in supporting a balanced mind.

Tryptophan is an essential amino acid that plays a vital role in the body’s natural production of serotonin, our primary “feel-good” chemical. At Flourish, we have embraced the rich antioxidant profile of beets by making pure beetroot powder a key ingredient in our Daily Detox Blend, which is designed to compliment your body’s natural filtration processes.

Green Tea

Green tea has been a treasured drink in its native China for thousands of years, and its popularity has swept across the rest of the world for good reason!

For centuries, green tea has been used to support mental clarity and calm focus. It is packed with unique phytochemicals that work together to support your cognitive function, including L-theanine—a brilliant amino acid known to help the body feel relaxed yet alert. It also contains just enough natural caffeine to keep you energised without those uncomfortable, jittery spikes.

Spinach

Feeling low in iron can significantly decrease your daily energy levels and leave you feeling constantly fatigued, which naturally takes a toll on your outlook. By incorporating iron-rich plants like baby spinach into your routine, you can help keep your physical energy up.

Spinach also contains magnesium, a magnificent mineral that supports muscle relaxation and the body’s natural serotonin pathways. Tossing a handful of this leafy green into your daily meals is a great way to stay energised from morning to night.

Bananas

Like beetroot, bananas are a source of tryptophan, meaning they are a perfect whole-food snack to support your body’s serotonin building blocks. Grabbing a banana easily satisfies a sweet craving while giving you a steady, sustained energy boost.

Plus, slightly green bananas are a wonderful source of prebiotic fibre that your gut will absolutely love—and as we know, a thriving, balanced gut microbiome is the absolute gateway to a happier, healthier you!

Nourish Your Way to a Brighter Day

The foods you consume impact your body and mind in so many beautiful ways. By sticking to a clean, colourful, and plant-powered routine on a daily basis, you are giving your nervous system the ultimate foundation to stay balanced, energised, and vibrant!

This article is for educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always read the label and follow the directions for use. Consult with your healthcare professional before starting any new nutritional protocol or supplement.

Natural Remedies for a Better Night’s Sleep

Posted on by venadmin

A good night’s sleep gives your body time to rest and recuperate in preparation for the coming day. But when your sleep cycle is out of whack, it can throw everything else out of balance, too.

If you’re having trouble sleeping, there are a number of things you can do to help improve your sleep and fall back into a natural rhythm. We’ve listed our favourite natural remedies for improving your sleep below.

Drink turmeric tea before bed

With all of the health benefits of turmeric packed into our Turmeric Blend, we already know the power of this enticing spice.

Not only is turmeric a powerful natural anti-inflammatory, but it also helps to aid digestion. This is crucial to your sleeping pattern because if there’s food in your stomach, your body will delay melatonin production (more on this soon) and it will take you longer to get to sleep.

Speed up your digestion and counteract your body’s natural response with a cup of turmeric tea before bed. The turmeric will help to get things moving along, prevent you from having to go to bed on a full belly, and ensure that your melatonin production happens on time.

Get your sunshine hours in

Melatonin is a hormone that makes you feel relaxed and sleepy, and it’s pumped through your body at night to help you sleep. Healthy melatonin production is easy – all you need to do is get your daylight hours in.

The production of melatonin is intrinsically linked to your body’s natural cycle of waking and sleeping.

In order for your body to know when it’s time to wake and time to sleep, you need to absorb as much natural light as possible during the day. That way, your body will know when to release larger amounts of melatonin throughout your system (at night) to help you sleep.

Change your diet

The food you put into your body has a huge impact on how your body functions. When it’s loaded with unhealthy food, it can’t work at optimal capacity. Instead, you can expect to see poorer digestion, decreased mood, ongoing fatigue and bad sleep patterns.

Transitioning over to a natural anti-inflammatory diet that consists of nutritious, balanced meals and healthy snacks will help to keep your body functioning optimally and improve your sleep – as well as other physical and psychological aspects of your life.

The team at Flourish are passionate about our plant-based diet because of how positively it has impacted our own – and especially our co-founder, Chris Ashton’s – lives.

Get moving

We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: exercise is beneficial for your health in so many ways. Not only does regular exercise make you stronger and fitter, but it also helps to improve your mood, aid digestion, increase your energy levels and promote better sleep.

Aim to get moving – whether it’s for a walk, run, cycle, strength training or other type of fitness – for at least 20 minutes a day.

Due to pre-existing injuries, health conditions or general preference, you may find that high-impact exercise is not for you. If this is the case, opt for some low-impact alternatives.

Yoga is a calming, low-impact exercise that has been shown to improve sleep quality with regular practice.

Get a better night’s sleep

Whether it makes you feel irritable, tired, unable to focus or hungrier than usual, a poor night’s sleep can impair your waking existence in many ways. We recommend trying out these natural remedies to improve your sleep quality and feel more energised and tranquil during the day.

Healthy Eating Tips While Working From Home

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Working from home has become the norm for many of us and we’re experiencing a whole range of benefits as a result.

However, having our desk so close to the pantry can make it easy to fall into unhealthy habits. The good news is that maintaining a healthy diet while working from home is absolutely possible. We’ve shared our tips on how you can make healthy eating at home work for you.

Drink water

Water is an important part of your diet and many of us aren’t drinking enough of it in our day-to-day lives. Oftentimes, when people feel hungry or start to crave food, it’s actually because they are thirsty. So drink up your water!

Drinking water provides our body and mind with many benefits, including improving our skin, preventing dehydration-related headaches and aiding our digestion.

You don’t have to worry about measuring your water intake (unless you want to), but rather try to simply be aware of how much water you drink throughout the day. Always have a water bottle or full glass nearby so that you can take a few gulps before turning to food.

Caffeine-free herbal tea is a great alternative to water for keeping you hydrated. We recommend mixing in a teaspoon of our natural anti-inflammatory Turmeric Blend with your next lemon or ginger tea.

Stock your fridge and pantry with real food

By eating a healthy, balanced diet loaded with nutritious food, we feel more energised and are more productive in our work. Not only does plant-based food help to keep us full and satiated for longer, but it also produces the mental clarity we need to focus on the job at hand.

The food you eat can either negatively or positively influence your mental health, which is why it’s important to make the healthy food choice as often as you can.

Do this by keeping your fridge stocked with fruits and vegetables, your pantry packed with nuts, seeds and spices, and your Flourish health and prebiotic supplements front and centre.

Plan or prep your meals ahead of time so that when lunch rolls around, you’ve got a healthy meal ready to go.

Keep healthy snacks on hand

Working from home makes mindless snacking a very easy habit to fall into, but it isn’t a good one – especially when the snacks you’re munching on are sugary, fried, high in salt or carb-heavy.

Being so close to the pantry doesn’t help with the mindless munching. Take matters into your own hands and ensure that the snacks being stocked in your home are healthy ones. It’s much easier for you to reach for fruit, carrot sticks or protein bars if they are the only available option.

We love to have a mix of sweet and savoury treats on hand for snacking, such as almonds, apples and homemade sweet potato crisps. We’ve listed some of our favourite snacks below.

It’s all about making the right food choices

Staying healthy while working from home comes down to a simple choice. You can either eat food that helps you flourish or consume unhealthy food that doesn’t (we recommend the former!).

By incorporating these healthy food tips into your daily routine, working from home will be a much healthier and energising experience for all.

5 Natural Ways To Reduce Stress

Posted on by venadmin

Living in a modern, fast-paced and technologically-advanced world has a bigger impact on stress than you might think. There are numerous variables that can lead to stress, including workload, home environment, social interactions and even the technology we so love.

Because stress can negatively affect your health – from high blood sugar and a suppressed immune system to autoimmune conditions and depression – it’s important to adopt practices into your life that may help to reduce your stress levels.

1. Eat a natural, anti-inflammatory diet

When you’re under a lot of stress, your body produces higher levels of cortisol, the stress-response hormone designed to alert you to danger. Too much cortisol in the body for an extended period of time may cause inflammation.

To counteract your body’s inflammatory response to stress, start eating natural anti-inflammatory foods like spinach, avocado, berries, dark chocolate and turmeric.

Made with 100% natural plant-based whole foods, our Turmeric Blend is specifically formulated to reduce inflammation in the body and ease the joint pain and other symptoms associated with it.

2. Do gentle exercise

Exercise is a good way to relieve stress, but the type of exercise you’re doing matters. High intensity workouts actually contribute to raising your cortisol levels – which, for a stressed-out body already filled with the stuff, isn’t good.

Gentle exercise like walking, yoga or moderate cycling won’t increase your cortisol levels, but it may still help to relieve your stress and even release endorphins to make sure you feel good both physically and mentally afterwards.

An interesting aside, just 8,000 steps per day helps to keep your metabolism burning.

3. Breathe deeply and meditate

Being under a lot of stress may make you feel overwhelmed during your waking hours and even while you sleep. To combat the overwhelming effects of stress, try introducing a calming meditation practice to your daily routine.

Apps like Headspace offer guided meditation which may be a helpful tool for those of you who are new to the practice or just like having a soothing voice in your ear. Yoga and focused breathing are also forms of meditation that may help to reduce your stress.

4. Make sure you’re getting enough sleep

Sleep plays a key role in improving your general health and wellbeing. If you’re not getting enough zzz’s each night, you are more likely to become stressed during the daylight hours.

People need roughly 7-9 hours of sleep per night in order to feel rested and ready for the day ahead. To help prevent stress, make sure you’re getting enough sleep and giving your body the time it needs to rest.

5. Minimise your screen time

As much as we don’t want to hear it – and especially during a time when watching tv, scrolling through socials or reading the news might be your only form of entertainment – too much screen time may cause and exacerbate stress.

Not only is too much screen time attributed to stress, but it may also lead to long-term problems with vision, sleep impairment, negative rewiring of the brain, and a heightened experience of anxiety or depression.

Reduce your stress naturally

While your stress levels may be directly influenced by your workplace or personal life, there are a number of ways that you can work towards reducing the pressure you feel naturally.

By exercising regularly, eating right and taking time away from the screen to breathe, you may be in a much healthier headspace and able to better combat any stress that comes your way.

Fight stress-related inflammation with our Turmeric Blend

How Prebiotics Help Your Body Thrive

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Prebiotic supplements are all the rage right now, and you might be wondering why. While prebiotics and probiotics may sound the same, and while they both work in harmony with the gut, they each have two very different roles within the body.

Prebiotics play such an important role in helping your body to thrive because they are the food that the probiotics in your gut eat. There are many prebiotic foods you can eat to help balance your gut, including chicory root, green bananas and oats.

The health benefits of prebiotics

Prebiotics do more than simply feed the 1000+ species of bacteria in your gut – their influence is much further reaching. By taking plant-based prebiotic supplements like our Prebiotic Blend, you will be benefiting your body in more ways than one.

Promote digestive health

It takes a good balance of probiotics to maintain a healthy gut. By feeding prebiotics to the probiotics in your gut, you boost the presence of good bacteria living there and in turn, boost your digestive health.

A balanced gut may help to minimise the risk of diarrhoea, constipation and other digestive problems, as well as work to promote regular bowel movements.

Boost immune system

Boosting your immune system means preparing your body to defend itself against any harmful bacteria that may try to make a home in your microbiome.

Your gut teaches your immune system how to react to and manage any pathogenic bacteria that enters the body. When your gut microbiome contains a healthy and diverse colony of probiotics, your immune system may be better placed to fight infections and win.

Improve mental health

More and more studies are beginning to show just how significantly gut health affects mental health. By rebalancing the bacteria in your gut, your serotonin levels – 90% of which are produced in the digestive tract – may increase, improving your mood and your mental health.

Enhance absorption of nutrients

When the probiotics in your gut are thriving, they help nutrients be better absorbed into your body. With better nutrient absorption comes better overall health as your body reaps the powerful benefits of vitamins and minerals such as iron, calcium and magnesium.

Support your overall health with prebiotics

By incorporating more prebiotic-rich foods into your diet and taking our Prebiotic Blend daily, you can feed the probiotics in your gut, maintain a healthy balance of bacteria in your digestive system, and help your body thrive.

Help your body thrive with our Prebiotic Blend

Natural Remedies To Help Aid Digestion

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An unbalanced gut microbiome can lead to all sorts of digestive problems, including constipation, diarrhea, gas, bloating, IBS and even depression. When it comes to rebalancing your gut, it’s all about supporting it with the right nutrients.

While whole food, plant-based prebiotic supplements like our Prebiotic Blend may help to aid digestion, there are a number of other natural remedies that can also work to get your bowels moving again.

It all starts in the mouth

A very simple but effective way to aid your digestion is by chewing. The average Australian chews their food 5-6 times before swallowing.

Interestingly, digestion begins with the brain, by first smelling, looking and breathing deeply before a meal.

Rather than 5-6 times, you should actually be chewing each piece of food 15-20 times, which then allows the digestion-brain feedback loop to kick in.

Activating this feedback loop causes a cascade of hormones and enzymes to be released and allow for proper digestion of your food.

Try chewing each mouthful food 15-20 times. Alternatively, if you really want to, try chewing until the food is liquid before swallowing.

Up your fibre intake

Fibre is good for your digestive system because it helps add bulk to your stool and keeps your bowel movements regular. If you’re looking to increase your fibre intake, start by incorporating a variety of fruits, vegetables and nuts to your diet.

By eating foods high in inulin fibre – a soluble type of fibre classified as a prebiotic – you’ll feed the probiotics in your gut and help to balance the bacteria living there.

Chicory root

While it’s probably not the most readily available food on the supermarket shelf, chicory root is a great source of inulin fibre. Try adding it to your diet by switching out your morning cup of coffee with a chicory alternative instead.

You can also get your inulin fix from our Prebiotic Blend, a natural health supplement that’s packed with plant-based whole foods to load your gut with only the good stuff, including chicory root, green bananas and cinnamon.

Drink lots of water

To make sure that your bowels are moving regularly, it’s important to stay hydrated. Not drinking enough water makes you more likely to experience constipation. Often caused due to a dehydrated colon, constipation can be prevented by simply increasing your daily fluid intake.

Drinking water (and other non-caffeinated fluids like herbal tea) will help to keep your colon hydrated and make using the bathroom a much more pleasant experience.

Get your body moving

Regular exercise is good for you in so many different ways. Not only can it help with improving your mood, increasing your energy and facilitating weight loss, but moving your body on a daily basis can also help with digestion.

Studies have shown that moderate daily exercise can help to speed up the digestion process and get food moving through the body faster.

Natural health supplements

We believe that prebiotic supplements should contain only natural, plant-based whole foods – just as Mother Nature intended. That’s why our Prebiotic Blend is made with only natural ingredients and nothing else.

Specifically formulated to aid digestion and feed the probiotics in your gut, our Prebiotic Blend harnesses the power of chicory root and 8 other plant-based whole foods to balance your bowel for the better.

Help your body to help itself

By taking care of your body, your body will take care of you. If you’re having digestive problems, start looking at how you can provide your body with the nutrients it needs to better digest the food you’re putting in it.

Help your digestive system with our Prebiotic Blend

Foods To Fight Cold & Flu Naturally

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Not only is food the main source of energy, but it can work as a natural medicine, too. When you’re fighting a cold or the flu, eating the right foods will help you exponentially on your road to recovery.

We’ve listed 5 of our favourite healing foods that help to relieve the symptoms of cold and flu and shorten its overall duration.

Turmeric

The health benefits of turmeric go far beyond the anti-inflammatory properties that the golden spice is known for.

Turmeric’s curcumin is not only a natural anti-inflammatory, but it also has anti-infective properties that can help to fight viruses, bacteria and fungi – including those that result in a case of the common cold.

By taking our Turmeric Blend daily, you may lower your body’s inflammation levels and give your immune system the boost it needs to keep you in optimal health throughout the winter season.

Vitamin C-rich fruits

Everyone knows that you should eat oranges and lemons when you’re sick, but many of you might not actually know why. Fruits like lemons, oranges, grapefruit and limes all contain vitamin C, which helps to reduce the severity of the common cold, as well as it’s duration.

Capsicum and kiwifruit are also a wonderful source of vitamin C, which you can easily add into your stir frys, salads or smoothies.

One of our favourite go-to drinks for soothing cold symptoms contains just 3 ingredients: honey, lemon and hot water. Simply mix a teaspoon of honey with some freshly squeezed lemon juice in a mug of hot water, and add a lemon slice or two to garnish.

Manuka honey

Native to New Zealand, manuka honey makes a marvellous home remedy for a sore throat due to its antibacterial properties – properties that traditional honey does not contain.

The antibacterial and antiviral properties in manuka honey help to reduce inflammation in the back of the throat while also fighting against the bacteria that cause you to feel pain in that area.

After sipping on one of our favourite lemon and honey drinks, you’ll notice that your throat feels soothed and less raw. This is because manuka honey doesn’t just fight harmful bacteria – it also coats the inner lining of the throat, relieving the pain you experience there.

Garlic

Like turmeric, garlic contains natural anti-inflammatory properties. However, what makes it such a powerful flu combatant is the sulfur compounds it forms after being chewed, crushed or chopped.

Not only do these compounds help to reduce the duration of colds, but they also help to prevent you from getting sick in the first place. Get your daily garlic fix with our favourite pasta alternatives.

Ginger shares manuka honey’s ability to relieve sore throats, as well as turmeric and garlic’s natural anti-inflammatory properties.

However, what sets this spice apart from the rest is its antimicrobial properties. These properties make ginger a food primed to help fight infections – including those like the sore throat-causing cold and flu.

Rest and recover

While there are many beneficial foods that can help to relieve the symptoms and shorten the duration of the common cold, the most important thing to do when you’re sick is to rest, stay hydrated and sleep.

Move away from the screen, put your work aside, curl up in bed and let both your mind and your body rest. Allow your body to focus on fighting the infection and healing, and not on anything else.

Put it all together as a preventative by making an oxymel. An oxymel is a herbal tonic used as natural medicine made from a mixture of honey and vinegar – though it can include other ingredients, too.

Making your own oxymel at home is easy. Simply take some manuka honey, add crushed ginger, garlic, grated fresh turmeric and a little finely diced capsicum. Crush these ingredients together to form a paste and then add it to lemon juice and warm water. Drink up!

Prepare your body for the flu with our Turmeric Blend