Heading into Autumn
Dr Mark's Health Report - Dr Mark Atkinson is an integrated medical doctor, founder of the British College of Integrated Medicine and an expert in holistic approaches to chronic health challenges. he is also an award winning writer and author of the Mind-Body Bible.
In this health report I'm going to focus on two autumnal issues; the first is about getting children's diets back on track, following the summer holidays; and the second is on a condition called Seasonal Affective Disorder or 'winter blues'. It affects the lives and health of between 2 and 3% of the UK population and it's about now, September/October time, that sufferers will start to experience the symptoms relating to it.
Good Eating Habits for healthy children
Whilst the children have been at home during the holidays, more often than not (if my patients are anything to go by), the number of unhealthy snacks and drinks would have gone up and the portions of fruits and veggies consumed each day would have plummeted. For most kids that's fine - its part of the joy of being on holiday - but, to ensure continuing health, the diet needs to return to a healthy balance for the autumn months. The return to school provides an ideal opportunity to overhaul their diet!
Any regular readers of the Health Essentials will know that the evidence linking optimum nutrition to mood, health, behaviour and performance in children is compelling. A healthy diet, consisting mainly of whole natural foods, has been shown to improve concentration, help balance emotions, increase energy and even raise IQ in children. Whilst most kids' health can tolerate a couple of days in which they eat more sweets and less healthy foods, if that becomes the norm then health, weight and behaviour problems can - and will - eventually start creeping in.
Here are a couple of suggestions to get your children's diets back on track:
- Get honest bout what they are and aren't eating. The first step in making any change is acknowledging that situations, in this case aspects of their diet, are less than ideal.
- You should be the model of healthy eating and living. Children learn by example. If you want your child to eat healthily and have good habits around food, then make sure that you are living the model healthy eating that they wish for your kids.
- As a general rule of thumb, the ideal diet for children consists mainly of natural whole foods, such as fruit, veg, fish and whole grains. The challenge for most mums and dads, of course, is to convince their kids to eat them - the key is persistence, creativity and more persistence! Cutting fruit into small pieces, adding fruit to natural yoghurt and smoothies, using hummus, tahini and avocado as dips, and adding veggies to soup, jacket potatoes and ratatouille are all worth a try.
- Sugar, processed foods, foods with additives, sweeteners and foods to which a child might be sensitive all need to be eaten in moderation or avoided. When it comes to sweets, chocolate, puddings and all of the other fun foods the idea is not to cut them out completely - but to make them a once in a while treat. In general, if a child is experiencing any mood, behaviour or attention problems it's probably worthwhile getting a food allergy test. More so if you notice that it appears to be related to the consumption of certain foods.
- Essential fatty acids, particularly omega 3s are one of the keys to optimum brain function, as well as healthy skin, heart and immune systems. Children, like adults, should be eating about 3 servings of oily fish a week - this includes salmon, herrings, sardines, plus eggs (frittata, omelette, hard-boiled), avocados, olives, olive oil on their veggies and seeds (seed bars or sprinkled on their breakfast) are all good. Alternatively I suggest higher natures delicious SmartStart.
- Most children need to supplement their diets in order to ensure that they provide their bodies and minds with an optimum level of nutrition. Dinochews, which contains a broad range of vitamins and minerals, and SmartStart, which contains the essential fatty acids EPA, DHA and GLA, go down well with most children.
Watch Out For SAD
This is one not to miss. Depressed mood, increasing levels of stress and weight gain, oversleeping or disturbed sleeping, carbohydrate cravings (bread, pasta, etc...), irritability and/or fatigue that start between September and November and continue through to March or April, for three or more consecutive years may suggest that your client is suffering from SAD or Seasonal Affective Disorder. If you think they might have SAD, the first thing to do is get a proper diagnosis - GP should be able to help with that. One theory is that SAD symptoms come about because of the relative lack of sunlight during the autumn and winter months. This, in turn, affects brain neurotransmitters (chemicals that modulate mood), especially serotonin, and this leads to the feelings of depression. This is oversimplified but that's the gist of it. Here's what you can do to help:
- One of the best ways to counter SAD is to take a morning walk when daylight is at its strongest.
- You can buy a full-spectrum light therapy box. The light needs to be at least 2500 lux (lux is the measure of the brightness) and one needs to be exposed to its light for between 15 and 45 minutes a day, depending on its strength. However, staring at a light box can trigger eye problems and headaches. An alternative is to use full spectrum bulbs (not to be confused with simple 'daylight' bulbs) around the house so that the eyes receive the light indirectly and this becomes integrated into their lifestyle.
- Supplements can also help, I suggest trying 100mg of Serotone 5-HTP just before going to bed at night.
- 800iu of vitamin D a day might also help. Adequate vitamin D levels are also known to protect against numerous chronic health conditions.
