Beetroot power!

I think I might be the only person I know not to have sufferred a cold yet this year. That doesn't mean I don't feel on the cusp of a fluey breakdown mind you, but this year I have been working extra hard at staving off the effects of winter chills, so thought I would share the secrets of my so-far-success.

I suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), a type of winter depression experienced by some 7% of the population in the UK between the months of September and April. I've had it since the age of about 8 years, usually around the time of the clocks changing, where for a few weeks my sleep patterns become upset, I can't rouse myself in the morning and I feel unbelievably lethargic and depressed. I used to nearly always end up having to take a week of school to hibernate. Basically, reduced levels of sunlight causes a chemical imbalance in the area of the brain responsible for producing hormones that regulate moods, sex drive and sleep patterns. Less sun also means we get less of all the great vitamins (namely D3) found in UV rays that aid the production and metabolism of key nutrients in the body.

This year I was determined to take action against SAD and had planned on borrowing my tortoises UVA/UVB sun lamp to sit under while in the house, btu at the last minute a rescue bearded dragon came in and took priority, so I hit the health food shop for some advice, and came away with a jar of vitamin D tablets, the "sunshine vitamin" as the helpful chap in there called them. Unfortunately I was already sufferring symptoms by the time I started on them, taking them in addition to my usual multi vit and mineral and addittional calcium tablet (I'm lactose intolerant and a veggie, so like to be sure I'm getting all the good stuff my body needs), and am pretty sure they are doing a great job! I also invested in some vitamin C effervescent tablets (it's more fun having it in a drink than having another pill to swallow and helps get more water in me!) to boost my immune system and stave of colds and that seems to be doing the trick too. Not to mention getting at least 5 a day in the form of juice and a piece of fruit for breakfast, salads or soup for lunch and stir fries for dinner including plentie of veggies.

Getting plenty of onions and garlic in your diet is important at this time of year (hence soups and stirfries- an easy way to sneak them in), as both have great antibacterial properties. Ginger is good too, and achinacea, which you can get in herbal teas or as a tablet, is great for boosting the immune system.

I also became aware of beetroot as a superfood, so have been getting lots of that in me too- look at what's in it and you'll see why:

• Nitrite, one of the key ingredients in beetroot, helps reduce blood pressure, heart disease and strokes
• Betanine, a compound that aids relaxation and reduces depression
• Vitamin A and C, calcium, iron, folic acid
• Betacyanin, the pigment that gives beetroot its colour, has powerful antioxidant properties
• Minerals including magnesium, sodium, potassium and silica, which aids the intake of calcium and acts as a useful antidote to a diet too high in salt.

How about that!! It has also been found to improve athletic performance, probably due to the high nitrate levels in it, so you can train for longer if you make it a part of your diet or drink a load of beetroot juice a half hour before you train!

I've also been reading about the benefits of a good nights sleep for keeping illness at bay, and this is the only area that I still have to work on to keep my body and mind super healthy. Did you know that statistics show that people who get less than 7 hours of sleep a night are more likely to get a cold than those who get 8 hours or more a night. At the moment I am working every hour God sends and only getting 7 hours sleep at most, and my mouth is testiment to this, having become full of  ulcers in the last week (a sign of the immune system being down) so it is time for me to take notice, and action! So I am now on an early night crusade to increase my sleep and help my body out and prolong my smugness at surviving the winter months ail-free. After all, you know what they say, look after your body and it will look after you...