The secret weapon for winter wellness may be vitamin D. Vitamin D is produced when the sun’s rays hit our skin, making deficiencies more common in winter. It has also been found that Seasonal Affective Disorder tends to be prevalent when vitamin D stores are low. Many people report improvement in mood with only 1000mg per day. Check with your doctor to see what dosage might be right for you.

Holidays are a great time to practice lowering our expectations, especially for “Type A” personalities. What if you didn’t have to have perfect hostess gifts? What if you didn’t have to send holiday cards? What if you didn’t have to make sure Uncle Ned had the perfect seat at the dinner table? Ask yourself if the things you are breaking your back to do at the holidays are making the season joyful for you or not. Use this season to observe what’s truly important to you during the holidays, and commit to letting the rest go.

Not interested in eating fish, but want to get the benefit of omega-3 fats? Take a fish oil supplement that contains both DHA and EPA. Worried about mercury and toxins? Here’s an easy home test from Dr. Barry Sears to test whether or not your fish oil supplement has them:

• Take several (7-10) pills and pop them open.
• Put the oil into a shot-glass and put the shot-glass into the freezer.
• After about 5 hours, put a toothpick in the oil

-  if you can get the toothpick into the oil, then that means it is good quality and free of toxins
- if you can’t get the toothpick into the oil, then that means that the oil has toxins

For one of the best quality fish oil supplements try Krill Oil

If you knew there was a vitamin that can instantly rejuvenate, refresh and reinvigorate you, would you take it? Well, that vitamin exists! It’s called Vitamin FA, for “Fresh Air”. Sitting in a closed office all day is hard on your body. The next time you want to head to Starbucks to stave off your afternoon energy dip, take a brisk 10 minute walk outside instead. It’s guaranteed to lift your mood and your energy!

Ever find yourself…how can I say this…”thrown off” when you travel? A new schedule can be exciting for you, but not necessarily for your bowels. If they tend to get angry or sluggish, bring a good probiotic with you when you travel to keep ‘em happy and regular. Take it once in the morning twenty minutes before breakfast, and once in the evening, at least two hours after dinner.

If you’re in an exercise rut, you’ve come to the right season! So often we view exercise as punishment for eating poorly, which makes working out a draining chore. Remember games and sports you played for hours as a kid? The best kind of exercise is the kind that’s FUN for you. It lifts your spirit, lightens your heart and makes time stop while you’re doing it. Make a list of all the activities you love to do, pick one and then start doing it. This summer, get outside and play again.

The detoxification formula – toxins out, whole nutrients in – applies to every facet of your life, not just food. Where in your life do you have emotional and physical toxins that you can cleanse? Now is the time to examine your career, your relationships, your exercise and your spirituality. Once you’ve identified toxins to remove from your life, ask yourself where you can add more soul-feeding joy.