Today I want to share some practical back to school health hacks with you. It’s that time of year again, almost everyone is either heading back to school, or kicking things off at home. Even in a typical year, I like to focus on immune support as we head into the school year and fall season. But especially given the climate this year, I want to share these simple back to school health hacks with you.
Below you will read about nine health hacks we are implementing in our home to foster a healthy immune system as we head into the fall season. These are as follows:
- prioritize sleep
- keep stress in check
- take your vitamins
- focus on immune supporting supplements
- drink more water
- eat more veggies (and nutrient dense foods) and less sugar
- support gut health
- daily exercise or movement
- proper essential oil support
Before we dive in, please note, I am not a physician, and this is not medical advice. I am simply a passionate health advocate who personally enjoys learning how to empower myself. So I am sharing what I have learned and the daily health habits and biohacks my family implements for natural immune support.
Prioritize sleep
Most Americans are not getting enough sleep, including children. Adequate sleep supports your immune system and helps your T-cells fight off infection. As your family is solidifying a new routine this fall, be sure to prioritize adequate sleep.
Taking a few steps to cultivate better sleep hygiene in your home can help you to improve the quantity and quality of sleep for your family. Try dimming the lights once the sun goes down, or better yet, avoid blue light the last couple of hours before bed! This can be done by using blue light blocking glasses and avoiding devices in the evening.
Another way you can biohack your environment is by diffusing calming essential oils to promote better sleep. Help your body and your little ones to unwind and relax by reading, praying, or doing some gentle stretches instead of watching tv or scrolling on your phone. By having a routine, you and your family will be more prepared for bedtime. Foster a healthy circadian rhythm, as in sync with the sun outside as possible.
Keep stress in check
Stress weakens your immune system. Mamas, you are the gatekeeper of your home. You help to set and create the atmosphere (yes, dad’s do too). Sit down with your spouse (or family) and create a family culture of slowing down. How do you want the atmosphere in your home to feel? Create boundaries and a peaceful haven in your home. Turn off the news, put your phone away, put limits on technology influences. Purge your calendar and schedule of anything that isn’t a “love” or a “yes”, anything not necessary or not serving your family.
Have each person in your family sit down and create a joy list of things you love to do or are relaxing for you. Also brainstorm a list of things that you as a family enjoy doing together. Do one each day, even if it’s just five or ten minutes. Read a book together, go for a walk, have a family prayer time, cuddle before bed, cook dinner together, bake cookies together, etc.
Creating that peaceful atmosphere also looks like meal planning and prepping to take care of your nutritional needs and health. It looks like saying no to toxic people. Decreasing stress in your family is going to look different from your neighbor, and that’s the whole point!
Take a quality whole food multivitamin
We can be well fed and have poor nutrition. We can even be striving to serve our family healthy meals and still lack certain nutrients! Our food today simply does not have the nutrient density it once did due to agriculture practices and poor soil conditions. And if we are not getting adequate vitamins and minerals, then we suffer at a cellular level. This is the foundation and building block of a healthy lifestyle and natural immune support.
I am not of the mindset that you can get away with eating so healthy that you do not need to supplement. If you or a family member is feeling tired all the time, brain fog, inflammation, pain, digestive issues, poor mood, poor hair, or skin health, it’s possible that at least one piece of your puzzle is that your body is lacking the basic nutrients it needs for optimal health. I know we have found that to be the case several times in our household, from aches and pains to mood imbalances. Especially for little ones, as their bodies and brains are still growing and developing, this is so important.
Take immune supporting supplements
We just talked about taking vitamins, but let’s boost this back to school health hacks up a notch! Hopefully by this point, it’s no secret that vitamins C, D3, and zinc are powerful for your immune system. But since the main message over the past year and a half hasn’t included much discussion of useful measures you can take in your own home; I am making a point of this back to school health hack here. Supplementing with this natural immune support powerhouse trio is inexpensive and simple!
We have all three of these on hand, all the time. In addition to what is in our multivitamin! After a little searching, I found children’s versions of each one that are not full of extra sugar. That being said, it is important to ask your doctor to test fat-soluble vitamins (like vitamin D) first and for dose recommendations. Since I am not a doctor, I will not be sharing specifics for dosage. This varies greatly between people due to lifestyle and genetic factors.
Also, keep in mind that you may need to supplement more D3 during the winter, and less during the summer (if you spend adequate time outdoors). But for some folks (like myself) even if you spend plenty of time soaking up natural sunshine, you may still not be getting enough vitamin D due to genetic factors.
The latest research indicates that most Americans are not getting enough Vitamin D and requesting a lab is inexpensive and easy. Water-soluble vitamins (like Vitamin C) are difficult to overdo since they filter out of your system and have to be replenished regularly.
Drink more water
Most Americans are chronically dehydrated. This can have a ripple effect on the body. Drinking adequate water is also going to move toxins and viral threats through your body faster and keep your elimination systems proficient. Aim for drinking at least half your body weight in ounces of water per day.
For little ones in your home, (if in school) ask if they are allowed to carry a refillable water bottle with them throughout the day. Let them pick out their new water bottle. To help gauge how much water your child is drinking, have him or her refill the same water bottle throughout the day. Give him or her a goal of refilling it however many times per day meets your goal.
Another way to encourage drinking more water is to let your child pick a citrus essential oil to add flavor (and additional benefits) to their water. Please note, I am only referring to ingesting doTERRA’s pure and third party tested essential oils. This is the brand I trust. Be sure to use a stainless steel (or glass when appropriate) water bottle in this case.
More veggies, less sugar
Mamas, you are the gatekeeper of the atmosphere of your home, and (usually) the nutrition in your home. This back to school health hack is one that you are probably aware of, but it takes more conscious effort to implement. It’s important to think about the nutrients you are providing your family each day in the meals you serve. You have probably heard the saying you are what you eat. But have you heard you are what your food eats?
By offering nutrient-dense foods and plenty of vegetables, you are setting a healthy foundation for your family. Aim for at least six servings of vegetables per day. Eliminate as much sugar and processed food from your diet, especially if you feel sick or are wanting to optimize your health. To get started in this area grab my free Clean Eating Guide for beginner’s.
Did you know that sugar wreaks havoc on the immune system? One study demonstrated that 75 grams of sugar suppressed the immune system and it’s believed these effects can last for 5 hours. For context, 75 grams of sugar is about 2 cans of soda. So if you haven’t already been reading labels, now is a good time to start with sugar.
Especially keep this in mind as we move into holiday season (October through April) where sugar and treats abound from Halloween to Easter! And so many of them are focused on our kids. This is where I would implement the 80:20 rule and keep treats in balance. 😉
Be aware that sugar is hidden in a lot of foods, even healthy foods like granola and yogurt. Sugar goes by over 50 names such as fructose, cane sugar, maltodextrin, corn syrup, caramel, and fruit juice.
Support gut health
For both your physical and mental health, gut health is important! Scientists are saying up to 80% of the immune system is in our gut and there is also growing research about the brain-gut connection. A leaky gut is also correlated to autoimmune disease and chronic illness.
A few of the above tips will also support the gut health of your family, like eating more veggies, less processed food, supplementing your nutrients, and decreasing stress. You can also sip on bone broth, use collagen, and take quality digestive enzymes and probiotics. Unfortunately, most of us are not incorporating enough probiotic foods into our diets (including my family). Probiotics help to promote a good balance of flora in your gut, supporting your immune system.
Especially if you or a family member already have any digestive issues, brain fog, or mood imbalances, you need to look into supporting your gut health.
Daily exercise + movement
Did you know that the health benefits of regular exercise include improving your immune system? Research has found that even 30 minutes of brisk walking has a positive effect on your immune system, boosting it to help fight infections.
Brainstorm ways that your family can incorporate daily moderate exercise to experience the benefits for your immune system. Perhaps a family walk in the evenings or a family hike on the weekends. While maintaining balance on your family calendar (remember to keep stress in check), are your kids involved in a sport? Or are you active as a family? Enjoy some fresh air and a mood boost by taking your activity outdoors.
Essential oil support
One of my favorite back to school health hacks is utilizing essential oils. Certain essential oils, like doTERRA On Guard, Breathe, AirX and Frankincense, have immune supporting properties. There is a reason that essential oil enthusiasts are keeping doTERRA On Guard products stocked in their homes! Just do a simple PubMed search. One of the great benefits is it has both antibacterial and antiviral properties from essential oils like Wild Orange, Clove, Cinnamon, Eucalyptus, and Rosemary. So if you or a family member feels something coming on, you don’t have to sit around getting worse before you start feeling better again.
Another thing to keep in mind as we are disinfecting all the things these days, we have both good and bad bacteria in and on our bodies, and in our environments. We need good bacteria! But so often harsh cleaners and sanitizers kill both. We are striving to protect our families, but this is detrimental to our health in the long run (let alone the toxic chemicals we’re being exposed to). To think the massive increase in using harsh cleaners over the last year won’t have negative consequences on your health is naïve.
Symphony of the cells essential oil technique
This technique is one of the best back to school health hacks on this list! It uses essential oils topically with a gentle massage up the spine. There are specific protocols for different ailments and health conditions, like an infectious disease, mood, sleep, so I highly recommend getting the resource book. It will walk you through which essential oils to use for which protocols.
At the end of the day though, just use your doTERRA essential oils, one drop at a time. If you’re new to essential oils, I promise, it’s much simpler than you might think. Like trying anything new, you will get the hang of it quickly once you start using them. We have an awesome wellness community for ongoing support, too.
Gatekeeper of your health and home
These simple back to school health hacks are a great starting point to nurturing health in your home this season. With that being said, I always encourage folks to be their own best health advocate and do their research, too. You are the gatekeeper of your health and home. A simple search in your browser (may I recommend duckduckgo.com) will bring up the research behind this collective list.
I am a mama and health advocate doing the best that I can to be informed and proactive with my health. At the same time, scientists and medical experts will continue to research and adapt their recommendations, so it’s important to be well informed. I would love to hear your favorite back to school health hacks in your home!
If you enjoyed this post and want more tips on how to simplify your healthy lifestyle for a wholesome, rooted home click here to join my newsletter. You will be the first to know about new posts and get access to bonus content exclusively created for my Simply Wholesome Roots community. And I have a welcome gift for you, too!
Comments are closed