EMBRACE THE SEASON! Combat S.A.D.

2008-01-23T18:43:00.000-08:00

Ahhh... Its that time of year, birds are singing, flowers are blooming... oh, wait, No. NO ITS NOT! Its cold and wet and snowy and icy and cloudy all the time!

For many years, I suffered chronically from Seasonal Affective Disorder, or SAD for short. Yeah, SAD alright... talk about the definition of my mood and atitude. I once heard one of my kids ask, "Mommy, why can't Daddy just go to sleep for the winter like the bears do?". Boy, out of the mouth of babes!

After trying a number of ways to combat the syndrome (I don't take any prescription or OTC drugs), I realized I had a very good friend that always seemed happier in the winter than he did in the summer, so I asked him what his secret was. He said, quite simply, "Hey, just embrace the season for all its worth!" What the ??% did that mean?? Basically, most of us put up our outside gear and toys shortly after Labor Day, right? Well, afterwards, get out a whole different set of toys and, you got it, EMBRACE THE SEASON! So, I took up a number of winter-time activities that are associated with the season. Since then, I can't wait until Autumn's brisk days give way Winter's frigid mornings! You don't have to "go big". Just a moderate walk on a routine basis, or a little snowshoeing, skiing or ice-skating can do the trick! Of course, taking Vitamin D3 sure helps, too! I take around 6000 IUs daily in the winter, slightly less as the daylight hours become longer and I can be truly "in the sun" more often. Since I take Vitamin D, I use it in the form of D3 (cholecalciferol)... they say it is the form of Vitamin D that most closely resembles "the real thing" that we get from sunlight.

Not only does Vitamin D help to combat S.A.D, many studies show that it is also important in helping the body to absorb and use CALCIUM from food and supplements, it aids in bone and tooth formation and supports muscle and nerve function and that it helps to prevent osteoporosis. Oh, if you're taking a calcium supplement, seriously consider taking one with Vitamin D as part of it's complex... or take Vitamin D3 with your calcium supplement. Remember that calcium can also deplete magnesium and magnesium is crucial to many key biological functions within the body.

Many health care specialists recommend that a calcium supplement should also include at least 1/2 the amount of magnesium as it does calcium. In other words, if you are taking 1000 milligrams (MG) of calcium, you should be getting at least 500 milligrams (MG) of magnesium. There are also several types of calcium and some are more readily absorbed and utilized by the body than others. Sometimes, it seems that which types work the best has more to do with whose selling what type. If the price you're paying for your calcium supplements seems "too good to be true", it probably is! Cheap calcium supplements of low-grade are in abundance.
Check out the type you are using with someone knowledgeable about such things.

One more thing bears mentioning... the form a supplement is taken in: tablet, capsule, powder or liquid. Look for more on this later!

HEALTHY LIVING TODAY

EMBRACE THE SEASON! Combat S.A.D.