Sticking to your health routine this winter

Our health should be our number one priority at all times, not only when we feel sick. A visit to your healthcare provider and adhering to treatment/medication can help maintain your health. Here’s why it’s important to stick to routine healthcare, even in the winter.

Benefits of sticking to a health routine.

Health screenings are critical to an overall healthy wellbeing. Benefits of health screenings include,

• Early detection of health conditions
• Early detection of these conditions can and does save lives.
• Early detection of a disease enables better management and treatment for the condition which in turn decreases the risk of complications.

Treatment adherence

Sometimes adherence can be difficult. At first you may need some support to get used to the changes treatment makes in your life. A routine or daily schedule can help. Pick a time to start treatment and adhere to it. An example could be setting an alarm to go off at a specific time daily.

If you can’t collect medication due to flu or other illnesses, call your pharmacy/clinic to find out about home-delivery options. Waiting until you feel better could lead to defaulting on treatment, which could lead to other health complications such as drug resistance. For the elderly and disabled, home care workers can assist with dropping off their treatment. Speak to a clinician about this option.

It is also recommended that you stock up on at least 2/3 months supply of treatment.

If you have immunisation or vaccination scheduled during this time, do not wait for summer to screen, or test.

As the temperature starts to drop, we have more viruses in the environment, so we must be more careful in the winter to prevent catching illnesses

Eating healthy

Making sure you eat a wide variety of foods from the five food groups is the best way to ensure that you keep healthy. Get enough vitamin C (Mostly fruit and vegetables), zinc (poultry, peas, beans, and nuts) as well as iron (meat, beans, green leafy vegetables and lentils). These vitamins and nutrients help boost your immune system.

Stay active indoors

During the winter months, you may not want to exercise outside, but there are many ways to stay active indoors. You can take a fitness class at the gym, join a community dance/aerobics session, workout to a video at home, or simply find something you enjoy and fit this into your health routine, such as dancing.

It’s imperative that we take care of our health throughout the year, even during the winter season. Regular screening, testing, treatment adherence, eating healthy as well as staying active are all optimal for good health. Do you have any tips? Share them in the comments below.

If you or a friend need advice or help, you can contact me here on Ask Choma, send a Facebook message or a Twitter DM, or a WhatsApp Message (071 172 3657).