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Sense of self-worth

H E A LT H

Alongside these incredible physical and mental benefits, our social lives help to strengthen our emotional responses to stresses
and fears and anxieties and help to promote a great sense of
self-worth and self-care. When you know that you will be seeing
someone later on that day, you are more likely to present yourself in a way that fosters self-worth and confidence. You dress
up and get ready to be presentable to others, but you also do
it for the sake of your own assurances in interacting with those
around you. Leading into the busiest, happiest time of year,
keep the benefits of lower blood pressure, heart health, and
keeping depression and loneliness at bay in mind. If you are
wondering whether you should
go to that work party, or stay
in and watch TV, choose to get
out and benefit from the incredible, endless benefits that a social
life has to offer.

Relationships help promote a great

sense of self-worth and self-care
strengthening our immune systems through the power of positive thinking. Social interactions also help to prevent memory
loss or Alzheimers through the regular interaction with others
and the creation of memories for your mind to hold on to (Horstman).

HOLIDAY CHEER LEADS TO A

LONG & HAPPY LIFE
Heading into the holiday season it might be beneficial for
you to know that your holiday parties and spreading cheer
might actually benefit your overall health.

aving a strong social life has been proven to have

positive, highly effective impacts on your overall
health and well-being. A study recently conducted
at Brigham Young University found that, a strong
social network is surprisingly more crucial to physical health than exercise or beating obesity. And friendships,
whether those friends are near or far, increase our chances for a
long, healthy life more so than children or other relatives (Horstmanl).

Social interaction
Friendships and social interaction help to benefit our overall
health by lowering our blood pressure, which decreases inflammation, and lowers our probability of stroke and other brain
damage (Horstman). As we interact with those we love, and
feel safe in our environment, our bodies naturally respond by

relaxing and our interactions with friends also help us to manage

stress through expressing concerns and receiving feedback.
According to the Mayo Clinic, friendships also, encourage you
to change or avoid unhealthy lifestyle habits, such as excessive
drinking or lack of exercise (Mayo Clinic). Therefore, friendships
can lead us toward better choices in our everyday lives which
means that maintaining friendships is just as beneficial, and essential, to our overall health as exercise and eating right.

benefits of being social

Healthy habits are essential to our health and well-being; however, friendships and interaction are helpful to not only our
physical health, but our mental health as well. Jon Cacioppo, a
psychologist at the University of Chicago, found that depression
and loneliness are directly linked to illness (Horstman). Our ability
and willingness to be with loved ones has a proven result of

WRITER
SOCIAL BENEFITS

LINDSEY WALK

REFERENCES
Horstman, Judith. 6 Health Benefits of Being Social. American Grandparents Association. 2013. 15 November 2014. http://staging2.grandparents.com/health-and-wellbeing/health/health-benefits-being-social.
Friendships: Enrich Your Life and Improve Your Health. Mayo Clinic:
Healthy Lifestyle and Adult Health. 21 November 2014. http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-living/adult-health/in-depth/friendships/art-20044860.

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What to use & when...

find your care

THE FIGHT
AGAINST THE
COMMON COLD
Eating right, and taking care of our bodies physically can
have a great impact on our well-being.
I feel empowered to take a proactive role in my familys
healthcare through the use of natural remedies, and you
can be too.
Isnt it ironic that as I started writing
this article I was suffering from the
common cold? My sinuses had so
much pressure built up that my face
felt like it could explode. My nose
was drippy and I had used at least
a full box of tissues in three days.
When I talked, I sounded like my
nose was pinched shut, or that I was
losing my voice. What caused this
cold in the first place?

Causes of the
common cold
There are three main viruses that
cause the common cold. The Rhinovirus is the most common. Rhino
derives from the Greek, meaning
nose. Optimal growth of the virus
is achieved at somewhere between
33 and 35 C, which is the temperature range found in the human nose
(Mandal). This must be why colds always seem to start with a runny nose.
The Coronavirus, and Respiratory
Syncytial Virus (RSV) are the other
two most common viruses that cause
colds. However, there are over 200 viruses that can cause colds and most
of them are not identified (WebMD).
How can we fight an unknown foe? It
seems impossible, but there are ways

to prevent and lessen the effects of

these viruses.

Cold remedies
There are copious remedies that
claim to help with the symptoms of
the common cold. The question is,
what works and what doesnt. The
Mayo Clinic has several suggestions
for remedies that are good to use.
Drinking water and other fluids helps
to flush out toxins that build up in
our bodies. Using a saltwater gargle
of to tsp salt dissolved in an
8-ounce glass of warm water can
help relieve a sore throat. To clear
nasal congestion try using saline
nasal drops and sprays. Chicken
soup might help relieve cold and flu
symptoms in two ways. First, it acts
as an anti-inflammatory by inhibiting
the movement of neutrophils immune system cells that participate in
the bodys inflammatory response.
Second, it temporarily speeds up
the movement of mucus, possibly
helping relieve congestion and limiting the amount of time viruses are in
contact with the nose lining (Mayo).
These are all good suggestions that
I
have tried in the past.

Dr i n k L o t s o f wat e r

Ess e n t i a l O i ls R e c i p e :

p o w e r o f n a s a l spr ays

As a first cure from the cold, try to

consume a lot of water, juices and
clear liquids. The hydration of the
body contributes to the removal of
toxins produced from dead cells,
which increases its ability to fight the
virus.

4 drops oregano essential oil

4 drops frankincense essential oil
2 drops peppermint essential oil
1 drop on guard essential oil
10 empty gel capsules

Nasal sprays help thin the mucus in

your nasal pasages which decreases
the inflammation of your blood vessels and helps empty fluids. Sprays
are available over-the-counter but

suggest over the counter medications as a physically can have a great impact on our
remedy that worked, but they wont prevent well-being. Reducing stress by taking time
a cold or shorten its duration, and most have to relax and meditate will also benefit us.
some side
Now I use a different remedy that has
The earth has provided
yielded some great results. Ive been using e f f e c t s .
many gifts for us to use.
If
used
doTERRA essential oils to help with my
I feel empowered to
for more
congestion, sinus pressure and pain,
take a proactive role in
than a few
cough, and dry scratchy throat. Essenmy familys healthcare
days, they
tial oils have been used for thousands of
through the use of natcan actuyears for medicinal purposes due to their
ural remedies, and you
ally make
therapeutic properties. I drink doTERRAs
can be too.
s y m p lemon oil in my water to help with throat
toms worse. They also mentioned that
discomfort and to stop my drippy nose. I
put oregano, frankincense, and melaleuca antibiotics and Zinc remedies do not work
against the cold viruses, and Zinc nasal remoils in a capsule that I swallow to help inWRITER
hibit the virus from replicating. Lavender oil edies can cause permanent loss of smell
COMMON COLD KAYLA CAROLL
(Mayo). My family and I have decided for the
dropped on the back of my tongue calms
most part, that the side effects of synthetic
down my cough, and a respiratory blend
REFERENCES
drugs outweigh their benefits. We choose
rubbed on my nose and chest, clears my
Mandal, Ananya. What is
airways and helps me breathe much better. to use more natural effective remedies. Rhinovirus, 20 October 2014. News-Med-

THe Body: A
self-healer

ical.net. Web. 22
November 2014

In Modern Essentials we learn that essen- In just three days I felt ninety percent better,
tial oils embody the regeneration, protective, and by the fourth I felt great. Our bodies
Mayo Clinic Staff. Cold Remedies: What
are able to heal works, what doesnt, what cant hurt.
and immune-strengththemselves and Mayo clinic, 07 June 2012. Web. 15 Novemening properties of
ber 2014
fight off viruses
plantsthese constituand infections
ents have the potential
Miller AB, Cates RG, Lawrence M,
when we give
to affect every cell of
Soria JA, Espinoza LV, Martinez JV, Arbiz
DA. The antibacterial and
them what they
the body within twenantifungal
activity of essential oils
need. Many of
ty minutes and then be
extracted from Guatemalan medicinal
the illnesses we
metabolized like other
plants, abstract, 21
face today are
nutrients (Modern EsOctober 2014. Pubmed.gov. Web. 15 Nopreventable by
sentials). The best part
vember 2014
living a lifeabout this, is that they
Modern Essentials 6th ed. Orem: Aromastyle of overdo not make me drowsy
Tools, 2014. Print.
all wellness.
or give me any other side
Eating right,
effects like some over
Webmd.com. Causes of the
Common Cold, n. d. Web. 15
and taking care
the counter medicines
November 2014
of our bodies
can. The Mayo clinic did