Top Tech For Supporting Seasonal Change

This might seem a slightly odd spotlight to shine when our focus here at Natural Nourishment is all about the natural healthful practises, but to confirm what we are doing here is offering insight as to how we use modern advancements to support our innate wellbeing.

And with that waffling introduction over onwards we spring!

The biggest things we tend to encounter as the seasons switch are concerns over sleep, energy & immunity. Which makes total sense when you look at how our body responds to its environment. Sleep & energy levels are inextricably linked to light levels, so shorter days with darker mornings & evenings, these all impact how we feel. Temperature also plays a huge part in the kinds of bugs we come into contact with, in addition to changing how we exercise, socialise & commune with each other. Oh & of course there is the less intense sunshine (if it does appear) + more layers of clothing which = low/no Vitamin D harnessed from the sun, & a move towards cooked, warming foods which means we don’t get as much Vitamin C. So just a few things to consider right?!

Now from a dietary perspective we can do plenty, but that’s actually not what we are here to discuss. Instead below I’ve popped in some things you may not have realised existed but could make all the difference as to how you experience the cooler climes this Autumn/Winter.

As always any questions do be in touch.

With healthy wishes,

Phoebe

LUMIE LIGHTS – this range of sunrise/sunset wake up clocks + their Halo lamp are hugely useful for overcoming that mental fatigue/sluggishness we can often suffer with.

By mimicking the natural light cycle of a longer day we sleep better, we then wake to light similar to the sun & this regulates the circadian rhythm. Cue better energy, less brain fog, deeper more consistent sleep & all the benefits that then boasts as a consequence.

• The Halo is more specifically related to those who suffer with low mood during the winter months (referred to as Seasonal Affective Disorder or SAD). Having this on your desk whilst working or just using on a daily basis can be transformative however.

We would also suggest checking your Vitamin D levels & supplementing at a slightly higher dosage than others might too as SAD is often linked to a lowered sensitivity but higher requirement for this vital nutrient.

SENSATE – a very cool piece of kit & 1 you’ll find a lot of our clinical clients using.

• This is designed to work on the autonomic nervous system (AKA your fight or flight response) which can become a little trigger happy when it has to ‘cope’ with the instability caused by that seasonal switch.
• You pop the pebble shaped device onto your chest & pair it with a soundscape from the supportive app. The vibrations at different intensities & frequencies actively downregulate the stress response, resolving issues with settling to sleep but also cumulatively changing the way the nervous system is triggered when stimuli come bounding in during the day.
• The code NATNOURISH will give 10% off all orders.

OURA RING – a piece of tracking kit hidden as a rather attractive item of jewellery!

• Now more information is not always better so we share this with a proviso that it is best not to check your sleep data on waking as this can dictate how you then interact with your day. For example even if you rose feeling fine but your data says it wasn’t an awesome sleep & suddenly you feel sluggish. Instead check in after lunch & analyse your data retrospectively.
• What the Oura will give is an in depth assessment of how your body is responding to burden & how your habits may be positively or negatively involved in this mechanism.
• Their new 3rd generation rings offer evenmore analytics including period prediction, daytime heart rate, restorative time required from different forms of exercise & others.
• We love to use these as a way of truly tailoring our advice to the individual, but even without our specialist guidance it is a fascinating experience to look into how your body is functioning, & how this can evolve over time. Exercise format is often a brilliant example – the timing, the type, the length, those options that suit you in mid-summer will most likely be wholly unsuitable in late Autumn. And that can then further change when other considerations are taken into account, such as the stage of a woman’s menstrual cycle.
• We can provide personal discount codes for these so if you would like 1 do be in touch.

OCUSHIELD – not really tech if we are being totally specific but rather a way of supporting yourself when using your tech!

• As noted at the start of this, light is 1 of the biggest players in our wake/sleep cycle (circadian rhythm) & blue light is the kind that will always stimulate our nervous systems to be on high alert. So when we start to get less natural light which is balancing, & then we add more over stimulating blue light from electronic devices we start to see a negative swing towards neurological hypersensitivity.
• The simple addition of blue light blocking shields to phones, computers & tablets + blue light blocking glasses helps to reset that negative flux however, & if this is the only element you do this winter/ongoing then my goodness you’ll have given your body 1 massive dose of TLC!
• Also just to note blue light is incredibly damaging to the eyes generally & with our tendency to working more on screens we want to prevent this being a concern wherever we can.

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