Too much ice cream over summer? Too much rosé? Too many BBQs? Feeling sluggish in your energy, your mind, your bowels and your skin? September’s the perfect time to put some good intentions into practice to set you up for autumn and winter

Refocus, rebalance and restore vitality

The Hub’s naturopathic nutritionist Rhi Hepple gives you five simple ways to get your health on track.

Gut flora Have you been damaging your gut flora? Sugar, alcohol and travelling can all take their toll on our friendly bacteria buddies that support our digestion so taking a course of good probiotics this month will help to restore bowel function, improve mood and boost your immunity. SPECIAL OFFER: That’s why we’re offering 20% off our For Babies and Children and For Every Day probiotics for the month of September.
Bowel function Have your bowels become a bit sluggish? Often the stress of travelling and the dehydrating effect of flying can scupper our regular rhythm. Increase the fibre in your diet by eating plenty of leafy greens, legumes, beans, pulses, nuts and seeds, especially chia and linseeds.
Hydration Flights are known to be dehydrating. We notice this in our skin but did you know how utterly sapping flying is? It is said that in a 10-hour flight men can lose up to two litres of water and women around 1.6 litres. Spending time in an environment that is lacking in oxygen can be very dehydrating to the body due to increased respiration. Even just a 1- 2% decrease in your hydration levels can affect your energy and cognitive function. So focus on drinking plenty of water and herbal teas and increasing water-rich foods such as cucumber, watermelon, lettuce, cantaloupe melon, strawberries, tomatoes and orange. STAR BUY: Check out our new BeWater bottles, the inspiration to stay properly hydrated.
Alkalise Alcohol, sugar, processed foods, red meat, gluten and dairy are all acidic and if you’ve been having too much of these and not enough greens then your pH is likely to be out of balance. An acidic pH puts a stress on the body as well as long term increasing inflammation. Stepping up with leafy greens, lemon or lime juice, watermelons, papaya, mango, asparagus, parsley, spinach and broccoli can all help to alkalise. But also adding in some alkalising support to your diet such as apple cider vinegar, a pinch of bicarbonate of soda to your glass of water or spirulina, and drinking green juices can all help to restore an alkaline pH.
Creating good habits It’s all too easy to slip back into some old habits and wherever you are in your health journey focusing on creating one new habit this month will improve your health. So pick one, or pick two or do all of them, whichever you choose you will see the benefits:

Make sure you eat 5 veg and 3 fruit a day
Focus on one meal a day that needs to be healthier, whether it’s ditching the croissant for a smoothie or swapping your sandwich for a salad
Increase the amount of water you drink
Swap a caffeinated drink to a decaf
Drink more herbal teas
Don’t eat late at night
Avoid sugary snacks
Stop drinking fizzy drinks
Banish the beige foods and bring in plenty of https://www.thenaturalhealthhub.co.uk/the-team/rhi-hepple/colourful foods
Swap white for wholegrain or brown
Eat more nuts and seeds
Go to bed earlier
Give yourself a break from your phone, tablet or computer two hours before bed

To book an appointment with Rhi and reap the benefit of all her nutritional knowledge and advice, click here

Posted in Nutrition