2023 will be a time to think differently about health, wellness, disease and even contagion as our great awakening unfolds.
The health of your terrain is a determinant of your vulnerability to illness. Whether it’s cold and flu or autoimmune conditions and cancer, how you eat, live, your outlook on life, and your toxic exposures all play a part.
What will you do to care for your terrain in the New Year?
First, think about the foods you’re choosing. Are they processed, sugar-laden, full of additives, preservatives and emulsifiers? How about pesticides, herbicides, hormones and antibiotics? These exposures have real consequences to your microbiome and health.
Next, think about the toxic exposures in your immediate environment. Are there any parabens and phthalates in your moisturizer and other personal grooming products? How about the triclosan in your anti-bacterial soaps and hand washes? And it’s likely your use of disinfectants and hand sanitizers has increased exponentially over these past couple years. Regular use of hand sanitizer destroys the beneficial microbiota on your skin, and the agents used in the antibacterial soap are known to be carcinogenic and cause antibiotic resistance. The greatest source of aluminum toxicity is not coming from your cookware, it’s coming from your antiperspirant. Use lipstick? A definitive source of lead.
The Bisphenol-A (BPA) in your plastic containers is ubiquitous in the environment. And those microwave safe containers which are “BPA free” have been replaced with another type of Bisphenol—F or S, not much better. Are you addicted to your smart phone? How about social media—which is being implicated in anxiety and depression, especially among young people.
Everyone is scared of germs and viruses but no one is talking about the elephant in the room—our toxic exposures: food choices, adulterated water, air pollution, non-native EMF exposure, chronic stress, overuse of pharmaceuticals, lack of adequate sleep and healthy exercise, and toxic emotions. Perpetual fear is toxic. So is unhealed trauma. Poor sleep and poor gut health contribute to low resistance and lack of resilience.
Fear is not the answer. The good news is, how you choose to live is completely up to you! In this Brave New Year, focus on your TERRAIN.
(Read Dr. Hoffman’s special report: Immunity Reset: A Personalized Plan to Pandemic-Proof Your Body and Build Resilience)
To your health!
Leyla Muedin, MS, RD, CDN
