A warm hello to all readers, it is really good to connect with you again and share some updates since my previous articles in the summer.
Reflexology for Wellbeing
Firstly it is wonderful to be practicing Reflexology again since the lifting of restrictions in mid July, connecting with and supporting existing as well as new clients, both mobile and at my treatment room in Bollington.
Whilst everyone’s response to Reflexology is totally individual, a common response found with many clients, after such a long period of lockdown, has been release of tension that has built up in the chest/upper back, identified by the release of a good click along the thoracic vertebrae reflex points. Since nerves emanate from the length of the spine to serve the rest of the body, any release here will help to promote relaxation. By reducing stress, this reduces inflammation in the body, improving mood and sleep and reducing anxiety, very important for helping you to maintain optimal health, wellbeing and resilience.
Covid Secure
Please be assured that my practice is Covid secure. Wearing masks and distancing is possible since the treatment is on the feet. There is plenty of time between clients to ensure good room ventilation, hand washing and wiping of surfaces. I have a QR code that can be scanned for those with the app and I have been tested weekly over the last month, moving to monthly for a year, as part of the Office of National Statistics survey.
WiseHealthOnline (WHO)
For those needing to isolate or still wishing to take a more cautious approach, online and phone consultations are available for diet and lifestyle advice, to optimise immune resilience and wellbeing and help navigate these uncertain times.
Please hop over to my WiseHealthOnline (the alternative WHO) facebook group, for information and tips, as well as emerging research, aimed towards improving our understanding and health, including various genetic and lifestyle studies you can participate in.
Vitamin D
One very important topic relevant to Macclesfield and the North of England, that WiseHealthOnline covers is emerging news and research on vitamin D for immune resilience and improved covid outcomes. I wrote about this just before lockdown in March and again in the July LPM and followed this up with a letter to David Rutley in September requesting that he raise this in Parliament urgently, since the Government, NICE and PHE did not recognise its benefits beyond bone health and their studies in the summer were inconclusive. I am delighted that the following week, Vitamin D was raised in parliament by Dr Rupa Huq MP for Ealing who was joined by David Davis MP the following week, presenting the overwhelming evidence and many letters from medical professionals for Vitamin D and improved covid outcomes to Matt Hancock. This resulted in Mr Hancock making a U turn this week in his views of Vitamin D and agreeing to run a campaign of its benefits against covid. This is a very promising result for public health and confidence, as well as reducing the burden on the NHS, since it has been shown to reduce covid ICU admissions significantly from 50% to 2% of patients in one of the recent studies conducted in Spain.
Vitamin D is a very inexpensive, simple, safe and effective supplement, within the max dose of 100ug a day. We make vitamin D from sunshine on our skin and as sunlight levels reduce as the days get shorter, this supplement is more important than ever. Levels of Vitamin D may account for the recent increased case numbers in the north, since the sunlight levels and hence vitamin D levels are lower the further north we live, particularly north of the Midlands. This may also explain why we are more prone in winter months to flu since vitamin D prevents respiratory infections. It may also help explain seasonal affective disorder, since vitamin D can help alleviate depression in the winter months and explains why BAME groups are more prone to covid since their requirement for vitamin D is greater.
Let there be light!
Vitamin D and the coronavirus are literally shining a light on a truly preventative holistic approach to our health, since they highlight the important connection we have with nature and our environment, in this case sunlight and how our indoor lifestyles and genetics affect us. Thankfully, even if we cannot jet off to the sun, we are able to take supplements to correct this requirement we have for adequate vitamin D levels.
Coronavit Clinical Trial Opportunity
For anyone not already taking a high dose vitamin D, there is now a U.K based, charity funded, vitamin D clinical trial currently looking for 5,500 volunteers, to take part over 6 months. Participants will be able to have their baseline vitamin D levels tested and if low, be given a 6 month supply of vitamin D to assess how this affects covid outcomes. The study is a collaboration between academic groups across the U.K and run by Queen Mary University. For those not eligible for the study, they are also running a 5 year “Covidence” study assessing lifestyle factors in relation to outcomes. To register interest, the study team can be contacted by email : coronavit@qmul.ac.uk
I wish you and your families well and if you would like a good quality vitamin D supplement with 10% discount or for an initial no obligation holistic consultation, please get in touch with me quoting LPM, via the contact details provided.
Article written by Tracy Mills for Local People
Magazine issue Nov 2020. Tracy is a full time
Reflexologist & holistic therapist registered with
Association of Reflexologists (AOR) and trained
with the Institute of Functional Medicine (IFM)
offering natural preventative lifestyle approaches
for optimal wellbeing. She can also be found on the
Professional Standards Agency register for referrals
from other healthcare professionals including G.Ps