Spend Time Outdoors
Being outside in the fresh air and spending time appreciating nature is great for our mental health, but it also helps bolster our immune health too.
To date, it’s not fully understood why nature and the great outdoors supports good immunity. But there are numerous hypotheses put forward. One of them is that nature helps to switch on the ‘rest and digest’ parasympathetic nervous system. (This is in stark contrast to the effects of stress, which switches on the ‘fight or flight’ nervous system, which can cause the immune system to effectively – and temporarily – shut down.)
Rest and digest is a relaxed state, that can be brought on by relaxing or doing something calming, such as spending time in nature. When this part of the nervous system is switched on, the body can spend time repairing itself and building up the immune system.
So try to build time outside into your everyday routine. Be that your morning coffee in the garden, walking to work or spending lunchtime in the park. (But keep in mind the current social distancing rules.)
