Tips to Stay Healthy In The Winter Months

Patterson is the Founder of Chicago Integrated Health. PHOTO PROVIDED BY TASSI COMMUNICATIONS.
Patterson is the Founder of Chicago Integrated Health. PHOTO PROVIDED BY TASSI COMMUNICATIONS.

Tips to Stay Healthy In The Winter Months

By Tia Carol Jones

Iris Patterson launched Chicago Integrated Health in 2020, with the goal to combat lifestyle diseases with a holistic approach. Patterson credits health, wellness and nutrition with saving her life. A few years ago, she was diagnosed with bipolar depression and used stress management, fitness and eating to heal and to help her. In 2023, she was diagnosed with cancer and said that her focus on holistic health, diet, exercise and prioritizing her mental health helped her get through chemotherapy treatment.

“Living a healthy lifestyle doesn’t make you invincible, but it does prepare your body to fight with and fight for you when you need it most,” Iris said in a statement. “This experience has reinforced the importance of caring for my body and motivated me to help even more people do the same.”

According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, respiratory illnesses including cold, flu, Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) and COVID-19 are more common in the winter months. Patterson said that with these respiratory illnesses going around and those with a low immune system, it is easy to contact those illnesses.

One thing she said that can affect the immune system is not getting enough sleep. According to Charlene Gamaldo, M.D., of Johns Hopkins Center for Sleep at Johns Hopkins Howard County Medical Center, everyone should get seven to eight hours of sleep to feel rested. She suggests going to bed and waking up at a regular time, avoiding caffeine after noon, avoiding alcohol close to bedtime and avoiding naps later than 4 p.m. 

With the sun setting earlier in the winter months, it can cause some people to experience Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). Patterson said that can also affect your sleep, which can affect your immune system, which can also put a person at risk for respiratory illnesses. She recommends people who are experiencing SAD use a light therapy lamp. She said it can replicate what sun does for people.

Patterson recommends people should get more Vitamin C into their diet to prepare for the winter months. She did say that people who take certain kinds of diabetes medication cannot consume grapefruit. Another suggestion is to take cod liver oil. She said when she was younger, her grandmother would give her cod liver oil and she only experienced getting respiratory illnesses when she stopped taking it. 

Patterson said it is important for people to stay up to date on their vaccines. Vaccinations are available for COVID-19, flu and RSV. To find out where to get COVID-19 and flu vaccinations, people in Chicago can visit Chicago.gov/COVIDVax. She said in addition to Pfizer and Moderna, there is a Novavax COVID-19 vaccine that is protein-based. She said having options for vaccines can help people decide which vaccination is the best one for them. 

Patterson said that engaging in physical activity is great for heart health and it can also contribute to an immune system boost. Going outside, taking a light walk in the sun, which can help people get Vitamin D in their system, can help people stay healthy.

“We just want to do all that we can to keep our bodies moving and as healthy as possible. When we start to become sedentary and things start to slow down, we feel it in other ways and the first way we feel it is we get a little cough and we start to feel sluggish and before we know it, our nose starts running,” she said. “You find that those who are more active, those are the ones who are less at risk of getting a virus.”

Patterson said that one of the ways to prioritize mental health is by eliminating stress in their life. She recommends talk therapy and said that it is extremely beneficial, because it can help people release stress. 

For more information about Chicago Integrated Health, visit integratedhealthchicago.com.


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