Let Betsy’s be your back-to-school health headquarters with these important tips to help make this upcoming school year the very best. Discover dorm room necessities, nutritional musts and simple exercises to manage stress for all ages below.

For the dorm room

Essential oils that are truly essential.

Spend much time in a dorm, and you’ll discover that scents to freshen those unique, dorm-room odors are a must. Many essential oils can provide this freshening power, along with having anti-bacterial properties. Be sure to have a quality ionic diffuser for proper diffusion. We carry a variety of these diffusers and many essential oils at our store.

Besides single oils, we also carry formulas like mental clarity or stress recovery for specific support that may be useful for college students attempting to do their best in a new environment.

Personal Care Without Harmful Chemicals

Personal care without the petrochemicals and endocrine-disruptors found in most shampoos, conditioners, lotions, and toothpastes is also very important to your child’s health, at any age. Avoid parabens and a host of other chemicals by choosing quality personal care products like the ones you’ll find at Betsy’s.

Protein Made Easy

College is a time when students often find it difficult to eat as they ought. A quality whey or plant protein on hand in the dorm could provide a great alternative to candy bars whenever the munchies strike. These proteins also provide support for muscle recovery from exercise as long as you consume them within one hour of completing that exercise, including a brisk walk.

 

Important Nutrition for all ages

Whether you make sure your diet is rich in these nutrients, or you supplement to make up for gaps in your diet, essential vitamins and minerals can make a big difference in a successful school year. Here are some key nutrients to include in your child’s nutrition plan, no matter his/her age.

Calcium

Even though we need to maintain healthy calcium levels throughout our lives, did you know that our bodies require all the calcium we need for strong bones by the time we reach our early 20s? After that, our bones are as strong as they are going to get, and our job becomes making sure they maintain their strength.

Calcium, then, and minerals like magnesium and phosphorous that are also important to bone health and mineral balance, are critical for the nutrition of children and young adults in their college years. Picky eaters and college students with busy schedules are especially susceptible to lacking sufficient calcium and minerals from what they eat and could benefit from supplements designed specifically for their age groups.

DHA

Omega imbalance in the body can lead to many health difficulties. DHA is the most prevalent omega in the brain and is touted for its support of concentration and brain health, making it a key nutrient for scholastic success. DHA alone or a fish oil rich in EPA and DHA may be of benefit, especially if your child’s diet does not include ample servings of Omega 3 sources such as fish and many plants.

MVMs

Because so many of us fail to obtain all the essential vitamins and minerals we need from what we eat, multivitamin and mineral formulas can be very helpful to fill nutritional gaps, providing much-needed energy and metabolism support.

Probiotics

Antibiotics, exposure to toxins in the air, and even stress can deplete our bodies of the good bacteria known as probiotics that help us digest food, create vitamins and keep our intestines healthy.

Because 70% of our immune cells find their beginnings in our guts, our immune system relies heavily on the state of our probiotic profile.

Recent research also suggests a connection between the mind and gut that supports the theory of the importance of mood and brain health to intestinal health.

Specialized formulas for children of all ages and shelf-stable probiotics for easy use by college-age adults make this essential support available for all your young one’s needs.

De-stress with these simple steps

Just breathe.

A deep breath, the kind that you take through the nose down into the belly so that your stomach inflates like a balloon, can have a centering effect on the body and can do wonders to calm pre-test nerves or first-day-of-school jitters.

Get comfortable in a place with no distractions or right where you are at. Close your eyes if possible. Take a deep breath through your nose, letting the air fill your belly. Hold the breath and then slowly release the breath through your mouth as your stomach deflates.

It can help if you breathe in to a count of three to five, hold the breath for the same count, and then release the breath to a count that is two times more than the in-breath. For example, you might breathe in for five, hold the breath for five, and then release the breath for a count of seven.

Repeat this breathing three to five times and notice how much more relaxed you feel. The beauty of this exercise is that it can be done without anyone around you even realizing that is what you are doing if necessary.

Tighten and release.

Another quick exercise that can help release a lot of tension, excess energy, or stress is the tighten-and-release exercise.

Stand or sit comfortably. You may even do this exercise lying down. Take a deep breath, at the same time tightening your entire body.

Squeeze your eyes tight, scrunch your face, tighten your fists, draw your body into a ball, squeeze your buttocks.

Think of your body as a sponge and squeeze out all the excess energy as you would squeeze out excess water. Hold the squeeze for several seconds and then release everything, relaxing your body and taking several deep breaths.

Repeat this exercise at least three times and reap the benefit of its calming effects.

Tap away emotions.

EFT, emotional freedom technique, is a science that explores the connection to different parts of our bodies and our emotions, but you don’t have to be an expert in EFT to benefit from its concepts. Set aside five to fifteen minutes to tap away your emotional stress.

Begin at the very top of your head, using your fingertips. Move down to your temples and cheeks, your chin and the base of your throat. Tap the top of the back of your neck, where your brainstem is located.

Using cupped palms, tap your shoulders, the sides of your neck and your chest. Tap up and down each arm, including tapping your armpits. Tap your kidney and lower back, and up and down your legs. Tap your hips.

When you have tapped your entire body, sweep down your chest, arms and legs, from top to bottom, breathing in through your nose and out through your mouth. Take a moment to feel the differences in your body after tapping. Breathe comfortably.

You can tap to soothing music to help you with this exercise, including bouncing to the rhythm of the music as you proceed to tap.

 

At Betsy’s, we have answers to your product questions for this time of going back-to-school. Let us help you put together a care package for your kids that is truly healthy at your next visit.

In health,
Ramona

Betsy’s Note: This article is for educational purposes only. It is not intended to diagnose, treat, prevent or cure any disease. Consult your health care provider before beginning any supplement, especially if you have a medical condition or take medications. For example, calcium is contraindicated with certain medications and conditions, and omegas thin blood.