can you avoid getting a cold? · stay home if you can, and avoid travel and crowds. avoid sharing...

CAN YOU AVOID GETTING A COLD?T he only way to keep from catching a cold is to avoid contact with anyone who

may be infected with a cold virus — that’s usually impossible because symptoms may not yet have appeared in many infected people. You can’t avoid colds by staying warm, wearing a hat, keeping away from drafts or exercising regularly. You may do all those things and still get a cold if you come into contact with a cold virus. The best way to avoid colds is to stay as healthy as possible by eating well, getting enough exercise and sleep, and limiting contact with infected people, if possible. In addition, don’t smoke or use tobacco products. The following tips can also help you avoid colds:

Can You Avoid Getting a Cold? 1 – 2

Healthier Holiday Eating and Drinking 3 – 4

Reducing Holiday Stress 5 – 6

Carrot Soup Recipe 7

IN THIS ISSUE:

Q4 HEALTH NEWSLETTER | 2014

© 2014 Ceridian Corporation. All rights reserved.

Wash your hands frequently. You may be able to prevent some viruses from reaching your eyes, nose or mouth by washing your hands several times a day. Use hot water and plenty of soap, and rub your hands for at least 15 seconds before rinsing. If you can’t wash your hands when you need to, use alcohol-based hand sanitizer to decrease your risk of infection. Consider keeping hand sanitizer at your workstation and using it before drinking, eating or even working at your computer.

Keep your hands away from your face. This may prevent viruses from entering your body. Don’t rub your eyes, which can be vulnerable to infection.

To lower the risk of infecting others, turn away from them when you cough or sneeze, and always sneeze or cough into a tissue and throw it away immediately. Keep tissues at your desk at work and close at hand in your home. If you don’t have a tissue, sneeze or cough into the crook of your arm instead of your hands. Wash or sanitize your hands each time you blow your nose. →

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Avoid close contact with people who are sick. If you are sick, stay home if you can, and avoid travel and crowds.

Avoid sharing cups, glasses, eating utensils and towels with family members. This is especially important if someone tin your family already has a cold or the flu.

Put your toothbrush into the dishwasher for sanitizing once a week. This will help prevent germs from spreading around your home.

Clean the mouthpieces of your phones at home and at work on a regular basis.

Wipe your desk with a disinfecting cloth once a week to remove germs. Wiping doorknobs and sinks with disinfectant (or spraying with disinfectant spray) each night before bed will also help to keep germs away.


These steps may reduce your exposure to the viruses that cause colds and flu, but they probably won’t keep you from getting sick. If you do get a cold or the flu, follow the advice above and give yourself time to recover from your illness.

Healthy eating habits will help you avoid gaining weight over the holidays. If you

find yourself eating more during a party, for instance, eat a little lighter in the days following the party, and make an effort to crank up your exercise routine. Remember that it’s not so much the activities between November and January that have the most impact on your weight and health as it is the routines you follow January through November. →

HEALTHIER HOLIDAY EATING AND DRINKING


Snack before you

go to a holiday

party or dinner —

ideally, on protein

and fiber, such as

lean meat, fruit or

peanut butter. A

pre-party snack

can take the edge

off hunger and

help you to stay

in control.




Stick to your regular meals. Keep eating regular meals (don’t skip any), including the recommended five daily servings of fruits and vegetables.

Rest up. Take a nap before attending an evening party. If you arrive exhausted from a busy day, you’ll overeat to restore energy.

Snack! Snack before you go to a holiday party or dinner — ideally, on protein and fiber, such as lean meat, fruit or peanut butter. A pre-party snack can take the edge off hunger and help you to stay in control.

Look over the food table before picking anything up. Once you’ve made your choices, don’t be sidetracked. Otherwise, you’ll be picking “a little here, a little there,” and losing track of how much you’re eating.

At holiday dinners, fill half your plate with fruits and vegetables and divide the other half between grains and protein. Maintaining these proportions will help you feel full and will keep you from overindulging on holiday desserts. For other tips on what to eat, visit ChooseMyPlate at (http://www.choosemyplate.gov). After your plate is full, move away from the food table to reduce the temptation to keep eating after you no longer feel hungry.

Pace yourself. If you’re doing any party-hopping or same-day holiday visiting, eat one meal in stages. Limit yourself to the main course at one gathering and dessert at the next.

Indulge in the treats you love. Part of the magic of the holidays lies in enjoying something special, including once-a-year holiday foods. Take time to enjoy your treats; when you eat slowly and savor food, you’re satisfied with less. And if you deny yourself all treats, you’re more likely to overindulge elsewhere.

Choose healthy snacks. Limit yourself to snacks like cut-up vegetables and yogurt. Pass on the cheese platter and mini quiches.

“Budget” your food choices. If you must overindulge on stuffing and mashed potatoes, skip the bread and butter.

Limit or avoid alcohol. Alcohol is a depressant and can add to feelings of stress. And if you drink too close to bedtime, it can interfere with your sleep. An easy way to limit alcohol consumption is to make your first drink non-alcoholic and then follow any alcoholic drink with a non-alcoholic one, such as sparkling water.

Be mindful of the “triple whammy” that alcohol provides. Alcohol can make you hungry and weaken your ability to say no to further overindulgence, and alcohol also significantly interferes with your body’s ability to burn fat.

Remember that drinks have calories, too. If you’re trying to lose weight, avoid high-calorie drinks like eggnog, punch, beer and soda. Best bets: sparkling water, juice on the rocks, spritzers and light beer.


Some traditions

may take up a

lot of time long

after they have

lost their meaning

for you or your

family. Think

about whether

this is a good time

to replace those

traditions with

ones that would fit

your needs better.

Holidays can be an opportunity to celebrate the values you cherish and the people you

love. But they can also add to your stress. At a traditionally joyous time of year, you may have many extra tasks and events that need to be squeezed into an already tight schedule. You might find yourself trying to do the impossible in a short amount of time, on a limited budget and with conflicting demands pulling you in different directions. Here are some ways to ease the pressures on yourself and others in your household.

Set realistic expectations. Ask yourself what you want the holiday to be or to mean. What part of it matters most to you? If sharing time with family is most important, why not skip shopping and spend a day sledding or a few hours at a free holiday concert with your children, nieces or nephews? If you plan to have people over for a meal, say “yes” when others ask if they can bring something. Or make the main course and ask guests to contribute the rest. Including your guests in the preparation will make them feel part of the celebration.

Prioritize. Make a list of all the things you need to do and decide which ones are the most important. Do your top priorities first and the rest if you have time. You may not get to everything on the list but if you do the important things, the rest probably won’t matter. Consider delegating some of the tasks to others.

Take advantage of new tools that can reduce holiday stress. Look into free or low-cost apps or software for your smartphone or computer that will make it easier to coordinate your tasks. Some apps help you organize your gift and shopping lists. Others bundle holiday stories or songs for children. Search online using terms such as “free holiday apps” to see what’s available.

Rethink your traditions. Some traditions may take up a lot of time long after they have lost their meaning for you or your family. Think about whether this is a good time to replace those traditions with ones that would fit your needs better.

REDUCING HOLIDAY STRESS

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Set a realistic budget and stick to it. Plan for an increase in spending if meals, gifts and entertainment are part of the holiday. Know how much you can spend before you go shopping or before you decide how many people to invite for a holiday meal. This will keep you from spending more than you should.

Pare down your gift list. Ask yourself if you could give fewer or less expensive gifts without hurting anyone’s feelings. Could you and your relatives agree to draw names and give gifts to only one or two people instead of everybody? Give homemade coupons or “I.O.U.s” that people can redeem after the holidays? Or could you set limits or rough guidelines for the cost of gifts so relatives don’t feel pressured to overspend? Some families enjoy making homemade gifts, such as salad dressing, simple beaded jewelry, or a CD or DVD of favorite songs.

Set differences aside. Holidays may bring together family members who, at other times of the year, are happier apart. So, it’s often best to avoid potentially heated discussion topics or save them for another time. And remember that you can decide whom you want to spend the holiday with and how much time you want to spend together. A holiday gathering is about getting along with people to the best of your ability, not about putting yourself in anxiety-producing or “loaded” situations.

Get emotional support. If you miss people who have passed away or relatives who can’t be there to celebrate, reach out to friends or family who can give you emotional support. If the people close to you can’t provide support, consider talking with a therapist or other counselor who can help, such as a spiritual adviser.

Remember that families come in all shapes and sizes. If you have always wanted that big family but have few family members living nearby, expand your family for the holiday to include people who might be alone. Or if you find a big family gathering too overwhelming, invite a few close relatives rather than going to or having a big family gathering yourself. Talk with your partner and family about what you would like to try differently this year. They may feel as you do or may understand your needs and want to help you meet them.

Plan ahead for holiday caregiving responsibilities. Talk early in the season with older relatives or other family members you care for about whether they have special holiday wishes or needs so you’ll have time to accommodate them. If you have questions about how to ease the stress of holiday caregiving and would like ideas from a supportive community, join the Caregiver Online Group on the site for the Family Caregiver Alliance (http://www.caregiver.org).

Be a kid again. Take some time to play and just enjoy the scenery. Notice people’s decorations and the yummy smells. Take a nature walk, go skating, try some deep-breathing exercises -- whatever helps you relax for a while.

Get plenty of rest and exercise. It’s easy to forget to do the things that keep you healthy when you have so much to do. Keeping to your regular sleeping and exercise routines will give you the energy to do everything you need to do, and it will keep some normalcy in your life.

Remember that other people are also dealing with the stress and pressure of holidays. If you are in a traffic jam at the mall, you’re one of many people trying to get everything done to make their celebrations run as smoothly as possible. Don’t take the difficulty of finding parking spaces personally.


INGREDIENTS

3 tbs olive oil

1 ½ pounds carrots (6–7 large carrots) peeled and diced

2 cups chopped onion

2 cloves garlic, chopped

2 cups chicken or vegetable stock

2 cups water

Salt and pepper to taste

PREPARATION

Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat and add carrots and onions, stirring occasionally until the onions soften (about 5–8 minutes). Add stock and water, bring to a boil. Then, turn heat down, cover and simmer for 20 minutes until carrots are soft. Cool slightly, then working in small batches, puree the soup in a blender. Return to pot and add salt and pepper to taste. Serves 4–5.

CARROT SOUP RECIPEThis healthy, delicious soup is less than 200 calories per serving and

makes a perfect light winter meal. It’s easy to “customize” with your favorite seasonings — add a teaspoon of cumin or curry powder, or a pinch of ginger when you’re sautéing the carrots and onions, or add a garnish of toasted pumpkin seeds, chopped parsley, cilantro or chives, or a spoonful of plain yogurt.

© 2014 Ceridian Corporation. All rights reserved. For more information visit LifeBalance.net | 7

can you avoid getting a cold? · stay home if you can, and avoid travel and crowds. avoid sharing...

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