Woman’s Weekly UK – 23 July 2019

health
move,’ says
registered nutritionist
Rhiannon Lambert. ‘So, too,
is adding pulses and beans,
and reducing saturated fat.’

HEALTH

Sophrology

Outdoor wellness

CBD oil

Why? Research by

booking.com shows demand

for wellness holidays has

doubled from one in 10 in

2017, to one in five last year,

while the numbers climbing

UK peaks has rocketed so fast,

there are fears of erosion. And

the garden designed by the

Duchess of Cambridge at this

year’s Chelsea Flower Show

also captured the ‘green’ vibe.

GP Dr Melanie Wynne-

Jones says outdoor exercise

is important. ‘You reap the

physical and mental benefits

of activity while getting the

“green” effect – a calming of

the senses which comes from

being in nature.’

Natural daylight helps

regulate your sleep cycle and

sunlight on unprotected skin

makes essential vitamin D –

just make sure you don’t burn.

How? Try Parkrun

(parkrun.org.uk), Saturday

morning, free, timed 5km

runs in parks throughout the

UK. They’re now prescribed

by local GPs to help with

mild depression and anxiety

issues. Walk them if you’re

not a runner. Do some

gardening, cycle or walk.

Find less-travelled routes

at ramblers.org.uk or

walking-routes.co.uk.

during times of stress, the

mind and body will naturally

trigger this response to bring

you back to a calmer, more

balanced state.’

It takes just 10 minutes

of practice each day.

How? Books, CDs and

online courses are available.

Dominique’s book The

Life-Changing Power of

Sophrology is

published by

Yellow Kite

(£9.96) and she

launched an

online course

• be-sophro.com


• this summer.

Why? The benefits of

meditation, mindfulness

and yoga are all well

documented, and they blend

together in sophrology,

a new moving meditation

technique from Switzerland.

‘It’s designed to bring you

into the “alpha brain wave”

state,‘ says sophrologist,

Dominique Antiglio. ‘In this

state, the body achieves

complete relaxation, yet the

mind is clear and fully alert.

Over time, particularly

Why? Cannabinoid (CBD)

is a natural extract of the hemp

plant. Prof Mike Barnes, a

consultant neurologist, says

there are four conditions where

there’s evidence of its benefits.

‘Chronic pain, as a result of

cancer, an accident or arthritis,

for example,’ he says. ‘It can

help with spasticity after stroke

or injury; with anxiety; and with

nausea or vomiting, for example

as a side effect of chemo.’

How? Pure CBD is

available as oil and

supplements and is legal to

buy in the UK – find it in

health food shops and online.

The hemp plant, from

which it’s extracted, has very

small traces of THC – the

ingredient in cannabis which

has ‘psychoactive’ effects so it

doesn’t produce a high but is

believed to have a relaxing

effect. If you think it may help

you, discuss it fully with your

GP before going ahead.

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