Easy Winter Wellness Tips for Families

We are about to roll into the grey months of winter that beckon us to stay inside and curl up by the fire. I’m sharing some easy winter wellness tips for families to help you stay healthy this season!

Whether you are a single homemaker, keeping your own home or apartment. Or, you are a mother of many kiddos, you want to stay healthy.

I like to be a bit proactive when it comes to winter wellness in our home.

The last thing I want is to have the entire house come down with something that wipes us all out.

There is no way to completely avoid all sickness, but supporting our bodies and being proactive is a way to help boost our immune system so that it can fight off whatever ails us.

A wise woman looks after the affairs of her home. While much of that means the cooking, cleaning, and laundry that happens within the home, keeping everyone healthy is important, too.

We have a fairly large family and a limited budget, so I do what I can to help our bodies stay healthy.

Boosting the immune system without spending a ton of money

As homemakers, we have to do what we can with the resources we have.

Whether we are talking about clothing, cleaning supplies, food options, or supplements, we have to work within our budget constraints.

One way I make things work for our family is by purchasing high quality supplements, but halving the dose each person gets.

It doesn’t do us any good if we are using poor quality supplements. That doesn’t help our immune systems.

So, using high quality vitamins at a lower dose is what we do. Each of us get a small boost at a fraction of the cost.

Daily Winter Wellness Supplements

In the summer, we don’t keep up with our supplements. I continue to purchase supplements throughout the year to help stock my supplement pantry.

When the weather is nice and the sun is out we spend a good deal of time outside, which helps our immune systems naturally.

Once October rolls around, I begin to start up our vitamin regimen again to get our immune system built up.

Every morning, supplements get set out in individual bowls for each of the kiddos. They take their vitamins right after breakfast.

I keep things simple and try to give them supplements that will give them the most bang for my buck. A lot of these supplements have multiple vitamins and minerals in them which I love.

Immunity Gummy

My kids love the Raspberry Lemonade gummy and they each get one gummy every morning.

This supplement is packed with zinc, elderberry, and Vitamin C.

Elderberry Chewables

I know several have tried the liquid drops and their kids didn’t love them, but these elderberry chewables are AMAZING.

They taste great and give the added support that comes from elderberries.

I don’t make my own elderberry syrup, so this supplement is a great way to give my kids an immune boost without me having to make the syrup.

Vitamin D and Vitamin C Gummy

Both Vitamin D and Vitamin C are very important for the immune system.

When we aren’t in the sun, we lose vital amounts of these vitamins, so we need to supplement them.

These Vitamin D and Vitamin C gummies are delicious and great ways to get them into your kiddos.

My kids take one each every morning.

Apple Cider Vinegar Gummy

This is the best way to get the benefits of apple cider vinegar into your kiddos.

I have a detox tea that I drink to support my immune system, but my kids won’t choke down apple cider vinegar, so I give them one gummy every morning.

Not only is apple cider vinegar good for immune support, it has also been said to help with blood sugar issues.

Probiotic

What happens in the gut is so important, which is why I try to make as many things with sourdough.

Our gut impacts our immune system in so many ways, so giving your kids a high quality probiotic is a great place to start to support them.

This is the place I would begin if I could only give my kids one supplement. That’s how important it is.

How many vitamins do my kids take?

I give each of my kids these vitamins. They get one of each, regardless of whether the dosage says to give more.

If we could afford to do the actual dosage, we would. But, alas, we have to do what we can, so one vitamin of each is what I do.

My kids take one of each of these every morning:

• Immunity gummy
• Elderberry chewable
• Probiotic
• Vitamin C gummy
• Vitamin D gummy
• Apply Cider Gummy

There are other ways to help support their little bodies, too.

What do you do when sickness sets in?

We all do what we can to keep sickness at bay, but it’s inevitable, we will all get sick at some point.

When you notice signs of sickness, maybe a cough or runny nose, you can use a few things that you had tucked away for a rainy day.

Increase Healthy Herbs in cooking

• Garlic- antioxidant rich and immune supporting
• Turmeric- anti-inflammatory and antioxidant
• Ginger- antioxidant

Each of these herbs can be added in large amounts to soups, which are what you want to eat when you’re under the weather anyway.

Bone Broth

Bone broth is easy to make, but it is also available at grocery stores.

This is a great thing to have on hand so you can warm it up and sip it as needed.

It is full of minerals, vitamins, and amino acids that help your body.

Bone broth is made by simmering bones in a large stock pot, typically of a chicken, in water with herbs and veggies for 12+ hours.

You then strain off the liquid, toss the bones and veggies, and reserve the liquid for soups or broths.

The bone broth is full of health benefits and is great to support your body during the winter months.

I like to add a lot of turmeric, garlic, salt, and pepper to mine, plus, a splash of apple cider vinegar.

You can also use supplements that will help with the healing of the body.

Good Nutrition

Offering foods that are high in nutrient content is a great way to help their bodies.

There will always be gaps in their nutrition, which is why we do supplements, but you can’t forget about good foods.

Eliminate Sugars

Reducing processed sugars and other foods can help keep inflammation down within their bodies.

Kids tend to sleep better when they haven’t eaten a ton of sugar, too!

This is a quick, non-expensive way to help both your body and your kids’ bodies.

Drink Water

Our kids are constantly drinking water. I am always telling them to grab a drink.

It’s like a habit at this point.

Water flushes out their bodies and helps to get rid of the yucky stuff. Plus, it helps their systems to work better.

Proper Sleep

Another great way to support the immune system is by getting proper sleep.

I shared our evening routine several months ago and going to bed at a good time helps us to get good sleep.

Having a rhythm helps prepare our bodies for rest. If you have a kiddo that doesn’t sleep well, consider the Melatonin Chewable from Mary Ruth’s.

Fresh Air

Both my kids and I like to get fresh air every day.

I can tell it impacts not only our health, but our mood.

Washing Hands

This is basic hygiene 101, but it’s worth mentioning. Washing hands with a good soap that doesn’t strip your skin is important.

Covering coughs and sneezes inside shirts or elbows is another good habit to go along with hand washing.

Diffusing Oils

Diffusing high quality oils helps with winter wellness.

I use Young Living oils and have for years. Do your research and use what you feel comfortable with.

This is another area where I would recommend buying super high quality oils and using less if budget is an issue.

I shared several of the best diffusers, in my opinion, if you are interested.

Some of my top recommended oils for winter are:

• Thieves– We diffuse this daily to help with air quality
• R.C.– This is a wonderful oil for respiratory care
• Raven– A hard-hitting oil to diffuse in small amounts for respiratory support
• Frankincense– One of my favorite oils that is gentle and powerful. I roll this on the bottoms of my kids’ feet
• Thieves Chest Rub– This is a new product that I love and use any time there are coughs or sniffles in our home

Half of the battle with winter wellness is to add in the good and keep out the bad.

Using good quality oils only adds benefits. If you choose to use budget oils, you risk adding in some unwanted “extras” when diffusing.

Winter Wellness made simple

I hope those tips helped. Staying healthy doesn’t have to be complicated.

No matter the budget, you can do small things to help support you and your family.

All of these tips have been used in our home from the moment our first child was born at one point or another.

We started small with simple hygiene practices and grew our wellness arsenal from there.