Autumn Poem and more

There are wonderful poems about autumn moods and colours, but Jack Prelutsky’s lines from a classroom have a slant many youngsters will share:

The leaves are yellow, red and brown,
A shower sprinkles softly down
The air is fragrant, crisp and cool,
And once again, I’m stuck in school.

So it’s back to lunchboxes, homework and timetables, and autumn can be a bittersweet time as the freedom of warmer days becomes a memory. But in many ways the change of season is a better time to take stock than the New Year, and a good opportunity to plan for new approaches and fresh schedules.

A well chosen diet to ward off problems is key to maintaining good health. Some of my favorite fresh seasonal dishes are creamy butternut squash or celeriac soup, roasted root vegetables and baked sweet potatoes. Head for your nearest farmers’ market for kale, cabbage, carrots and brassicas fresh from the fields as you’d seldom find in a supermarket.

Bear in mind the immune-boosting properties of onions and garlic. A cut clove of garlic, the world’s most widely used medicinal herb, rubbed on the sole of a foot can help break up mucus, and is antifungal, antiviral and antibacterial (but not advised for anyone on blood thinners).

Reishi mushrooms in capsule form are rapidly gaining popularity as their immune-boosting beta glucans are especially effective against chest infections. Most people now are aware of echinacea’s benefits for immunity, and the importance of probiotics for a healthy immune system from birth on is firmly established.

No sun and shorter daylight hours? Remember Vitamin D without which our mental as well as our physical health would suffer, available in spray as well as capsule form, for babies, children and adults.

Besides their fresh produce, a good reason to shop in farmers’ markets is to avoid the plethora of plastic which enfolds most of what we find in supermarkets. Check out www.repak.ie for facts and figures.

Did you realize that part of the “paper” cup of your takeaway coffee will outlive you due to its plastic lining? Your plastic–handled toothbrush will also reach a centenary before you do. Visit Health Stores Ireland shops for reusable cups to hand to your barista, choose bamboo toothbrushes, detergents in refillable containers, and lots of other eco-friendly options.

Happy to oblige!