Influenza, COVID, gastro and colds. There’s so much illness in our community this winter.
You can give yourself the best protection against falling ill by ensuring your COVID vaccination is up-to-date, having your influenza vaccination, wearing a mask indoors and when you can’t physically distance, avoiding crowds and sanitising your hands.
You can also boost your immunity by getting enough sleep, exercising and eating a healthy diet.
According to Bass Coast Health Dietitian John Boich, eating warm dishes will make eating healthy easier as warm dishes appeal to your tastebuds and can be full of nutrition.
“Eating well during winter will help you stay well. Think of soups, stews, curries and casseroles,” he said.
“Remember to use a range of ingredients. These can be either fresh vegetables, frozen vegetables or dried ingredients such as legumes.
“Cooking in batches can help reduce your cooking workload, and many winter dishes such as stews and soups are suitable for freezing and reheating.
“Even in the colder months it’s important to keep up your fluid intake. You should generally aim for about eight cups of fluid a day.”
A range of nourishing winter recipes can be found on the Dietitians Australia website: https://dietitiansaustralia.org.au/health-advice/recipes
In the ‘Collections’ box, type ‘Winter’ to find recipes suitable for winter.