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Tea, Kona Coffee Travel Coupons, and More Ways To Beat The Winter Blues.

Monday, January 1, 2018
hotels.com discount codes 2018

Four Simple Ways You Can Beat The  Winter Blues

In many places, during the winter, the sun doesn’t shine as much as it usually does. That can bring on seasonal affective disorder (SAD), which can cause problems for people of all ages. Not everyone will be affected the same way,  but the symptoms can be tough to deal with, no matter what they are. Here are some ways you can identify and battle the difficulties of dealing with of SAD.

Signs and Symptoms

While these symptoms alone do not mean you struggle with SAD, they do show up in people who have the problem.  Depression and moodiness are the key signs that appear in many who lack enough sunlight during the winter. Sleep problems and lethargy are other symptoms. You just don’t want to do anything. Other signs can include overeating, being unsociable or irritability.

Use Travelodge Coupons To Escape Somewhere Sunny

There’s only so much Vitamin D you can absorb in a cold, wintry climate. If you travel somewhere sunny like Hawaii or Mexico, you’ll get your vitamin d requirements and then some. And it doesn’t have to be too expensive: you can use the best travel deals from Travelodge, or an Avis promo code to save hundreds on a vacation package booking. If you want an even less expensive imaginary vacation, then you can get a subscription to a photography website and look at beautiful images from around the world!

Enjoy Kona Coffee

kona coffee buzz - 2018Kona coffee is coffee grown in the slopes of Hawaii. You can taste the coffee from somewhere sunny, and the caffeine boost definitely won’t hurt. Try Kona Coffee Buzz for recommendations on specific brands of coffee.

Try Light Therapy

Because lack of sunlight is one cause of SAD, you should consider trying light therapy. You can purchase a light therapy box or lamp; research may yield other options. For the best results, spend at least 20 minutes a day (up to two hours if possible) within 3 feet of a 300-watt bulb.

Also, if you have an east-facing room where you can get the morning sun, you might want to spend at least part of the morning in there. A morning walk can help too.

Go Outside and Get Active

Moving around can help beat the blues as well. Walking for 30 to 60 minutes a day can do wonders for you any time of year. Of course being outside during the day provides the natural light that is so good for you. If you can’t walk outside that long, then consider taking an exercise class of some sort. The more active you are, the less depressed you will be.

Bundle Up

Being cold can contribute to SAD symptoms, so wear warm clothes. Keep your house draft-free. Warm socks or slippers can help the body retain heat, as can hot drinks and hot foods like soup. Research seems to indicate that staying warm can decrease your blues symptoms significantly, as much as half.

Eat Right

One thing that can make depression and lethargy worse is eating a lot of carbohydrates. That can make you sleepy any time but especially if you are suffering from the winter blues. Healthy soups, salads, and other low-carb dishes are excellent.

The winter blues are nothing to shrug off. The effects can be devastating to those it hits hard. But with these simple steps the side effects can be significantly decreased, and in some cases, eliminated.

 

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Health Benefits of Tea

The Health Benefits of Black Tea

Saturday, July 22, 2017
The Health Benefits of Black Tea

While the health benefits of coffee, tea, and caffeine are bandied about all over the internet without a shred of true scientific proof, black tea gives you some very specific health benefits. Coffee may taste great (as long as you grind the beans in a top-rated burr mill), but black tea will slow the growth of cancer cells. And it’s also half the caffeine of a normal cup of coffee, so you can enjoy two cups!

Black tea comes from the same plant as white or green tea, but the difference between them lies in the way the tea leaves are processed after they are picked.  Green and white teas go through very little processing while on the other hand black tea is completely oxidized.   That doesn’t mean that black tea loses any of its health benefits on the contrary.  Here are some of the health benefits of drinking black tea.

  1. Black tea is high in antioxidants which help combat damage from free radicals.
  2. Black tea will help reduce the risks of heart attacks and strokes, it opens up the blood vessels and arteries providing increased blood flow to your heart.
  3. Black tea will help in the fight against cancer, it slows the growth of cancer cells without any damage to your healthy cells.
  4. It helps you fight the signs of aging, lots of anti-aging creams contain ingredients from black tea to help you look and feel younger.
  5. Black tea can help you lose weight. It helps to speed up your metabolism and burn fat, combine that with regular exercise and you will hit your goal weight in no time flat.
  6. Black tea can help reduce glucose levels in patients with diabetes. Diabetes in turn leads to other health issues like increased chances of blindness and risks of stroke.
  7. Reduces the amount of bad cholesterol in your body, it also helps to increase the good cholesterol that we all need.
  8. Drinking black tea can help reduce tooth decay since it contains fluoride, however beware of staining on your teeth from drinking tea.
  9. Drink black tea…well…black. Adding milk and sugar can reduce the health benefits that you can find in black tea.  Do try and skip the milk and sugar if you can.

If you’re already a tea drinker why not consider switching to black tea instead and reap the many health benefits that come with black tea.  3-5 cups everyday can go a long way to improving your health.  Combine black tea with a healthy diet and exercise and you can dramatically reduce the risks of heart attacks, strokes, diabetes and other health issues.

I love to listen to music while I enjoy a good cup of tea. There are two things I am willing to spend a little extra on to get good quality: tea and headphones. For a good guide to mid-range headphones click here.

If black tea doesn’t exactly suit your tastes that’s okay, try some green or white tea instead.  If you are unsure how to make teas with loose leaves or how to let the tea steep properly here is a video to show you how to make the perfect cup of tea each and every time.

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Organic Tea

Beware of Fake ‘Organic’ Labels

Saturday, July 15, 2017
Beware of Fake 'Organic' Labels

When a tea is labelled as organic that means that some agency has determined that the tea has met the standards of that agency.  Some of these standards include not using synthetic pesticides and herbicides and only using organic fertilizers.  The soil where the tea is grown needs to be tests and it must be maintained according to the organic standards.

The Cost of Organic Tea

The reason that fake organic labels have begun to appear is that the cost of organic tea can be prohibitively high. While the cost of organic products is almost certain to continue to be the case, there are several actions consumers can take to reduce the overall cost. You can search for online deals at popular retail sites that sell organic tea like Amazon.com and DavidsTea.

Growing Organic Tea

Trying to growing organic tea is a noble endeavor and it provides a healthier and more sustainable product.  While this sounds like an excellent notion, growing a healthy and sustainable product used all over the world.   However in practice there are many teas that are labelled organic that really aren’t.  Faking organic tea status is something that happens more often than we would like to think.  You need to beware of fake ‘organic’ labels on your tea.

Fake Organic Teas

You may be wondering why anyone would go through the trouble of faking their status as organic.  The answer is pretty simple…money.  Organic teas fetch a higher price and the supermarket and that extra profit goes straight into the manufacturer’s pocket.  While anyone can slap the organic label on a product, law enforcement has been doing its best to crack down on fraudulent organic labels.  You should know that reputable tea companies won’t risk their reputation on fake certification, they have far too much to lose.  You should always check the label and the agency that is claiming to certify the tea as organic.

Many Teas are Uncertified

In many parts of the world tea is grown and farmed the old fashioned way without the use of harmful herbicides or pesticides which technically makes them organically grown.  Getting certification as an organic farm is an expensive and time consuming process that many farmers just can’t afford to do.  There will be many types of tea out there that are organically grown but never bear the organic label.

Choosing to opt for organic teas is a good thing, it benefits both you and the environment.  You can reduce health risks associated with chemical fertilizers and pesticides while promoting sustainability.  However bear in mind that the limitations that allow for organic certification can sometimes get in the way of achieving the goals of better sustainability.  You may pay a premium for the luxury of having organic tea, whether that is worth the cost is up to you.  You should always consider where your tea comes from and how it is made.

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