12 Wellness Gifts of Christmas
Looking for gift ideas to add to your wish list?
Searching for a gift for a woman in your life?
My twelve wellness gifts of Christmas will help you and your loved ones have a healthy, happy holiday season.
1. Fitness tracker Watch
The FitBit Versa 2 is an awesome gift for active women, and those who are looking to increase their fitness. I love the female health integration to be able to track your periods and fertile window. This fitness tracker is waterproof so you can wear it into the shower after your workouts! Other features that have proven to be very handy include Fitbit Pay, sleep tracking, and always-on display mode. Choose the rose gold + petal pink wrist band for an added feminine touch.
2. Hydrotherapy
A gift card to Scadinave Spa in Whistler or Art of Sauna in Burnaby is a perfect way to spend a relaxing day doing hydrotherapy. Hydrotherapy improves detoxification, decreases pain, improves joint range of motion, supports relaxation, and increases energy.
3. Magnesium Bath salts
Having a hot bath is a great wellness ritual. Adding high concentration Ancient Minerals Magnesium Bath Flakes, or Epsom salts, to your bath is a simple way to decrease muscle tension, and improve relaxation. Hot water causes vasodilation of superficial blood vessels in the skin, and improves transdermal absorption of magnesium. Choose a high quality magnesium bath salt, and let the holiday pampering begin!
4. Gua Sha & Facial Rolling Tools
Gua Sha and facial rolling is a calming wellness ritual. They are simple techniques that can be incorporated into your home skincare routine. Gua Sha is used to increase blood flow to the face, and release muscle tension responsible for exaggerated facial expressions, and wrinkle formation. Facial rolling is used to stimulate lymphatic draining and decrease puffiness. Always use an oil or hyaluronic acid serum on your face when you massage so that you don’t pull on the skin. Using gentle pressure, start the massage with your neck to clear the lymph passages, and promote proper drainage from top to bottom. Pro tip: Keep facial roller in the fridge for a cooling, soothing face massage.
5. Edible Skin care
We are always looking for the next best cream to put on our skin to clear acne, decrease redness, and diminish wrinkles. But what if the next best thing is not a cream at all? As a Naturopathic Doctor I regularly emphasize the importance of the digestive system and proper nutrition in order to achieve skin goals. Bend Beauty has created a powerhouse formula of omega-3 fatty acids and antioxidants to help heal your skin from within. They recommend at least 3 months of taking the formula in order to see results. This is a wise recommendation given that it takes about 30 days for skin cells to regenerate, and as we age it can take up to 90 days for full regeneration. Enhance your skin health by adding edible skincare to your wish list.
6. Plant-based cookbook
Get inspired to cook more plant-based meals with a new cookbook. I frequently recommend eating more plant-based meals for period pain, so these types of cookbooks should be a staple in every woman’s home. Some of my favourite cookbooks include Fraiche Food, Full Hearts by Jillian Harris and Tori Wesszer, Oh She Glows Every Day by Angela Liddon, My New Roots by Sarah Britton, and the Minimalist Baker’s Everyday Cookbook by Dana Shultz.
7. Environmentally conscious kitchen items
As a society, we tend to be heavily reliant on plastic bags, plastic food storage containers, plastic wrap, and plastic straws. However, it is important to limit plastics in the kitchen for both personal health and the environmental reasons. So, if you are looking for a gift for a health-conscious woman in your life, consider these plastic alternatives for the kitchen: Stasher reusable silicone bags, glass or porcelain food storage containers, Goldilocks beeswax food wrap, and glass or stainless steel straws.
8. Air Purifier
Give the gift of clean air this holiday season. The Dyson Hot + Cool Purifier packs a lot of power in its small frame. It is a heater in the winter, a fan in the summer, and an air purifier all year long. With a built-in HEPA filter, it captures dust, pollutants, allergens, and other particles from the air, leaving your home cleaner than ever before.
9. Diffuser
A diffuser is a multipurpose wellness gift. Diffusers offer another way to cleanse the air. Improve seasonal infection control by diffusing antimicrobial essential oils into the air. Set the mood by choosing different essential oil blends. Use citrus and eucalyptus for energy, grapefruit and patchouli for festive vibes, and lavender and chamomile for relaxation and sleep. Diffusers also help to moisten the air, which can enhance air quality and help prevent a lingering dry cough. Finally, diffusers double as a beautiful piece of home-decor.
10. Female empowerment books
There are few self-care rituals better than curling up on the couch and reading a good book. Reading is grounding, relaxing, and if you read the right book, inspiring! Check out these awesome books that highlight topics of sexuality, leadership, and motherhood: Girls and Sex by Peggy Oreinstein, You and I as Mothers by actress Laura Prepon, The Confidence Code by Katty Kay and Claire Shipman, and Dare to Lead by Brené Brown.
11. Female-focused underwear
When it comes to stocking stuffers, I have a tradition of giving and receiving new underwear. This year I have been really excited about Thinx, Knix, and Huha underwear. Thinx and Knix are marketed as period- or leak-proof undies. On heavy flow days these awesome underwear serve as backup to prevent you from staining your sheets while you are sleeping. On lighter flow days they tackle the challenge of keeping you clean and dry like a pro! Huha is a newer brand of underwear made with women in mind. Their underwear is infused with zinc to help balance pH and prevent gynecological infections such as yeast and BV. Upgrade your underwear drawer and add female-focused underwear to your wish list!
12. Gift card to a Fitness boutique
Get inspired about fitness with the gift card to a local fitness boutique. The small community feel of boutique fitness is motivational, and getting a gift card helps you confirm you like the studio before committing to a membership long term. Some of my favourite places for group fitness this year have been Spin Society downtown, and Kondi Fitness in Yaletown.
Leave a comment and let me know what is on your wellness wish list this year!
Take care,
Dr. Laura Nicholas, ND
This content is not intended to be substituted or interpreted as medical advice and should not be used to diagnose, treat, or prevent any disease or health concern. Please book a consultation with me or a qualified healthcare professional before acting on any information presented here.
References
Barnard, N. D., Scialli, A. R., Hurlock, D., & Bertron, P. (2000). Diet and sex-hormone binding globulin, dysmenorrhea, and premenstrual symptoms. Obstetrics & Gynecology, 95(2), 245-250.
Boyle, W., & Saine, A. (1988). Lectures in naturopathic hydrotherapy. Eclectic Medical Publications.
Deshmukh, J., & Ray, S. (2019). Effectiveness of application of hot water with Epsom salt v/s plain hot water on knee joint pain among geriatric women.
Ismail, A. A., & Ismail, N. A. (2016). Magnesium: A mineral essential for health yet generally underestimated or even ignored. J. Nutr. Food Sci, 6(2).
Werner, T., Weidner, M., & Vormann, J. (2017). Transdermal megnesium--myth or reality?. Journal of the Australian Traditional-Medicine Society, 23(4), 200-204.