Get your office Flu season ready with Media Doctor and Chief Medical Officer at alldayDr.com

As we welcome Autumn and Winter fast approaches, we see a dramatic rise in viruses and the reproduction of harmful bacteria. Autumn coincides with “back to school” regimes which incidentally assists the increase of coughs, colds and sickness bugs in the office. It most certainly seems that harmful bacteria and viruses thrive with the shift of seasons, so how can you ensure your health thrives with it and avoid pesky bugs in your business?

We discuss Winter preparation and vitamin stockpiling to help you prepare for the festive season with good health. Prepare your employees with this informative, easy to follow article on Winter health preparation.

Immunity is the only way

The main purpose of your immune system is to protect your body from viruses and bacteria prior to infection. It is difficult to say how many germs we come into contact with on a daily basis, but one can assume it is very close to millions! Germs are everywhere; restaurant menus can harbour 185,000 bacteria per square centimetre, your kitchen sponge is 250,000 times dirtier than a toilet and bed linen is a breeding ground for MRSA! The only way to stay healthy is to ensure your immune system is strong. How can you boost your immunity this Autumn in preparation for Flu season and prepare your staff for the winter months?

More than an orange:

Vitamin C is the most effective nutrient with benefits ranging from infection prevention right the way through to skin health and vitality. Eating one orange a day will not keep the doctor away! It is important to pack your diet full of vitamin C rich foods and supplements if you wish to boost your immunity.

We suggest looking into offering your employees free Fruit and Veg with a view to improve office health and wellbeing strategies, especially over the winter months when the risk of flu is at its highest. For no more than £12 per week an office is able to provide its employees with fresh, healthy snacks whilst promoting a healthy balanced diet.

Recent studies have shown that boosting your vitamin C intake can reduce chances of developing further complications to cold and flu including; pneumonia and lung infections. The current evidence is too weak to advocate prophylactic use of vitamin C to prevent pneumonia in the general population. Nevertheless, therapeutic vitamin C supplementation may be reasonable for pneumonia patients who have low vitamin C plasma levels because its cost and risks are low.

B healthier with vitamin B‌:

Vitamin B can be used to improve the body’s defence system; the vitamin helps energy levels which consequently aid healing. Vitamin B can be found in many natural products including; eggs, whole grains, seeds/nuts and certain fruit and veg. You can get your daily dose of vitamin B by simply having a healthy, balanced diet. However, if you struggle to process B vitamins you may find yourself often feeling weak and more susceptible to cold and flu viruses as you increase your chance of infection. If you find yourself or staff showing signs of vitamin B deficiency, it is highly recommended you seek medical advice to receive the right number of supplements for your body.

Vitamin B deficiency symptoms:

• Weakness & Fatigue
• Pale skin
• Mouth ulcers
• Breathlessness & Dizziness

Winter sun gives you more than a tan:

You may still be hanging on to the last days of sun, dreaming of an Indian Summer making an appearance before the end of Autumn, however, the days are becoming shorter and the nights longer. Vitamin D is the all-important vitamin found within those beautiful rays of sun, however, over the Autumn and Winter months many adults find themselves battling vitamin D deficiency; 42% of adults simply do not get enough vitamin D.

Daily intake of vitamin D has been proven to regulate the immune system and build your body’s defence; with a recommended 800IU your body is able to protect itself from invading microbes before they have the opportunity to turn into something sinister.

9 in 10 office workers have severely low levels of vitamin D. Employers can improve their employee’s intake of vitamin D by offering health and wellness strategies which involve outdoors activities. Offering schemes such as cycle to work and intermittent breaks to be taken outdoors will increase your employee’s daily vitamin D intake.

We recommend that you start to increase your dose of vitamin D either prior to the start of Autumn in the September time or simply as soon as Autumn hits. The sooner you start introducing vitamin D supplements into your diet prior to Winter – the better. Looking into health and wellness strategies which centre around increasing vitamin D will benefit your business all year round!

How can you promote your daily dose of immunity supporting vitamins in the office?

The best way to get your vitamins into your diet is to eat your way through your recommended daily amount. All the nutrients you require can be consumed through a varied, balanced diet. Recent studies have shown that multivitamins and supplements are less effective than the vitamins passed through diet. We recommend adhering to the “5 a day” guideline put in place by the NHS‌ UK. You can gain important nutrients to sustain a healthy immune system by consuming 400g of varied fruit and veg per day.

Employers across the UK have started to introduce wellness initiatives. In a recent study, Forbes found that prospective employees seek health and wellbeing strategies with commitment to wellness initiatives when seeking employment. Employees have shown the desire to receive managerial support for their physical wellbeing. Employers are 87% more likely to recruit with ease when offering wellness programs such as free fruit and veg. That’s something tasty to think about! So, what fruit and veg should you be adding to your shopping list every week?

Vitamin C

{healing vitamin}

• Sweet potato
• Tomatoes
• Oranges
• Chillies and peppers

Vitamin D‌

{bone and mineral balancing} 

• Meaty fish – such as Salmon
• Egg yolks
• Mushrooms
• Soy milk

Vitamin E

{natural defence against infection}

• Avocado
• Almonds
• Prawns

Vitamin B‌

{keeps your nervous system healthy}

• Chicken
• Milk
• Broccoli
• Nuts

If you feel your business is still suffering from the dreaded Winter flu it may be worth looking into alternative methods of absence management. 7 in 10 employees are too busy to be sick in the UK. Presenteeism is becoming a real threat to company profit and productivity. Sickness is increased by a shocking 53% over the Winter months, but this doesn’t stop employees coming in and sharing viruses. Companies across the UK are now benefiting from a healthier workforce with the direct help of alldayDr.

We offer a fantastic, personalised solution to reduce sickness within the workplace, by offering help to employees before they start the working day. It’s time to see how implementing health and wellness strategies with the help of alldayDr can aid Winter illness and improve company profit for good!

Tags: autumn, Business Health, business wellbeing, doctors advice, employee health, employee wellbeing, medical advice, medical expert, online GP consultation, online GP service, vitamin