Mother's Day: healthy and thoughtful gift ideas

Yoga and Brunch. Take that burnt toast and cup of tea that was ‘breakfast in bed’ when you were a kid to a new level. No doubt spending time with you is your Mum’s favourite treat. Yoga has many benefits for the over 50s including in helping guard against osteoporosis, keeping the mind sharp and relieving symptoms of the menopause. Increasing movement and flexibility as we age is key, if she is a complete beginner (or you are too), choose a relaxing low impact style such as hatha or yin.  If there isn’t a class nearby, there are some fantastic online subscription yoga services with video classes that have some of the best teachers in the world check out http://movementformodernlife.com or https://www.yogaglo.com.

After your class take her out for a healthy brunch at a local café or choose one of VITL’s healthy brunch recipes to make for her. Check out this recipe for poached eggs on sweet potato hash, super simple, super tasty.

Good Nights Sleep. Good quality sleep and getting enough of it has been shown to help you live longer. Particularly, those that get less than 6 hours have been shown to have higher chronic inflammation, which is linked to heart disease, stroke, diabetes, arthritis, and premature aging. Many things can help your Mum with relaxation and sleep; give her lavender essential oil, which can be added to a night time bath, a few drops to her pillow or a candle with relaxing scents. We like Neom’s organic tranquillity candle http://www.neomorganics.com/nav/gifts/wellbeing-range/scent-to-sleep.html. If your Mum is not into smellies, how about gifting a new pillow or luxurious new sheets.

Optimal Nutrition. We all know that you are what you eat, and it is difficult in this modern world to get everything you need from food. As we get older, the more nutritional support we need for health however, generally as metabolism slows with age, we need to eat less. Supplementing your diet with our quality VITL subscription makes taking your daily dose simple and easy to remember with monthly delivery and daily strips or sachets. Particularly Omega 3 helps protect against dementia and CoQ10 against heart disease from our VITL nutrition pack.

Homemade Raw Chocolate. Nothing says I love you like chocolate, we especially love the benefits of raw chocolate. High in its concentration of antioxidants, vitamins and minerals. As well as containing theombromine, which helps to stimulate the central nervous system, relax smooth muscles, and dilate blood vessels, giving the body a boost of energy. Cacao also contains “bliss” chemicals which increase circulation and availability of serotonin thus improving mood. Click to link to make Stacey Horler’s aka @goodnessisgorgeous recipe for raw chocolate peanut butter cups, the perfect gift for mum.

Grow Your Own Herb Garden. Herbs and gardening are two unsung heroes of wellness. Did you know gardening has been shown to help you live a longer, healthier life? Herbs are powerhouses of nutrition and great for various ailments. For example, parsley is great to reduce water retention, mint is a good digestive tonic although should be avoided if you suffer from reflux as it can make it worse, and rosemary can help improve memory and cognitive function.