For many people, the end of winter and the transition to spring is a welcome time of year — you get to spend more time outside, start having family barbecues, and open your windows to breathe the fresh air.
Gone are the mornings of bundling up with scarves and hats before opening the front door; it's time for dresses, sunglasses, and denim jackets.
When spring finally rolls around every year, most people like to do a few things: get their gardening started, head to the playground, and spend a weekend doing some spring cleaning.
Spring cleaning isn't necessarily a fun part of spring, but after doing it, you feel so much better about your home.
This year, there's something else you should be spring cleaning in addition to your house — and no, it's not the garage or the yard.
This year, spend some time trying to spring clean your health!
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Why Do We Spring Clean, Anyway?
Every year when spring rolls around, people fill their mop buckets and grab their sponges to give their homes a good wipe down.
Spring is a perfect time to get rid of old clothes you no longer need, throw away old papers, and purge all unnecessary items from your life.
While most of us have spring cleaning routines that involve readying our houses, yards, and garages for summer, we often don't think about doing the same for our health.
How To Spring Clean Your Health
When the cold days of winter finally turn into spring showers and warmer weather, we find ourselves excited to spend more time outside, get some sunshine, and relish the longer days.
This year, instead of just spring cleaning your house, try to spring clean your health as well!
The following eight suggestions will help jump start your summer and kick your health into high gear.
1. Schedule Doctors' Appointments
Spring is a great time to whip out your appointment book and start scheduling screenings, check-ups, and doctor's appointments for the rest of the year.
Set aside a time one day to go through your calendar and schedule all the physicals, dental work, and specialist appointments that you and your family need this year.
It'll relieve any stress you feel about having to make time to schedule these later, and the appointments will keep you feeling healthy all year long.
2. Go Outside
Instead of sitting down in front of the TV, try to spend a little more time walking around or playing with your kids and grandkids outside.
Walking and playing can burn calories, lower your blood pressure, boost your immune system, and help your cardiovascular system.
Plus, you might find that you have a lot of pent-up energy stored from your indoor winter months!
3. Clean Out Your Medicine Cabinet
Although medicines have expiration dates on them, lots of us are guilty of keeping them in the cabinet for months (if not years) longer than they should be there.
Even if you don't take the expired medications, keeping them around is never a good idea — instead, find a safe way to dispose of them, and get them out of your life.
While you're at it, make sure all your medicine is stored in a cool, dry place (not the bathroom, where it gets all steamy).
If you end up tossing a whole bunch of medicine, head to the store to restock!
4. Get Some Sunlight
In the winter, our vitamin D levels tend to drop because we aren't spending enough time outside, so finally getting some sunlight can be great for you.
But before going out to soak up some rays, always be sure to put on sunscreen!
Even if you're not going to be sunbathing in a swimsuit, any level of sun exposure requires sunscreen.
5. Reorganize Your Pantry
Another area that often gets neglected during spring cleaning is the pantry, which can also have a big effect on your health.
This year, while you're going through old clothes and tossing old blankets, make sure you also set aside some time to check out what's in your pantry.
Get rid of all that old, expired food, but also take a minute to ask yourself which foods you are actually going to eat.
If there's anything you don't see yourself eating in the next few weeks/months, donate it to your local food bank/pantry — they're always in need of food at this time of year!
6. Allergy-Proof Your House
Although spring is a wonderful time for opening up the windows and letting in the fresh air, a lot of people find that they end up hating springtime because of their seasonal allergies.
While you're cleaning the rest of your house, make sure to dust off window sills, ceiling fan blades, and window coverings, then wipe them down with a moist cloth.
Another good way to minimize allergies? Wash all your linens and blankets — dust mites live in your sheets and pillows, so getting rid of them will help with your overall health.
7. Sanitize Your Kitchen
Although many of us clean our kitchens on a daily or weekly basis, we often forget to sanitize it.
Our kitchens are full of bacteria, so once in a while it's good to completely kill all of those bad germs that could make you sick.
First things first, toss all your dishcloths in the wash, and throw out any old sponges. Next, give your counters, sinks, and other surfaces a wipe down with a bleach or alcohol solution.
8. Clean Out Old Makeup
In addition to getting rid of clothes from last season that you're no longer going to wear, take some spring cleaning time to purge all of that old makeup.
Many types of makeup don't have long shelf lives, and things like mascara and eyeliner are actually supposed to be thrown away every six months.
Make sure to get rid of anything that smells funky or looks weird, and try to keep track of how long you've had everything.
I had never thought about spring cleaning my health before, but now I know it's something I'm going to do every year.
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