Happy & healthy on the road! 22502022
Good news for the 53 million people traveling during the holiday season this year: These easy tricks allow you to enjoy every minute of your journey and get to your destination feeling great!
tip #1
Chewing cinnamon- flavored gum when driving makes even arduous trips feel 30% easier, say Wheeling University scientists
Dodge road aches… with a truckers’ stretch
Even if we love to travel, 78% of us feel achy by the time we reach our destination. To block pain, adopt a trick that big-rig drivers use: Sit in the car sideways with your legs out the door. Lift one leg and cross your ankle over your opposite knee. Lean forward until you feel a stretch; hold for 10 seconds. Repeat with the opposite leg. This boosts blood flow to muscles, per Florida State University research, preventing them from seizing up.
Outsmart leg pain… with pine bark
Turns out Christmas trees may hold the key to preventing deep vein thrombosis (DVT), painful blood clots that can form in the legs when we sit for long stretches on a plane, bus or car. Italian scientists say a pine bark extract known as Pycnogenol lowers DVT risk by up to 66% by relaxing arteries and improving blood flow. To get the benefits, take 200 mg. about 3 hours before traveling.
Prevent eyestrain… with a ‘bridge blink’
The focus required when driving can cut your blink rate by up to 66%, suggests Japanese research, leading to dry, strained eyes in less than an hour. The fix: Every time you pass under a bridge or an interstate road sign, blink five times. This simple memory “hack” reminds you to re-wet eyes, keeping vision sharp and your eyes comfortable.
Nix stress… with a playlist
To quash travel tension, cue up a playlist of your favorite holiday tunes, like “Jingle Bell Rock.” Listening to beloved music for 24 minutes (about seven songs) tames stress as effectively as prescription drugs, say Canadian scientists. Sing along (especially with your passengers in the car!), and you’ll trigger a release of mood-lifting serotonin too, say University of California investigators.
—Ann Green
Goodbye, car sickness!
Get queasy on bumpy roads or when stuck in traffic? Put lemon slices in a zip-top bag and sniff them as soon as you feel your stomach start to churn. The scent distracts the brain from fast-moving sights and sounds that throw equilibrium off balance, blocking car sickness for 73% of folks, say Austrian scientists.
