Post Lockdown Essentials

Post Lockdown Essentials

With lockdown easing but restrictions still in place, here are some tips on how to keep you and your family safe…

Your Post Lockdown Essentials

Double Layer Face Mask

The number one item in your post lockdown essential kit has to be a face mask, especially as you can’t go anywhere without one! Our resident Doctor, Dr Hilary Jones, says the following about face mask usage in England.

"The best available scientific evidence is that when used correctly a face covering may reduce the spread of coronavirus by preventing droplets from coughs, sneezes and speaking."

Our Manuka Doctor simple unisex design face mask is made from polyester with a 100 per cent cotton inner, making it long lasting, washable and comfortable to wear. Designed with a double layer to meet World Health Organisation recommendations, it is easy to breathe through and has adjustable ear loops meaning you can get the perfect fit and tightness to suit you. We prefer re-usable and washable masks here at Manuka Doctor HQ as they are kinder to the environment.

Top marks - comfortable and well fitting. Does not steam up glasses and will be reordering another mask for a friend. Looks great in black and top quality when washed. Great value at £5 having wasted money on other poor quality masks previously. Environmentally friendly as reusable. Feels safe, secure and offers protection as advertised.

Sally B

According to the official Government website, a face covering should:

  • Cover your nose and mouth while allowing you to breathe comfortably
  • Fit comfortably but securely against the side of the face
  • Be secured to the head with ties or ear loops
  • Be made of a material that you find comfortable and breathable
  • Ideally include at least two layers of fabric

Manuka Doctor’s new facemask is made in a simple black design with subtle logo. It can be worn by female and males and is easily adjusted to fit different face shapes and sizes.

Whilst wearing a cloth face covering will cause nowhere near the levels of discomfort experienced by frontline workers, for some, having to wear a face mask daily can cause skin to dry out. The Manuka Doctor Rejuvenating Face Mask is a rich, restoring mask which deeply nourishes skin reducing the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. Thanks to the highly moisturising properties of Mānuka honey, this iconic face mask treatment leaves skin glowingly soft and naturally plumped. Apply to the face and neck and leave for 15-30 minutes, then wipe off with a warm, moist cloth. Your skin will feel nourished and rejuvenated, ready for the next day.

This cream is amazing, it does everything it says on the box and so much more. My skin feels smooth and well nourished, it has a very subtle smell. I’m so glad I gave this a try and am converted. The best rejuvenating face mask on the market

Eileen P

Hand Sanitiser

For most of us, hand sanitiser used to be something we’d buy from time to time, for trips abroad or camping. Then came 2020 and the coronavirus crisis. Whilst we all know that there’s no substitute for washing your hands and that should always be your first choice if you’re somewhere with access to soap and water but when you’re out and about with a sink nowhere near by, hand sanitiser is the next best thing. Hand Sanitiser available in most shops and restaurants can leave hands feeling dry and sore, so if you’re keen to look after your hands try a sanitiser with added moisturisation such as the Manuka Doctor Hand Sanitiser with Mānuka honey. This quick drying, moisturising formula kills 99.99% of bacteria whilst caring for hands too.

The best hand sanitiser there is out there, leaves your skin silky smooth and smells great
Esther S

Alcohol-based hand sanitisers work in a similar way to soap, dissolving Covid-19’s fatty layer so it can’t lock onto our cells. But sanitiser needs to contain a certain amount of alcohol to do a good job. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), an effective gel should contain between 60 and 80 per cent alcohol. The Manuka Doctor Hand Sanitiser contains 70% of virus-blitzing alcohol. Pump out the gel and make sure you get it all over your hands’ entire surface. Rub palm to palm, then with interlaced fingers over the backs of your hands, swapping over so you cover each hand, and not forgetting thumbs. Your hands are hygienic when they’re dry.

Vitamin D all Year Round?

We’ve become increasingly aware of the importance of vitamin D during the pandemic with plethora treatments being explored as options for managing the disease. As many of us are aware, vitamin D is important for bone and muscle health(1) but now it has been suggested that it may also have a role in the body's immune response to respiratory viruses(2). So the question is, do I need to take vitamin D all year round, or just during the Winter months?

In the UK, the sun is only strong enough to stimulate vitamin D production in your skin for around five months of the year, typically from April through to September. Most people can make enough vitamin D from being out in the sun daily for short periods with their forearms, hands or lower legs uncovered and without sunscreen, especially from 11am to 3pm.

However, not everybody gets this amount of sunshine, so UK Government advice now states that adults (including women who are pregnant or breastfeeding), young people and children over 4 years should consider taking a daily supplement containing 10 micrograms (400 units; also called international units [IU]) of vitamin D between October and early March. However, adults, young people and children over 4 years should consider taking a daily supplement containing 10 micrograms (400 units) of vitamin D throughout the year if they have little or no sunshine exposure including because they are not often outdoors. For example, if they are frail, housebound or living in a care home, usually wear clothes that cover up most of their skin when outdoors are spending most of their time indoors because of the COVID‑19 pandemic. If they have dark skin, for example, if they are of African, African-Caribbean or south Asian family origin, because they may not make enough vitamin D from sunlight.(3)

An easy way to get your daily dose of vitamin D is with the Manuka Doctor handy Immune Defence sprays. They are easy and convenient to use and contain three of the hottest wellness ingredients right now; vitamin D, Mānuka honey and Bee propolis. Propolis expert Dr Vincenzo Zaccaria confirms that “three sprays three times per day will give you the right amount of vitamin D to contribute to the normal function of the immune system."

Bee propolis sprays have also been in the news recently after actress Lily Collins from Netflix’s popular Emily In Paris series told Vogue magazine she was rarely without hers. She said:

"It’s an amazing immune system booster and has a lot of antioxidants, it is so good for a scratchy throat which I sometimes wake up with."

Watch the interview here.

You can read more about Manuka Doctor’s new range of "Immune Defence" Vitamin D, Manuka and Propolis sprays here.

References

  1. Vitamin D and Intestinal Calcium Absorption. Mol Cell Endocrinol. 2011 Dec 5; 347(1-2): 25–29. Published online 2011 Jun 1. doi: 1016/j.mce.2011.05.038
  2. Vitamin D for COVID-19 [A] Evidence reviews for the use of vitamin D supplementation as prevention and treatment of COVID-19 NICE guideline NG187 Evidence reviews underpinning recommendations 1.1 to 1.3 and research recommendations in the NICE guideline December 2020
  3. https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-body/how-to-get-vitamin-d-from-sunlight/#:~:text=Our%20body%20creates%20vitamin%20D,D%20we%20need%20from%20sunlight.
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