Benefits of the Sea!

I recently returned from a trip to the Seaside, which is, quite literally, my happy place, I thrive anywhere with large bodies of water and I have a few personal ideas why. I’m going to explain those, along with some research here, in my first article after a break.

For me, personally, I live in a busy village and spend time in busy towns and cities within my surrounding area, whereas where we stayed on holiday was a small town, surrounded by countryside and the sea, where even the cities are less traffic heavy and naturally cleaner. I feel like when one whole side of the town is completely pure, clean water, that’s bound to benefit your health. Looking at the air quality, I live in a generally “fair area”, whereas where we stayed had generally “excellent” air quality, which is a great day to day improvement.

I also personally prefer a natural sea breeze on warm and hot Summer days, the physical breath of fresh air and cooling that the sea causes, is a relief that wakes me up and motivates me to be more active, even when it’s a hot and busy day. I describe it as “holiday heat” where the hot weather is just naturally more manageable than at home, because of the fresh winds.

The salt, magnesium, calcium and other varying positive substances that are found in the sea promote all sorts of health benefits, including helping to cure skin conditions and symptoms of asthma, encouraging respiratory health and helping to encourage calmness and the natural healing processes already inside of the body.

I had sunburn before going on holiday, which healed after a couple of sea dips, despite it still being hot and sunny on holiday, my current chest pain and breathing issues were so much easier to deal with, despite increasing my physical activity, something which has been hard at home, my partner’s severe asthma barely bothered him on holiday, despite being a daily struggle at home and my dog has a sore foot that bothers him from time to time and takes a long time to heal, once flared up, despite treatment, yet getting his foot wet in natural, seawater almost fully healed him, in less than a week, we all saw so many benefits among these I’ve mentioned.

Another personal one is that I love being in the sea, as do my partner and dog, we all love to swim, float, tread water and just be in the water, we also have a bit of experience with surfing and paddle boarding and other water activities, so we are naturally more active and increase our exercise amounts, while by the water, which is a positive overall.

Additionally, I find that the calming effects of the water and the increased activity, mean that I wake up earlier and go to bed later than at home, meaning that I sleep better and feel more refreshed in the morning and throughout the day. Hearing the waves also works as a natural sound machine, which helps soothe me to sleep, before the good night’s sleep that happens because of the fresh air and extra exercise.

We are also certainly a seafood loving family and enjoy so much local, fresh fish when staying anywhere near the sea, the healthy fats and omega three increase also works wonders, from improving serotonin levels and boosting overall mood, to improving concentration and being another positive factor for improving sleep quality.

While I understand that some of these benefits may not play a part in every seaside area, or in everyone’s own life and seasons and weather can rule out some of these positives, I do think that, almost, everyone can find some new benefits of a visit to the sea, if they don’t already get time by the water.

I’m obviously not a doctor or nutritionist, or the best person to ask about either exercise or Sea Safety or a professional in any regards to what I’ve said today and the research is also ever changing, so only read my words as suggestions and personal experiences and obviously, find or apply what’s right for you, more personally.

Stay safe, go see the sea (if it applies) and remember to stay safe, no matter how you spend your Summer, H xx