Last year brought many new and unexpected hardships. The global outbreak of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) touched every one of us in some way. But while 2020 was unprecedented and unpleasant, it also helped people to realize what’s truly important. Life. Love. Family. Justice. Health. We’ve had to reprioritize, reconsider, and readjust everything we thought we knew. This has also included some fascinating shifts in how we take care of ourselves. Let’s take a look at 5 trending health topics as we head into a fresh, new year.

Boost Your Immune System

This one makes total sense—people are learning how to boost immune systems and take care of immune health. As we move into winter after the holidays, ways to stay well are getting even more attention.

Wellness Shots

Wellness shots can be as simple as a bracing dose of apple cider vinegar or as fancy as a pressed juice packed with superfoods, probiotics, and greens. People knock back these concentrated drinks for their cleansing and revitalizing qualities and for a boost of plant-based nutrients. In fact, potent Elderberry syrup like our very own dark purple, honey-sweetened option is a superb wellness shot all on its own, providing advanced immune defense that tastes amazing.*

Probiotics & Fermented Foods

Fermentation has been hot for several years and these immune-boosting foods show no signs of slowing down in 2021. Why? Because fermented foods are an excellent way to support a healthy gut—where ~70% of the body’s immune response takes place. You can also enhance gut health with a dedicated probiotic supplement that delivers friendly microflora to make the intestinal tract a calm, happy neighborhood. Check out New Chapter’s probiotics with a purpose formulated to help strike that nice harmony between digestive health and immunity.

Immune Supplements

To nourish immunity and build solid wellness foundations every day, DO keep taking your daily multivitamin. The body needs certain nutrients for proper immune defense (think Vitamin C, Vitamin D3 & Zinc, among others). New Chapter’s carefully crafted multivitamin blends deliver fine-tuned levels of high-quality vitamins and minerals in forms that work best with the body. To help you really absorb the good stuff, we ferment key nutrients with probiotics and whole foods. Browse multivitamins for women and men, or prenatal & postnatal formulas to support new mamas.

A Good Night of Sleep

Things have been strange and exhausting for many months, so when it’s time to sleep, people want to get the most from every minute. Sleep trends range from high-tech to time-tested traditional herbs.

White Noise Machines

Those who use them, swear by them. White noise machines emit a mixed frequency “shh” sound at a uniform intensity. This soothingly random sound acts as a kind of audio blanket to help cancel out other noises. Some people find ambient white noise to be even more soothing (and more possible) than complete silence. Fun fact: Researchers have identified other “colors” of noise, including pink noise and brown noise.

Sleep Tracking Apps

Sleep tracking apps may use binaural beats, guided meditation, sleep-phase tracking, or even self-hypnosis to help you lull you into dreamland. Whether you’re wearing a gadget that tracks circadian rhythms and sleep activity or you like a dedicated app on your phone, remember that good sleep hygiene is also key for setting up a restful night.

Herbal Supplements

What’s the best sleep aid for you? One way to rest easy is with a non-groggy sleep supplement, crafted with Nature’s finest soothing herbs. Herbal heavyweights for sleep cycle benefits include:

• Valerian (Valeriana officinalis)—one of the powerful sleep-supportive herbs in our Turmeric Nighttime blend, which also delivers Hops and Chamomile plus Turmeric to support nighttime inflammation response.*
• Ginger (Zingiber officinale)—sets you up for restful sleep by soothing occasional aches and pains after exercise. A clinically studied amount of Ginger is featured in our Restful Sleep and Pain Relief blend, which also includes non-groggy, Non-GMO melatonin to help you fall asleep naturally.*
• Magnesium supplements—many people don’t get enough of this critical mineral that’s responsible for over 300 functions in the body and can enhance calm and relaxation.* Fortunately it’s easy to stir up a soothing Magnesium drink before bed, or take a tablet (our Magnesium tablets include stress-balancing Ashwagandha).

Boost Your Mental Health

These days, many of us have come to rely on our inner resilience more than ever before. So, it’s no surprise that a major trend is to embrace all kinds of ways to chill out and stay mentally balanced in the face of occasional stresses.

Sound bath healing

Imagine being washed with soothing, musical vibrations intended to cleanse and stimulate your body and mind. With singing bowls, gongs, chimes, and more, sound-healing practitioners work on activating your own natural healing abilities. Sound baths are meant to literally tone up your cellular health and mood. You can find a practitioner online or check out sound meditation videos to build your own sound bath experience.

Staying connected

Humans are social and we’re always looking for new ways to be together. Put on your blue light glasses and your Bluetooth headphones and you’re ready for a video dinner with grandparents, a virtual reading group, or an online art class. Honestly, thank goodness for the Internet this past year, right!? Seeing and hearing each other online has been holding us together.

Getting crafty

Hobbies are trending hard right now. Knitting, baking, journaling, learning a new language, gaming, gardening, painting, puzzles, photography, origami, chess—you name it. Picking up new passions (or reviving old ones) can fill your time in mindful and inspiring ways.

Taking Charge of Physical Health

Working out from home? With in-person gyms, clubs, and classes closed or limited, people are pivoting to stay physically active and keep energy up at home. Fortunately, there are a ton of options to help you keep crushing it. These include dedicated fitness apps, a boom in home exercise equipment (have you heard about the dumbbell shortage?), and plain old ingenuity. Instead of going to your favorite flow class, maybe you’re rolling out your yoga mat next to the coffee table and following a video. Instead of running with friends, maybe you have new routes that you run solo. Diversifying fitness choices has helped people keep physical activity up, even during lockdown.

Virtual Wellness!

Self-care is the new healthcare FOR SURE as we move into 2021. And once again, online opportunities came to the rescue when we couldn’t do things in person.

Online Classes & Wellness Retreats

Looking to learn more about health and wellness from the comfort of home? From a healthy foods webinar set up by your local natural retailer, to free or paid wellness courses online, to a full-blown virtual retreat experience, you can surely find something awesome. Learn new skills, build on existing passions, or just have a bit of a spa day… virtually.

Meditation Apps for Mindfulness

Meditation is a scientifically studied mindfulness practice that has been linked to improved overall wellness and a number of specific benefits. Researched benefits include healthy blood pressure support, improved brain health, and reduced anxiety and pain. Dedicated meditation apps make this ancient practice super easy and convenient. You can choose the length of your practice, the benefits you want, and even the voice that’s guiding you through the meditation. Ahhhh.

Wellness Trends to Look for in 2021

2020 was not the year we were expecting, that’s for sure. But it turned out to be a year of doing things in new ways… out of necessity and out of sheer creativity. We’ll be expecting more of these trends in 2021: more self-care, more online connections, more virtual tools, and more immune-boosting supplements and foods. We wish you and your loved ones a healthy, happy new year. That’s why New Chapter is here—we do wellness well, so you can do you.