How to enjoy healthy Chuseok holiday?

By Bae Ji-sook

Chuseok, or Korean Thanksgiving Day, is just around the corner.

For some people, it is a great opportunity to enjoy a six-day-holiday by taking an extra day off on Monday. However, many people will spend hours on the road due to traffic jams on highways. They will also eat lots of holiday food.

Sometimes holidays are stressful. Deciding on which presents to buy, meeting relatives and doing household chores can be both interesting and nerve wracking. Eating too much can cause your body stress and at the end of the day, you will feel more tired than having worked at the office.

Here are a few tips to help maintain good health on the road.

1. Massage your legs while driving:

Your legs can easily become swollen if you are stuck in the driving seat for too long. At worst, this can result in the onset of thrombosis where blood coagulates inside the veins. Get out off the car at least once every hour. Get some fresh air and do some stretching exercises.

2. Eat boiled garlic for diarrhea:

Many people eat too much on the holidays. They get indigestion or diarrhea. Eating persimmon or boiled garlic is good for diarrhea. Boil five to six cloves of garlic and drink the water with some honey. Mandarin skin tea is effective for indigestion.

3. Press between the thumb and index finger:

Some women become stressed by having to cook, clean and take care of the whole household for the holiday. Anxiety can be reduced by pressing the flesh between the thumb and index finger. Of course the best way to deal with this stress is for husbands to appreciate all the hard work their wives have done.

4. Drink arrowroot tea for hangovers:

The holiday is when you visit loved ones not seen in a long time and many people tend to drink too much alcohol. The next day, drink some arrowroot tea in the morning to get over the hangover. Also eating some mung bean gruel will help calm an angry stomach.

5. Drink some milk vetch tea when feeling burnt out:

Milk vetch is good for stamina. Have some milk vetch and you will find your energy levels rising.

6. Skip meals for indigestion:

If you feel stuffed up inside, the best way to calm your body is to skip meals for a day. However, if you still feel uncomfortable, drink a few glasses of salty water and put your finger down your throat to induce vomiting. After vomiting, try to eat soft foods such as gruel and drink a sports drink.

Also note that one should refrain from eating too much: the holiday fat always lingers on the body longer than you expect. The Ministry of Health and Welfare is also trying to raise public awareness of their outdoor activities since the number of tsutsugamushi disease patients is increasing.

Tsutsugamushi is a disease resulting from tick bites.

People become ill with tsutsugamushi disease when bitten by a tick infected with the virus of the same name. After a latent period of 10 days, the patient suffers a high fever, blood-shot eyes, headaches, muscle aches or rashes.

The disease is curable with antibiotics, but if it is not treated in the early stages, it can result in heart failure or pneumonia. Doctors advised people with flu-like symptoms, along with rashes or ulcers, to immediately consult a physician.

To prevent contact with ticks, the ministry advised people not to sit on grassy areas and to wear long sleeved garments and socks.