Give Mom the Gift of Health this Mother’s Day

Make Mom a gift basket that includes some gardening tools, a few packets of seeds, gloves and a broad-brimmed hat.  Not only can you give your mother some healthy goodies to plant—such as veggies or fruits she can pick and eat after they’ve grown—but there are many potential health benefits that can come from gardening, including fighting stress and improving cognitive thinking. A recent study suggests that gardening can help fight stress even better than other leisure activities.

Give your mom a gift certificate for a massage.  According to the Mayo Clinic, massage can be an effective treatment for reducing stress, pain and muscle tension. The Mayo Clinic suggests that some studies have found massage may also be helpful for other conditions, such as anxiety, fibromyalgia, sports injuries, and more.

Buy your mother a gift certificate for some yoga classes. Yoga is a form of physical activity that combines stretching exercises, controlled breathing and relaxation. According to the Mayo Clinic, yoga can help reduce stress, lower blood pressure and improve heart function. Practicing yoga may also lead to improved balance, flexibility, range of motion and strength.   Bonus: If you’re also into yoga, buy yourself a package of yoga classes and enjoy this relaxing activity together.

Invite your mom to a homemade brunch on Mother’s Day. When planning your menu, consider making healthy foods such as fruit or vegetable salads, a savory quiche packed with spring vegetables, soups made with low-sodium vegetable broth or chicken stock as their base, or herbed, grilled chicken breasts. If the weather is pleasant, take Mom for a walk around the neighborhood or to a favorite local park after brunch.

If your mom is interested in getting fit, get her a pedometer so that she can track the amount of steps she takes each day. Using a pedometer may even encourage her to get more physical activity. Researchers at Stanford University recently conducted a study that found that people who wear pedometers often take more than 2,000 extra steps a day – that’s well over a mile.

If you are a Health Advocate member, remind your mother or mother-in-law that she can take advantage of their health advocacy service. Health Advocate covers eligible employees, their dependent children as well as parents and parents-in-law.  Here are just some of the ways a Personal Health Advocate can help:

• Find the right doctors, hospitals and other providers
• Explain conditions; research the latest treatments
• Help schedule appointments and tests
• Resolve billing and insurance claims issues
• Secure second opinions
• Clarify benefits coverage
• Estimate costs of common procedures
• Help you make informed decisions
• And more!