With just a week until Christmas, some of you may still be wondering what to get for the people in your life. While many find it stressful to check off their gift buying list, I LOVE thinking of things I can gift, but I do admit that it’s tough to figure out what to get for some of the people in my life.

Of course, being a Dr. of Traditional Chinese Medicine, the first things I often think about are things that are healthy. But while some might appreciate supplements and herbs as a present, not everyone will be thrilled with that, so here are my top suggestions for health-related things to buy as gifts this holiday season. You can also keep this list in mind for birthdays, anniversaries, congratulations, etc. too.

When I make recommendations for living healthy, I like to start with what I consider the foundation:

• Restful, restorative sleep
• Regular movement activities
• Nourishing food and drink
• Things that bring joy

Gifts to help with sleep

Insomnia and sleep disorders are incredibly common. Stats Canada states that about 25% of Canadians have a hard time getting to sleep or staying asleep most or all the time. So, who are the people on your list who’ve mentioned they don’t get enough zzzzzs? You can make a gift basket of sleep items for them or simply throw one or two of these into their stockings.

• Sleep mask: You can choose one with a cute picture or funny saying or pick one of these fancy ones with fabric breathability, ergonomics, or built-in tech.
• Ear plugs: You could just choose the cheap disposable ones, of course, but check out this variety of options from basic to fancy. I always take ear plugs with me when I travel.
• White-noise maker: While some sleep best with all sound blocked out, some prefer to sleep to white noise. My favourite white noise is the sound of my dog snoring, so if you want a recording of that, just ask me. Otherwise, you might check out these more conventional sound-making devices.
• Pillow: Oh, it’s too hard for me to tell you which pillow would work for the person on your list, but if you know they love a shaped memory foam pillow, a buckwheat pillow, or a wool or feather pillow, you could get them that. I’m one of those folks who is particular about my pillow, so I even take one with me when I travel. Another option is to gift a beautiful pillowcase for whatever pillow your gift recipient likes. You can even use the pillowcase to wrap other gifts in.
• Sheets and sleepwear: For those who often feel cold, a good set of flannel sheets and/or sleepwear can feel like a warm hug. For others who sleep better when they feel a bit cool, bamboo or birch (yes, birch!) sheets are cooling. I bought a set of birch sheets and realized I cannot use them in the winter because they really are cooling! I’ll look forward to using them next summer.
• Sleep apps: You could also buy your tired friend or family member a subscription to a sleep app. Some apps tell bedtime stories, offer meditations, and lead you through breathing exercises, and some even give guidance for stretches and yoga moves to do before bed. This is a great present option for the person you would normally have to mail a gift to–saves you postage and gets your gift there on time, guaranteed!
• Sleep remedies: Of course I can also recommend a bunch of sleep remedies. Some of my fave ones that I carry at my clinic are Botanica Sleeptime tincture (fast absorb to take if you wake up in the middle of the night and can’t return to sleep), Suku Restful Sleep gummies (mix of melatonin, GABA, and L-theanine in a tasty no-sugar gummy), and Chinese herbal formulas like Peaceful Spirit (Yang Xin Ning Shen Wan), Ziziphus formula (Suan Zao Ren Tang), and Heavenly Emperor (Tian Wang Bu Xin Dan). For the Chinese herbal remedies here, I would need to do an assessment to know which formula is best suited, however.

Gifts for movement activities

• Yoga studio or gym membership: This is what my husband and I are getting each other for Christmas this year–a gift card for 10 yoga classes. While it’s a great gift for the person you are gifting to, it may also be a great gift for you if two or more of you go together! It’s always helpful to have the extra motivation of someone joining you.
• Mountain pass or ski pass: I’m not a skier, so my regular gift ask used to be for a year of Grouse Mountain so that I could do the Grouse Grind (gondola down included) or go snowshoeing (gondola up and down). They’ve bumped up their prices quite a lot in the last few years (since they were bought), so I’m less enthusiastic about that now, but if you have any skiers or snowboarders in your life, I’m sure they’d love a pass or a gift certificate to cover some of the costs at a local mountain.
• Gear: Okay, so this is a very large category as there are so many possible activities, but some items you can consider include walking poles, ski goggles, handheld weights, yoga mat and props, boxing gloves, helmet, or something fun that I never would have thought about, like these fitness dice!
• Promise notes to join them: Something that doesn’t need to cost you much or any money could be prommisory notes to join in on an activity like a hike, walk, run, bike ride, yoga class, tai chi class, dance class, snowshoe, ice skating, swim, or old-school aerobics class.

Gifts to nourish and hydrate

• Homemade food: If you’re a good cook, you can definitely put those skills to use when you’re looking to gift something heartfelt. I really do believe things taste better when they are made with love. It doesn’t have to be the usual Christmas baking things like cookies though. Especially if the person you are gifting to wants something healthy or has enough sweets. I’ve been the fortunate recipient in the past of a homemade tourtiere pie from a chef friend! If you don’t have time to cook now, you could gift a card that states that you will make them dinner on a date that you coordinate.
• Gift certificate to a local restaurant (or food truck!): I love food, but I’m not a foodie and I’m not fancy about food, so I don’t have particular thoughts on which restaurants you could choose from. But you know that when you gift local, you are supporting a business that could probably use it because the restaurant business is a tough one to run.
• Tea: Everyone thinks wine when they think about gifting something to drink. But not everyone is a wine drinker, and though many have long touted red wine as good for you, more recent research shows that even small amounts of alcohol can be harmful (sorry to be the party pooper), so no more than 2 drinks per week is recommended. Instead, why not buy someone some tea? My mom gave me an advent calendar of teas and from someone else gave me their favourite green and mint teas, each with a story about them!
• Box of oranges: While you might think this is a strange recommendation, because the little Japanese “mikan” oranges only come out around this time of year, I think this is a great gift! They are a delicious alternative to some of the high-sugar sweets that are tempting. Oranges are hydrating and rich in nutrients like vitamin C to support a good immune response during this cold and flu season.
• Immune supports: Though this isn’t a “food or drink” recommendation, since I mentioned cold and flu season, some immune-supporting supplements are worth mentioning. Echinacea, oregano oil, vitamin C, and zinc are common recommendations for the immune system, but the ones I keep on hand and take regularly are the Chinese herbal formula Jade Windscreen (Yu Ping Feng San), reishi and other mushrooms, and Suku Immunity gummies. In case of catching a cold, I also like to have things at the ready for the very beginning stages of a cold, so I keep Botanica Throat Spray and Chinese herbal formulas like Gan Mao Ling or Yin Qiao San on hand at home. Ask me, if you want to put together some immune-support formulas for yourself or to gift.

Gifts to bring joy

• Time: Life is short; time is valuable. If you and the person you are gifting to actually like each other, why not make a commitment to spend more time together?
• A hobby: Do you know if the person you are gifting to has a hobby? You could gift them some supplies, a gift certificate, a special tool or implement they’ve always wanted in relationship to that hobby, or a class or book to further their skills. If it’s a class you can do together, you get to give them both time and a hobby–2-for-1!
• If what they really need is some treatment support and/or time to chill, you can also give them a gift certificate to come get treatment from me or check out some of the offerings like reiki, Ayurvedic head massage, and tui na Chinese massage that are offered at the clinic my husband and I own on Main Street between 18th and 19th, called My Rest.