TV Dr Amir Khan: How I tackle the dark days of winter

Spending much of his time at his surgery in inner city Bradford, West Yorkshire, TV doctor Amir Khan is well aware of the need to step outdoors and take in some fresh air from time to time.

“It doesn’t matter how busy it is, I try and get outside over lunchtime, so I’ll eat my lunch outside and try to do that in a green place,” says GP Khan, resident doctor on ITV’s Good Morning Britain and Lorraine.

Khan, vice president of The Wildlife Trusts, is supporting 12 Days Wild, the charity’s annual campaign to encourage everyone to do one thing for nature each day over Christmas, from taking a winter walk to getting to know your local bird songs and calls.

The physiological benefits of being in nature include a rise in serotonin and dopamine levels which regulate relaxation and happiness, and a reduction in the stress hormone cortisol, he explains.

“Being in nature is a proven way to improve your mental health. It’s not instead of medication or emergency services, but it’s as well as,” he says.

This is how the TV doctor gets his fix.

I’m wildlife friendly

“I’m a big wildlife gardener, so I’m really lucky to have a garden geared up for wildlife. Through spring and summer it’s all about the plants and the pond, but over autumn and winter I do try to have some plants that might flower over that period.

“I’m really lucky in that I put food out for the birds and there are gorgeous birds that come and visit us – woodpeckers, bullfinches, all sorts. It’s been unseasonably warm and we’ve got a family of hedgehogs that we feed every night which come into the garden. And of course we’ve got foxes as well.

“My main thing is making our garden as welcoming as possible for wildlife.”

I run outdoors

“I go for a run most days. Now, it’s in the dark because it’s before work, but on weekends when I’m not working, it’s a little bit later and I’m lucky enough to run through a woodland and a park and really be in nature for that.”

The rain doesn’t stop me

“There’s no such thing as the wrong weather. It’s just the wrong clothing. It (being outside) makes a massive difference to how I feel in the afternoon when I’m doing my afternoon surgery. From a health point of view, we all need exposure to natural light during the day to help with our circadian rhythm, our sleep and our hormones.

“In the winter it’s so easy to go to work in the dark, come home in the dark and never see the daylight.”

My wife helps

“My wife helps me with the gardening. She doesn’t join me for the runs in the morning. We tried that, it didn’t work out well for either one of us.”

Khan offers the following suggestions to those finding it hard to drag themselves away from the telly during the festive season.

Enjoy the rain

“Even if it’s pouring with rain, if you stand at an open window or an open door and listen to the rain, that is actually being in nature as well. The sound of rain is soothing to us, and the smell of rain as it hits the ground, that petrichor smell as it comes up out of the ground, is fine.”

You don’t have to venture far

“What puts people off sometimes is that the idea of being in nature sounds like you have to go somewhere far away. You don’t have to go anywhere, even if you don’t have a garden.

“You can go out on to a road or a street and just listen for birdsong or look overhead and see what flies over – that is still being in nature.

“If there are any green spaces around you, even if it’s a grass verge or a tree that’s been planted in your street, go up to it and have a feel of it, touch it. That level of mindfulness is enough to calm your body.

“When you are looking at that tree, look at the intricacies of the bark and the branches and the wonderful patterns that happen. Those small things are really key.”

Engage children

“I have nephews and nieces I take out in nature and the kind of questions I ask them are: Tell me five things that you can see, four things you can hear, three things you can smell, two things you can touch, whether it’s a leaf or whatever.

“Those kinds of things just help people concentrate on where they are, because you can be in nature and be on your phone and then you’ve no great benefits to being outside. But if you’re mindful and paying attention, that’s where the benefits really begin.”

Put food and water out

“If you do have a garden just put some water out, whether it’s in a bowl, a dish or whatever. Something will come and either take a bath in it or drink it. And once they know it’s there they will keep coming back. If you put out bird seed, that will attract them, too.”

Go for a walk

“We all over-indulge over Christmas. We’re all guilty of that in a nice way, and one of the ways you can really balance out your blood sugars after a heavy meal is to go for a walk, not sit on the sofa and watch Christmas telly, which you can save for later. Going out for a walk after a meal is a brilliant way to engage the family.”

12 Days Wild, which is free, runs from December 25 to January 5. Registration is now open. For details visit wildlifetrusts.org/12dayswild