Spring Detox

Detoxification has become a bit of a trend over the last decade. It is actually a necessity to keep the body maintained. The same as you take your car into the mechanic to get a service every 6 months or a every year; to keep the car running at it’s optimal level. The same is true with our body: if we cleanse the body every 6 months, we can keep the body at an optimal level with optimal health.

Spring into Spring with a detox to reboot your system, revitalise your body, and renew your energy. Reset your body with a 7 days Spring Detox to feel amazing for the Summer months ahead. 

Here are my Spring Detox Diet guidelines to cleanse the body....

1. Focus on eating whole foods: vegetables, fruit, whole grains, nuts, seeds, and legumes. Eat a variety of different fruits and vegetables everyday.

2. Drink at least 8 cups of water daily: The body is made up of at least 60% water, which makes water the best detoxifying fluid. Always have a drink bottle with you to sip during day. Try to avoid drinking a lot with meals, as liquid will dilute your digestive power. If you struggle to drink water then you can jazz up your water with adding lemon, lime, orange, grapefruit, mint, or cucumber to add some flavour.

3. Snacks: Some people need to eat constantly and others do not snack between meal times. Raw vegetables, green juice, and fresh fruits are the most ideal snacks as they are light and digest easily.

4. Lunch and Dinners: focus on 1/4 plate Protein, 1/4 plate Complex Carbohydrate, 1/2 plate Vegetables / Large salad.

5. Eat living foods that are raw and are packed full of enzymes. Raw foods are in there natural forms and have not been cooked, microwaved, frozen, or steamed.

Best Foods to support Detoxification:

• Fresh Fruit

• Fresh Vegetables and Greens

• Fresh pressed Vegetable and Fruit juices

• Nuts and seeds

• Legumes (in moderation)

• Fresh herbs and spices

• Mineral Water

• Herbal Teas (caffeine free)

Foods to Avoid during the 7 day Detox:

• Meat, Fish, Poultry, and Eggs

• Dairy products

• Refined Sugar: Sweets, cakes, biscuits, chocolate

• Breads, pasta, cereals, wheat products

• Refined and Processed foods

• Fatty and Fried Foods

• Alcohol

• Caffeine: Coffee, black tea, and energy drinks

Written by Naturopath Erin O'Hara 

Moving Through the Seasons

It has been a summer to remember with warm tropical temperatures.  We may want to hold onto the light and warmth that we've enjoyed, or perhaps we're looking forward to the cooler months ahead. No matter our preference the wheel is about to turn and we must roll with it.  This time of changing seasons presents an opportunity to re-evaluate your lifestyle and boost your immunity before the cooler months settle in.  Here are five tips to help you transition seamlessly and supercharge your health...

Cleanse your body 

Moving into Autumn is the perfect time to reconsider your diet, to cleanse and re-balance the body before the winter bugs get the chance to sneak in. Embrace the offering of the delicious variety of fresh fruit and vegetables available. Enjoy fresh pumpkins, parsnips, sweet potatoes, apples, pears, figs, and berries. Maybe challenge yourself for a week and remove all processed foods and sugary treats from your diet. Focus all your meals and snacks around fresh fruits, vegetable, nuts, seeds, and wholegrains to cleanse your palette. A clean diet will help your digestive function improve and boost your overall health. In natural medicine, we regularly look at disease starting with poor detoxification from the digestive system.

Boost Your Immunity

With the changing season, now is the time to boost your immune system to prepare your body before winter. Some of my favourite natural immunity boosters are: eating plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables, drink at least 8 cups of mineral water daily, Vitamins like B, C, and D, zinc and CMD (Concentrated Mineral Drops); or medicinal super boosting herbs like Echinacea, Withania, Astragalus, Andrographis, Garlic, Olive leaf, Shiitake mushroom, and Ginger. Our Pure Cure Clinic can make up herbal formulations specific to your needs.

Move your Body

During the warmer summer months we love to spend more time outside. Naturally we are more likely to move our bodies and enjoy walking and swimming at the beach. As the temperature begin to drop in the months to come, don’t let it stop you from moving your body and enjoying the fresh Autumn breeze. While the summer motivation is high, create a regular routine to move your body on a daily basis. Find an enjoyable way to gently move your body to keep yourself fit and healthy. Great options could be walking, yoga, swimming, going to the gym, cycling, or find a dance class to get your groove on!

Embrace a Daily Meditation practice

We quiet often put a lot of emphasis on keeping the physical body balanced but it is just as important to take the time to de-clutter the mind.  If you have never done a meditation practice you can start simply with a home meditation practice of 5 – 11 minutes of a breathing meditation (pranayama) or mantra meditation (chanting).  It is best to do the same meditation everyday and start with a commitment of 40 days.  Ideally practice little and often to unload the mind and clear the subconscious.  Book in for a one-on-one and we will customise the right meditation for you.

Take time to reflect

We move from the summer towards the Autumn Equinox on the 20th March, which is a great time to empower yourself and use the energy of this sacred day, where there is an equal amount of daylight and darkness. This powerful day offers us the opportunity to balance the light of our consciousness with the darkness of our shadow.  At this time of transition we can let go of anything that no longer represents us and make energetic space for new doors of opportunity to open.  Take this time to reflect on your life, make positive changes in your lifestyle, and realign to your goals.

Spring Cleansing

There is a clear-crisp feeling in the air that has the power to reveal new visions and inspires new possibilities.  In nature this is the best time to plant seeds, we can mirror nature’s way in our lives by sowing the seeds we wish to harvest in the upcoming months. So when the spring equinox passes on September 23rd, the shift in universal energy will infuse us with the inspiration to ‘spring’ into action setting us up for the season ahead - summer!  

As an acupuncturist we look at health in relation to the seasons, if you have had a challenging winter, look back to your experience of autumn – often stressful autumn months result in stress on the immune system in winter.  With September in full-swing, you now have a chance to reconnect to the start of a new cycle and connect with health practices that will reward you in the seasons to come.  Perhaps it’s time to see your naturopath to receive a herbal remedy to enhance your constitution and gain some lifestyle tweaks, or consider rolling out that yoga mat that’s been away much of the winter,  or visit an acupuncturist to balance your system.

In winter there is a natural tendency to indulge in comfort foods, that which keeps us warm and reminds us of childhood – which is a necessary part of nurture for the year.  Spring then offers natural energy to shift to eating lighter meals to align with lighter days.   This season your body may start to let go of warm foods and broths and you may feel like adding a little more salad to your diet again or even a green smoothie!  A good idea is to have a green smoothie in the afternoon around 3pm to honour the time of the liver, which is the organ that relates to spring! Blend coconut water, spinach, kale, pear and a medjool date together for a cleansing spring delight.  

Written by Angie Gervan