by Dr. Shelese Pratt ND @ The Pratt Clinics
Boulder, Colorado
303.284.3180
It is the time of year to find renewal. Spring is the time to clean out your house. It’s also the most optimal time to cleanse your body. In Chinese medicine, spring is the best season to work with cleaning out the liver. During the spring months you might notice you feel a little more irritable, you might have less patience, your energy is usually lower, you could be putting on some extra weight and you may notice you wake up too early. If you have any of these symptoms or would like to feel more vibrant, try my cleanse protocol.
Springtime is a perfect time of year to detoxify your liver, reduce inflammation in your body, and renew your health. I ask my patients to look at a spring detox as a 6-week commitment. You don’t need to buy expensive juice programs, or costly supplements to detoxify your body. Here are some great suggestions to try this spring.
1. Go off all caffeine, alcohol and some of your over the counter drugs (Tylenol, sleep aids, antacids). Tylenol is extremely toxic to the liver and it significantly reduces your strongest anti-oxidant (glutathione) in the body, for several days with each dose. These over the counter drugs deplete you of important nutrients and are also very hard on your detoxification pathways. We can find natural ways to treat the symptoms you are trying to manage with over the counter medications.
2. Try an anti-inflammatory diet. This diet eliminates the most common inflammatory foods like sugar, gluten, dairy, seafood, nuts, banana, and oranges. For the full diet, please look at my Anti-Inflammatory Diet handout. This is also a great time to increase foods like artichoke, turmeric, and dark green leafy vegetables (parsley, cilantro, spinach, kale, chard, watercress, dandelion and endive). All of the ingredients found in my favorite Spring Smoothie recipe are perfect for detoxification.
3. Don’t forget to consume organic protein! You need protein to carry toxins out of your body. This is why I don’t recommend fasting. I suggest 2 oz of meat at least twice a day. Meats you may want to have include, organic lamb, bison, beef, and turkey.
4. Many of you have heard this…. “I would swim in castor oil everyday, if I could!” Castor oil is amazing for you and it will keep you young! Castor oil is a whole system tonic, when applied and absorbed slowly through your skin. Castor oil detoxifies your liver, moves your lymphatic system (the sewer system of your body), tones your immune system to respond appropriately, heals the gastro-intestinal lining, and encourages restorative sleep. Check out my Castor Oil Pack handout to learn how 45 minutes a day can make a big difference in your health.
5. Increasing circulation and sweating is another way to remove toxins from your body. Exercise for at least 30 minutes/day. Dry skin brushing towards your heart will also move that sluggish lymphatic system and help you detoxify. You can also try a simple hydrotherapy technique by ending your showers with 30 seconds of cold water to boost your circulation.
6. Stay hydrated with clean water and electrolytes. You can add a pinch of sea salt to your filtered water to add electrolytes, if you don’t want to buy them. If you are hydrated, you will flush toxins and stress hormones out of your body.
7. Go to bed early (before midnight) and get more sleep. This gives your body the 8-10 hours it needs to repair and get restorative sleep.
Spring is a wonderful time to renew your health. Cleansing is a fantastic way to reduce your oxidative stress and inflammation. Detoxification will improve your mood, energy, weight loss, and you will get more restful sleep. Your mitochondria will function better giving you more energy and your methylation pathways will help repair your cells and put you in a better mood. You don’t need to spend a lot of money to clean out toxins. Try these simple steps for 6 weeks and let me know how you feel. If you have any questions, please contact my office. It’s my passion to help you thrive in health.
Spring Smoothie
1 cup of cilantro
2 stalks of fennel
1 slice of lemon with the rind
½ avocado peeled
*1 avocado pit
16 oz. of water
1 cup of watercress or endive
Blend until smooth.
* You must have a strong blender (Vitamix, BlendTech etc.) to break up the avocado pit.