Well-being problems may be prevented or treated at least in part by cleansing and detoxification. The incorporation of dietary changes, including consumption of more fresh fruits, vegetables and water while reducing animal fats and proteins and eliminating any stimulants is the beginning of the renewal process for the human body.
An Important Healing Process
The simplest way to understand symptoms and disease integrates Western linear thinking, Chinese medicine and its philosophy of yin and yang, and the naturopathic approach to health and illness.
Problems in the body (and mind) often arise from either deficiency, where we are not acquiring sufficient necessary nutrients to meet our needs and body functions, and congestion, where we are having excessive intake, both from reduced eliminative functions and the over-consumption of foods or non-food substances, such as caffeine, alcohol, nicotine, refined sugar and food chemicals.
People who are deficient may experience such problems as fatigue, coldness, hair loss or dry skin, and they need to be nourished with wholesome foods to aid healing.
Congestive problems, acute and chronic medical diseases and dilemmas result from the clogging of our tissues and tubes, and the suffocating of our cells and vital energy.
Colds and flus to cancer and cardiovascular diseases, arthritis and allergies are all examples of congestive disorders.
The detoxification process (they are different degrees of the same process of reduced toxin intake and enhanced toxin elimination) to be the missing link in Western nutrition and a key to the health and vitality of our civilization. In my twenty years of naturopathic practice I truly believe living with the seasons is the missing link to health and vitality.
Eating with the seasons
Eating seasonal food, dieting or fasting to cleanse the body, and reserving certain foods for special occasions are practical concepts that have survived through the centuries and maintain relevance today. Eating with the seasons aligns your body with a natural cycle of fortifying and detoxing. Foods come into season at exactly the time we need them.
Autumn harvest festivals saw people eating root vegetables and meats that fortified their bodies against the cold.
The Christmas feast is notorious for large amounts of rich, warming food.
Spring & summer provide lighter, greener leafy produce and mouth watering fruit for hydration.
Eating rituals have long incorporated the wisdom of eating seasonal food that prepares our bodies for the upcoming season.
THE DETOX DIET
SPECIAL GUIDELINES for SPRING DETOX :
1. Chew your food very well and take enough time when you eat.
2. Relax a few minutes before and after your meal.
3. Eat in a comfortable sitting position.
4. Eat primarily steamed fresh vegetables and some fresh greens.
5. Take only herbal teas after dinner.
THE DETOX DIET MENU PLAN
Morning (upon arising): Two glasses of water, one glass with half a lemon and a tablespoon of oil squeezed into it.
Breakfast: One piece of fresh fruit (at room temp), such as apple, pear, grapes, or citrus. Chew well, mixing each bite with saliva.
15-30 minutes later: One bowl of cooked whole grains–specifically millet, brown rice, amaranth, quinoa, raw buckwheat, or oat porridge
Lunch (Noon-1 P.M.) One-two medium bowls of steamed vegetables; use a variety, including roots, stems, and greens–e.g. yams, green beans, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, beets, asparagus, kale, chard, and cabbage. CHEW WELL !
Dinner (5-6 P.M.) Same as Lunch
Seasoning –Ghee or flaxseed oil mixture.
mix half cup of cold-pressed flaxseed oils into a soft (room temperature) half-pound of butter; then place in dish and refrigerate. Use about one teaspoon per meal or a maximum of 3 teaspoons daily. Add sunflower lecithin to help emulsify the fats.
11 A.M. & 3 P.M. One-two cups vegetable juice water, saved from steamed vegetables.
Add a little sea salt or kelp and drink slowly, mixing each mouthful with saliva.
Evening: Herbal teas only
NOTE: You may feel a little weak or have a few symptoms the first couple of days; this will pass. Clarity and feeling good should appear by day 3 or 4, if not before. If during this diet, you start to feel weak or hungry, assess your water intake and elimination; if needed, you can eat a small portion of protein food (3-4 ounces) in the mid-afternoon. This could be fish; free-range, organic chicken; or some beans, such as lentil, garbanzo, mung, or black beans
Managing the movement of toxic load during seasonal cleanse.
Toxicity will move naturally from cellular layers through the organs of elimination. The naturopaths' skill is to help you understand the language of the body as it communicates its passage and facilitate the body to process it. Fatigue is often a sign of overburdened organs and systems not aligned to seasonal cleanses.
Properly managed under the guidance of a naturopath, wellbeing is preserved and vitality experienced.
May the natural seasonal healing prescriptions provided by mother nature serve your wellbeing.
WIth Warmth,
Gee
Working with Gee Gahir, a Pioneer of holistic wellbeing services within the NHS, and Co-founder of Wellbeing Wizards, a podcast platform that provides insights into transforming wellbeing, Gee is an accredited EMCC intuitive lifestyle coach providing preventative naturopathic mind-body-space solutions to facilitate vibrant health and balanced lifestyles.
Connect with Gee to arrange a personalised coaching experience.