Category Archives: Nutrition and Health

Easy Spring Cleanse for the Liver

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By Colleen Cannon

The whole idea in the spring is to “lighten up,” and eating light spring foods and thinking light spring thoughts can really be beneficial to your lightness of being.

A great way to start spring is with an internal cleanse. My favorite one is a lemon cleanse. I think it is my favorite because I love lemonade. You take about a half of a lemon and squeeze the juice out, then add a little maple syrup and a little cayenne pepper. I typically do a three-day liver cleanse and I drink a bunch of this stuff, around 8-10 glasses each day. A good compromise is to do it every morning when you get up.

The reason this cleanse is so important is that the organs of spring are the liver and the gall bladder. The liver is one of the body’s most important organs. With more than 100 known functions, the liver does everything from aiding in the metabolism of the foods we eat, to helping with the formation and filtering of blood, to removing toxins, to helping clot our blood.

The liver is also the organ hardest hit from our modern lifestyle. Stress, high fat diets, environmental toxins, drugs and alcohol, and processed and impure foods all depend on the liver to make things right with the body. So when the liver is overstressed by our lifestyle, it can become stagnant or out of balance. Some of the physical symptoms of liver stagnation are allergies; swelling of the abdomen, chest or breasts; menstrual problems; neck and back tension; eye problems; fatigue; slow rising in the morning; and muscle and tendon pain.

While the physical signs are important, most liver imbalance is recognized by the emotional symptoms, which include, anger, frustration, impatience, edginess, depression, poor judgment, inability to make decisions and overall negativity. These are all common for spring when the liver is out of balance. So not surprisingly, the emotion of spring is anger, which should be avoided to the extent possible as your mind and spirit might be easily agitated this time of the year. However, it is also important not to ignore or repress these volatile emotions as they can lead stress on the spring organs. Find a safe place to release these gremlins and let the world know you are alive with a roar of your own.

To support and restore balance to the liver, the spring diet is very important. Spring diets are less complicated and include foods that are lighter in contrast to heavier winter foods. Raw foods such as greens, vegetables, sprouts, and shoots are emphasized in the spring as are minimal cooking methods. With sour being the taste of spring, lemons, limes, sour plums and vinegars are used as well to help stimulate and detoxify the liver.

The Chinese direction for spring is east, the direction from which the sun rises, giving birth to a new day. The sense organ of spring is the eyes, which it is said nourish the body and soul by the visual splendor of the season. Another indicator of spring is your nails. If your eyesight is a little off or your nails are cracking or dull, these also can be due to liver imbalance in the spring.

Spring is the season of rebirth. It is the season of movement from yin towards yang, from inner to outer. Chinese tradition suggests this is the season to rise with the sun and drink in the renewal around you. Spring is the promised gift of winter; drink it in.

Spring Nutrition

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Spring is green and new and our foods for the season reflect it. Our spring diet is the lightest and simplest of the year and is also designed to support the liver and gall bladder. Our diet this season should reflect the expanding energy of the spring and focus on what is available; fresh greens, sprouts and young plants. This is also the time of year to leave the sodium-rich, sinking-energy diet of winter behind. The heavier diet of the winter can overtax the liver at this time of renewal.

Salads made of spring greens with lemon-based dressings are ideal this time of year. Cooking styles also change with spring. Very fast sautés, a yummy stir fry and quick steaming are best to get the digestive benefits of cooking while leaving the raw nature of the foods intact.

One of the best examples of spring is the humble dandelion. This little wonder is one of the first new plants we see blooming in spring. While the yellow flowers nourish the eyes (the Chinese sense organ for spring), the leaves are one of the best foods for spring. Dandelion greens are young, green and sour—all of the qualities of spring foods, and an excellent detoxifier for the liver.

With this in mind, look for simple ways to present greens, salads with lighter proteins, bitter or sour vegetables and just eating less. This should provide you with more time to go outside, breath in the new air of spring, count dandelions or watch the clouds drift by in the golden afternoon light.

Thinking about what is naturally available these days, good foods for spring include:

Vegetables: Artichokes, asparagus, beets, beets greens, bok choy, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, carrots, celery, chard, collard greens, kale, dandelion and mustard greens, cilantro, green onions, green peas, leaf lettuces, mushrooms, rhubarb, spinach and watercress.
Proteins: As the liver cleansing season, we want to keep proteins as light as possible and typically served in smaller portions in salads. Fish, chicken, turkey and even small amounts of beef are all right in moderation.
Seaweeds: Agar, arame, dulse, hijiki, kelp, kombu, nori and wakame.
Cooked grains: Barley, buckwheat, corn, rice, rye, and wheat.
Beans: Adzuki, pinto, garbanzo, lentil, fava and mung.
Nuts and seeds: Walnut, pecan, almond, and sunflower, alfalfa, clover, radish seeds (ideally sprouted).
Fruits: Avocado, lemon, grapefruit, lime, olive, date, orange, tangelo, strawberry and tangerines.
Spices: Turmeric, basil, bay leaf, cumin, cardamom, dill, marjoram, fennel, black pepper, horseradish, rosemary and mint.

Costa Rica Surf and Yoga Smoothie Report!

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Our March Women’s Quest Costa Rica Surf & Yoga retreat is coming up in just a few weeks and we have received an email with a refreshing smoothie recipe from the restaurant staff at Pranamar, the amazing place we will be staying.  They make the BEST food and drinks for us whenever we are down there and the staff is the most friendly group of people you will ever meet.  It is truly food quest.  Your appetite will double when you are out of the surf board and in the sun and they make it easy to eat everything and even lick your plate!  We have 1 spots remaining, so reserve them while you can by clicking here!  Enjoy!

Mango Glaze:
Mango
Yogurt
Almonds
Honey
Ice

Blend all in the blender and enjoy!  You can also substitute the Mango for other fruits such as Strawberries, Papaya or Banana.

Cold and Flu Health Rescue, By Dr Bea Knight-Johnson, DC

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Winter is the season we bundle up from head to toe, and dread getting sick. Yet when our immune system is challenged (by stress, lack of sleep, or being around too many people with colds) – we can succumb to a cold or cough. Bummer!
We have some REMEDIES to help you through this cold and dark time of year.
Diane and I go see Dr Bea for chiropractic and nutritional care and we both have had great results. She gave us some tips from her monthly newsletter.
Be well.

COLD AND FLU RESCUE by Dr. Bea Knight-Johnson, DC

You know that something is wrong… Maybe you have the beginnings of a scratchy throat, you’ve been really tired for the past few days for no reason, your eyes are tired. You know you are coming down with something. What do you do?

GAN MAO LING: This is great for the very first line of defense. It’s a powerful little pill from China. The kind I have from your local Asian Market may be fresher than the brand from Whole Foods. Start with 5 pills every 2 hours or so, until you think you have averted the problem. Gan Mao Ling is only good at the very beginning -if you think you are getting something. If you already have a full fledged cold/flu, stop taking the Gan Mao Ling.

ZINC LOZENGES: Start by sucking (not chewing) on l/4 lozenge every 30 minutes. If you get nauseated, stop immediately as this could be a sign of zinc toxicity.

3% HYDROGEN PEROXIDE: Start this immediately. Put a 3-4 drops H202 in each ear -one at a time. There will be some tickling bubbling and in the rare case, some mild stinging. Lie down with the treated ear up and wait until the bubbling subsides (5-10 minutes). Do the other ear. Repeat every four hours. Don’t get H202 in your eyes. This is safe for kids, but they might be afraid of the loud bubbling.

PHYTOGEN, ISATIS AND COPTIS: This will take care of both viruses and bacteria. Start with two of each every 2 hours for the first day then cut back. Coptis is a foul tasting tincture but works like a dream. Start with 2 droppers full every 2 hours in a bit of juice or water then cut back. By then you may have seen me and we can adjust your dose. Don’t worry, you can’t OD on these supplements, and at first you will need very large doses to jump start your healing.

BUFFERED C POWDER: Start by taking about 1/2 t. every hour in water or diluted juice until you reach bowel tolerance. If you are getting sick, this may be many grams of vitamin C, but vitamin C is a important for fighting illness (and you just can’t eat enough oranges to have the impact you need.)

ESSENTIAL OILS: The most important oil now is called “Thieves.” Use liberally on your throat, chest, lymph nodes and feet. (Kids: Use liberally on feet.) Also get Purification and R.C. and use the same way, although RC is especially good for chest colds and asthma. Essential oils are not just a pretty face; they are very powerful healing agents.

OTHER THINGS TO DO (and not to do). Don’t go to work. Sleep as much as you can. Devote your days to getting well. Eat lightly, but drink lots of liquids. As soon as you can, make yourself the following concoction.
RECIPE: Pour one gallon of filtered water into your big stock pot into which you will put a 5″ piece of ginger (washed and chopped), 4 organic lemons, skin on and quartered, a whole head of garlic, cloves separated and smashed with your big knife a bit, then cayenne and honey to taste. Simmer for about 1 1/2 hour, strain and sip the whole gallon throughout the day, hot or cold.

SAY NO TO DRUGS. Never reduce a fever of under 103 degrees with drugs. The fever is there for a reason. Fevers are not dangerous as long as you keep hydrated. Most colds and flus are caused by viruses, so antibiotics would not work anyway.

Make sure your bowels are moving well; this will get rid of accumulated waste and toxins. If you are constipated, you will retain the toxins longer and be sick longer. Start by using I t. of psyllium in diluted juice 4 times a day. Eat prunes or take an herbal laxative.

HOT TEA/HOT BATH COMBO: First of all, make the following tea (or use the one above): A tablespoon each of elder flower, peppermint and yarrow in a quart of water. Or buy a packaged detox or cold/flu tea and use several tea bags to one quart of water. Bring to a boil, turn off the heat, then steep for about 1/2 an hour. Put your strained steeped hot tea in a thermos and drink it while you are in the hot tub. Put at least 1 cup each of baking soda and Epsom Salts in the bath water along with a few drops of Thieves. Lie there and sweat for as long as you can. Carefully get out of the tub (you may be dizzy), wrap yourself up in your coziest bathrobe, lie down and keep sweating. This will create an artificial fever and will help your white blood cells zap the bad guys. (If you have a fever, forget the hot tub process.)

PREVENTION: The most important thing: WASH YOUR HANDS! Keep washing them! This is how bacteria and viruses are transmitted. Shaking hands with an infected person will be more dangerous for you than kissing them. Anti-bacterial soaps are not effective, and contain harsh chemicals. Don’t use them. Stop eating all sugar, especially around the holidays when everyone is getting sick. Sugar has been proven to kill your white blood cells for up to 4 hours. What will you fight incoming bugs with if you have no immune system? Start upping your raw garlic intake as garlic is an antibacterial, antiviral and antifungal agent. Add plain yogurt to your diet or take an acidophilus/bifidus supplement. Eat right and on the alkaline side. Ask me for my sheet that explains acid/alkaline balance. There are also many immune enhancing supplements which you could take.

FLU SHOTS: I avoid them. Flu shots are made from toxic chemicals and virus strains grown on living tissue. Flu shots contain antifreeze, carbolic acid, formaldehyde, aluminum, mercury and neomycin or streptomycin. Flu shots are thought to promote Alzheimer’s disease, cancer, chronic fatigue and very bad cases of the flu. If you still want a flu shot, ask your M.D. to provide you with the insert that reveals the composition of this year’s flu vaccination and read that. Then it’s up to you.

Dr. Bea Knight-Johnson, DC www.DrBea.com