Spring Detox – How to detox and which herbs help
It might not feel much like spring, but with March 20th behind us, the season of rebirth and growth is here… technically. March, April, and May are great times to reinvigorate any good habits we started in January but let slide over the last couple of months. It’s also a great time to have a spring detox! Below, we look at how to detox and which herbs help.
Why detox in spring?
Many health care practitioners recommend a twice-yearly detox – once in spring and again in fall. A spring detox can help shake off the cobwebs from a more sedentary winter season and put some pep in your step for the next few months and into summer.
When done right, a detox is a great way to support the body in more efficiently eliminating toxins. This helps support better all round health, with your body able to focus on energy and healing instead of managing the adverse effects of lingering chemicals and metabolic byproducts that slow you down.
How to detox in spring
One of the easiest approaches to a spring detox is to follow an elimination diet for at least three weeks. This can help your system reset if you’ve been struggling with allergies or food sensitivities and the histamine overload that can happen with damp wintery weather and mold spores followed by springtime pollen.
An elimination diet usually means eliminating processed foods and the most common allergenic foods, including:
- Wheat and gluten
- Peanuts
- Soy
- Dairy
- Eggs.
For a more thorough detox, consider also eliminating:
- Tomatoes
- Corn
- Sugar
- Oranges
- Yeast
- Caffeine (in tea, coffee, chocolate, and pop)
- Artificial preservatives, flavorings, and colorings.
If you participated in dry January, you may have continued avoiding alcohol in February and March. If not, make your spring detox more effective by skipping the wine, beer, and spirits for the next few weeks.
In addition to giving your body a break from the booze, try to drink more water and include more fresh fruits and vegetables for added fibre. This will help support regular bowel movements which, in turn, play a key role in eliminating hormonal metabolites and toxins.
Once your three weeks of detox are done, start reintroducing each food, one at a time, with a 3-4 day gap in between. This gives you a chance to see if your body reacts to any of these foods in particular. Look for symptoms of food sensitivity such as:
- A runny nose
- Fatigue
- Headaches
- Changes in bowel habits
- Skin reactions.
If you notice any of these symptoms, eliminate the food again, give it a few days, then try reintroducing the food one more time. If your symptoms recur, consider keeping this food off your plate longer term, then move on to reintroduce the next food on your elimination list.
Other ways to support a spring detox
The best approach to a spring detox is to eliminate, as far as possible, any sources of toxicity in your diet and lifestyle. This might mean following the elimination program above, but can also include:
- Quitting smoking
- Improving air quality at your home or work through air filters
- Avoiding the use of certain cosmetics or body care products
- Using natural, non-toxic cleaning products
- Filtering your water (including shower and bath water!)
- Choosing home furnishings, textiles, and clothes that are non-toxic and natural.
There are many possible sources of toxic chemicals in our homes and wider environments. A new mattress, sofa, carpet, or dining set can, for example, off-gas formaldehyde and other volatile organic compounds (VOCs). When you breathe these in or absorb toxic chemicals through your skin, your body has to work harder to render the chemicals safe (if possible) and get them out of your system.
Avoiding toxic chemicals in the first place makes it much easier for your body to stay on top of detoxification.
Herbs to support a spring detox
Several herbs and nutritional supplements help to support detoxification. These include:
- Dandelion
- Milk thistle
- Green tea
- Licorice
- Cascara
- Chlorella
- Spirulina
- Peppermint
- Turmeric/curcumin.
These botanical extracts help to detoxify the liver, colon, kidneys, skin, lungs, and lymphatic system. Before using any detox supplements, however, it’s best to consult a health care practitioner, especially if you are taking medications or have existing health conditions.
A shout-out to psyllium and turmeric
In addition to the extracts above, consider adding psyllium husk to your daily diet. This fibre helps to stimulate bowel movements and can bind to toxins to help get them out of your system. Psyllium husk can also improve nutrient absorption from food by delaying gastric emptying.
Put another way, this fibre helps give your gut more of a chance to take in the nutrients in your food, while also helping to reduce blood sugar spikes after eating.
Finally, psyllium can help to reduce low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, which has the added benefit of supporting good cardiovascular health and blood flow (which is essential for detoxification!).
As for turmeric, this spice is a natural liver protector and helps to stimulate the gallbladder and bile excretion by the liver. This means turmeric helps the body to better digest fats and process any toxic chemicals safely.
As a source of the potent antioxidant curcumin, turmeric can also help to protect the body’s cells and tissues from toxins released during a detox. This may help you avoid some detox symptoms that can occur when your body starts to spring clean!
Final thoughts on spring detox
We’ve talked about diet, environmental and lifestyle toxins, and herbs and nutrients that help with a spring detox, but what else can you do to leap forward with the clocks?
To give your body an even better chance at ridding itself of any lingering toxins, make sure to get regular exercise. Ideally, this means raising your heart rate and working up a sweat.
Sweating is one of the best ways the body has of eliminating toxins, with exercise-induced sweating generally considered more effective than sweating it out in a sauna. Exercise also helps to support good blood flow for better nutrient delivery and waste removal from cells and tissues.
If you’re itching to detox and have medical concerns or take medications, it’s always best to consult a health care provider before making any major changes to your diet and lifestyle. Detoxification can alter how your body processes certain drugs and may require a change in dose or timing.