BETTER FOOD CHOICES, A SMART PLACE TO START
Losing weight and getting rid of toxins are among the most popular New Year’s Resolutions. They are admirable goals to achieve good health. However, restrictive diets and stringent detox programs may not the best choices for cold weather. During the winter our bodies are working hard to protect us from winter illnesses and keeping us warm. Extreme diets and detoxes increase stress on the immune system.
Spring is a better time to cleanse the system. In the Spring the body is waking as are other systems of nature: animals come out of hibernation, sap rises in dormant plants to bring new leaves and blossoms. It’s a natural time for waking and rejuvenation.
NATURAL DETOX
Our bodies are equipped with vital organs that act to constantly neutralize, filter, and transport wastes from the body. The lungs, liver, kidneys, blood, intestines, lymph system and skin work together to help keep us free from harmful elements.
Unfortunately we live in a world where toxins are so abundant that our bodies work overtime to eliminate them and still can’t keep up with our exposure to such materials as heavy metals, drug residue, pesticides, and petroleum based chemicals. We get them from the air we breath, and ingest them by eating contaminated foods and water. We absorb them through the skin. When the body’s elimination system is overwhelmed, these toxins are stored deep in our tissues and continue to degrade our health and passes from mother to child. New studies have demonstrated an alarming amount of toxins in the blood of the umbilical chord.1
A gentler place to begin is with the foods we choose. What we decide to put in our bodies can support our natural elimination process.
WHAT ARE THE RIGHT FOODS?
Samuel Hahnemann (1755-1843), the founder of homeopathy, recognized that a person’s life style, including food and drink, can contribute to disease. He felt that until life style was corrected, no medicines should be given. Life style changes might be enough to cure disease.
James Compton Burnett (1840-1901), a prominent British homeopath, recognized that an holistic approach was of more benefit than local treatment of the isolated diseased part: “We must act on the whole constitution in the same way we would direct our attention to the whole tree when it bears decayed fruit.”2 He also understood the relationship of the consumption of sugar and salt and sugar as contributing to diseases like cataracts, high blood pressure, and diabetes. A holistic approach includes health-promoting foods.
Since homeopathic recommendations depend on the individual, no specific diets are recommended. However, at times a short term therapeutic eating plans may be recommended to enhance the body’s healing.
General guidelines to choosing foods that will support us and not add to our body burden are foods that are fresh, natural, and local. Foods should be nutrient-rich and free from pesticide residue, artificial colors, complex carbohydrates such as white flours and sugars, high fructose corn syrup, and trans-fats.
Cruciferous vegetables such as Brussels sprouts, kale, and bok choy help remove toxins from the liver, improve cholesterol metabolism, and provide anti-oxident protection. They provide vital nutrients such as Vitamins C & K, minerals like potassium, and dietary fiber. These nutrients support the eyes, blood, bones and give us immunity.
Other green vegetables contain vitamins A, E, C, K, niacin, thiamine, and folic acid.
Root vegetables such as beets and carrots provide calcium lactate, a calcium source easily absorbed by the body and nutrients that support and protect the overall healthy functions of the liver and the body.
Other foods that we can eat to support our health include whole grains, grass-fed meats free from hormones and antibiotics, fish, organic free-range eggs, organic or raw whole diary products, and pure water. One place to find guidelines for healthy eating can be found at the Weston A. Price Foundation website.
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SOURCES
2 Chitkara, H.L., Best of Burnett, B.Jain Publishers Pvt. Ltd., 2007 (reprint), p. 9.
1Environmental Working Group BodyBurden: Body Burden — The Pollution in Newborns.
O’Reilly, Oraganon of the Medical Art by Samuel Hahnemann, 1996.
