After a particularly warm winter, the calendar has now officially turned to spring. It’s an exciting time of year—the natural world is coming back to life, reborn anew. There is such a sense of fresh possibility in the air!
Spring is a good opportunity to change up the way we eat as well. Take advantage of the new season to detoxify and cleanse your body.
During the winter, we tend to be drawn to heavier foods. Think about what the table looks like at Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner. It’s probably not heavy on the salad, right?
This is only natural. Animals tend to want to eat rich, high calorie foods during the winter to support them as they go into hibernation. We’re no different in our instinct to eat a little extra to help get us through the cold months. It’s a survival instinct, from a time before there were supermarkets importing fresh produce from around the world even in January and February.
However, the start of spring is a good time to shift our eating habits away from heavy winter food to lighter fare that fits with the new season. Our bodies intuitively want to detoxify—they tend to absorb more water in the springtime in order to help flush old toxins from our cells. We can help the process along by avoiding certain foods, including:
- Red meat
- Wheat flour
- Excessive oils
- Dairy
It’s also a good idea to avoid heavy and sour fruits, including oranges, pineapples, bananas, figs, dates, avocados, coconuts and melons. These promote allergies during the spring season.
What foods should we eat?
After a grey winter, think greens, greens, greens! Leafy greens like kale, arugula, chard and spinach are always good, as are fresh herbs like parsley or cilantro. They give your body a supercharged dose of vitamins and minerals, and can help make you feel really good and refreshed.
In general, think gentler, lighter fare, including:
- Leafy greens!
- Peas
- Beans
- Root vegetables
- Berries
- White meats
- Certain grains (barley, rye, corn, millet, and buckwheat)
I also suggest taking chlorophyll, a supplement that is wonderful for cleansing and detoxifying your body. It’s the stuff that makes plants green. You can buy it at Whole Foods. I recommend mixing a tablespoon of chlorophyll powder in with water and drinking it in the mornings to give you a strong start to the day.
Enjoy the change of seasons, and let your body reap the benefits of the earth coming to life around us once more!