spring : notes from my naturopath

I see my naturopath once a season. While the financial cost of the appointment and the subsequent herbal tonics is significant, I firmly believe that it's the very best thing I've ever done for my health. I am rarely tired, I have only had two minor colds in one year and most of the time I feel strong and well. I'm a better mother because of it and much happier in my self.

Last week I went along to my appointment keen to find out a bit more about eating well in the spring time. I was at the tail end of a cold and as soon as I walked in the door my naturopath, Catherine, reminded me that my body was "spring cleaning" itself. "The liver is getting rid of the bulk from winter," she said. "It's a cleanse, not a cold." 

Nature is cleansing too - those wild winds that come every August...that's the earth decluttering. It's a good time to remind ourselves that we are nature, experiencing our own regeneration of sorts.

While I listened to Catherine talk about the seasons, the importance of looking to the earth for our food and the benefits of eating with awareness, I took notes. Here they are:

• eat kale, in abundance - raw in salads, tossed through spelt pasta dishes or juiced.
• fennel, celery and beetroot - in season and oh so good for you (fennel is great for breastfeeding mumas - helps stimulate milk production)
• citrus juices
• replace heavy winter foods with lighter, fresher alternatives. raw food!
• root vegetables (roasted with fresh herbs) - eaten with brown rice or salads
• increase vegetarian meals 
• nettle tea for cleansing
• ginger tea for restoring
• less dairy, less sugar, less oils

Catherine also offered this "home remedy" for colds:

"...slice one onion, a lemon (skin on), three cloves of organic garlic, two generous slices of ginger and blend with a few tablespoons of manuka honey. You may like to add a bit of tumeric or cayenne pepper. Have one teaspoon neat per day or mix one teaspoon into lemon tea."

She also suggested I burn the following oils in my home (the smell is divine!):

• frankincense - to strengthen the lungs
• eucalyptus - to purify the blood
• lemon - to clear the air and kill bacteria

Spring, it has begun.