In the winter months we naturally crave heavier foods, whereas in the summertime we’re going for lighter foods like salads, summertime fruits and the like (not to mention we’re having a few more celebratory drinks!). So, spring is the perfect time for a spring-clean detox for your body:

Top foods for your spring-clean detox:
• Lemons
• Grapefruit
• Green leafies (the darker the better)
• Cabbage
• Silverbeet
• Spinach

In spring, there tends to be more allergies which are an auto-immune reaction; this means your body sees the allergen as a potential pathogen which could cause harm to the body and it goes into over-drive to get rid of it! This is when you start sneezing, eyes start watering and you get itchy!

Top foods for allergies:
• Garlic (potent immune stimulator): great for treating allergies because it gives our immune system a massive boost. When you're immune system is in check, there's less of a chance of an allergic reaction.

• Ginger (anti-inflammatory effect): is another goodie because it has an anti-inflammatory effect on the body. This means it helps to decrease inflammation. When we have an allergic response it causes inflammation in the body. Signs of inflammation are itchiness, redness, pain and swelling.

• And oranges - eat the white stuff around our oranges to a) make vitamin C more absorbable and easier for the body to assimilate and b) to help have an antihistamine effect on the body’s allergic reaction!

Sunshine:
You may have noticed that over the last couple of weeks coming into spring, you’re in a happier mood. This is to do with the vitamin D you get from the sunshine in spring. Vitamin D is also great for bone health and skin.

Finally, all of these foods here not only help to detox the body, but they’re all in season right now, which is why it is so important to eat seasonally. Plus, your produce is going to taste its best!

Spring-Clean Detox
Your digestive system is like the king of your body because it has an effect on every other system. When you’re digestive system is in tip-top shape, then the rest of your body is in tip-top shape too! Most people don’t go to the loo for number two’s (in other words they don’t do a poo or pass a stool!) as often as they should. Think about it, one meal goes in the mouth and another should pass out. So if you’re eating three meals a day then technically you should be pooing three times a day. Don’t stress if this isn’t you. Most people don’t go that often, but it’s a great idea to aim for at least one per day. Why? Because we want your organs of elimination to be functioning optimally to ensure there is no build-up of toxins in our body, get your digestive system moving to help detoxify your body. If you’re constipated you can have low energy, a foggy mind and uncomfortable gut pains. So to prevent this, I’ve come up with a few simple tricks and tips:

Increase your fibre intake with whole grains, nuts, seeds, legumes, oats, skins of fruit and veggies, leafy greens. Fibre acts like an ‘intestinal broom’ as it helps to push food through your intestines, thus keeping you regular!

• The more fibre you’re eating the more water you’ll require as fibre soaks up water when it reaches your intestinal tract. Most people are walking around dehydrated! If you find it hard to concentrate, get headaches and your skin is dry, the answer could simply be water! Aim for 1 litre of water for every 22kg of body weight per day. If this seems like a lot then just slowly increase your water intake each day. When you’re exercising more you’ll find it much easier to drink up!

• Exercise: just going for a simple power walk will stimulate all your organs of elimination. How’s this: in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) they say we have a meridian (point of energy) in our deltoid muscle in our upper-arm, which stimulates our large intestine. So when you exercise, really swing those arms to stimulate your large intestine! Exercise really stimulates your metabolism, so if you wake up and you’re not hungry, go for a walk or a run (even if it’s a quick one). When you return, you’ll have primed your body for food and be burning kilojoules all morning!

• Apple Cider Vinegar: An under-rated cure to alkalize the body, it is said that disease states can only occur in an acidic body. It also stimulates digestive secretions and your metabolism. I’ll warn you now, it’s pretty strong and if having a tablespoon of it first thing in the morning is a bit too much try using it in salad dressings! Other ripper alkalizing foods are lemons, yellow grapefruit, leafy greens, in fact any green veggie! These guys help to treat and prevent any acidic conditions in the body. Feral junk foods, refined sugars, processed foods, meats, refined grains and dairy have an acidic effect on the body!

• Lemon Juice: Start the day with lemon juice in warm water (this doesn’t taste as full on as apple cider vinegar, and you only need to have one or the other because it would be a bit over stimulating to have both. Lemon juice stimulates liver detoxification. Remember, the liver is like the garbage man of our bodies and has to deal with any toxins in the body.

• Manifestation Board: write down, draw, cut out photos and pictures of what u want to achieve. This acts a massive inspiration to keep you focused, on track and achieve short, medium and long term goals. A must when achieving your health goals!

• Some foods we eat can be quite reactive in our bodies, so when you’re on a mini detox try to stay off wheat, dairy, refined sugar, coffee and alcohol. There are lots of healthy alternatives. Swap wheat for spelt, rye, millet, quinoa, amaranth or oats. Swap dairy for oat, almond, quinoa or hemp milks. Swap coffee for dandelion tea (it has an earthy flavour like coffee and stimulates liver detoxification). Swap alcohol for grape, goji or pomegranate juice (these boys are jam packed full of antioxidants).

• Try a cleanse! I like to cleanse with the change of each season. A cleanse is a great way to give your body a helping hand. You’ll notice that you might feel worse initially (this is a common Detox response) but if you stick to the cleanse you’ll find energy levels increase, your skin glows and the bottom line is you’ll be looking and feeling great! Try replacements to reactive foods, which are best, kept out of an eating plan whilst cleansing below:
Most importantly don’t restrict yourself, get creative and have fun with food!

Lola Berry’s Inspiring Ingredients is out 01 October 2010 nationally. Visit www.lolaberry.com for further details.