In our last post Spring Tis’ The Season of The Liver And Gallbladder, we discussed that spring is indeed the season of the liver and gallbladder. Spring is also the best suited time in Chinese medicine to support a detox diet or protocol. The energy of spring supports the liver and gallbladder both energetically and physically, making this season from March 1st to June 1st an ideal time to do a little internal spring cleaning. Detox diets can look like a wide variety of things. The simplest is to  clean up your diet for three weeks. Remove sugars besides those naturally occurring in fruit, remove processed foods of all kinds, remove all oil besides olive oil, coconut oil, and butter, remove alcohol, and limit caffeine to one 8oz cup a day. You can also go the extra step and remove simple carbohydrates such as white rice, potatoes, white bread, and corn from your diet. After three weeks you should notice a difference in energy levels. This diet is not really a detox diet as we are not adding in any routines, teas, supplements, or specific food guidelines to amp up your liver in removing toxins from your system. If you eat a diet high in sugar, refined carbs, oils, and processed foods, simply doing a three week clean eating protocol can have wondrous results for your body similar to a full fledge detox protocol. If you are interested in doing more, I recommend working with a certified professional trained in either Chinese medicine (L.Acs, EAMPs), Doctors of Naturopathic Medicine (Naturopaths), a certified nutritionist or a certified health coach. These professionals have training in how to design, modify, and guide individuals through a healthy detox. It is not safe for everyone to do a detoxification protocol, which is why it is best to consult with a healthcare professional. There are also many conflicting online protocols for detox diets, fasts, juice diets, etc that can actually do more harm than good, depending on your health entering the detox. A health care professional can assess the strength of your constitution and guide you to the level of detox protocol that fits you individually.

If you live locally in Walla Walla, the Thompson Family Acupuncture Clinic is offering three options for a guided spring detox.

Option 1:

10 day inflammation protocol to use food, supplements, and teas to reduce inflammation in the body. This is a great program if you are interested in trying a detox for the first time. The protocol eliminates inflammatory foods for ten days, introduces foods that help fight inflammation, and adds supplements that support the liver’s detoxification process to further aid in reducing systemic inflammation in the body.

Option 2:

 We are teaming up with Certified Health Coach Marika Tomkins for her Spring Glow Detox. Marika has developed a 15 day detoxification protocol involving intention setting, skin brushing, tongue brushing, and other excellent daily tools with an extensive meal plan utilizing food, spices, and teas to help your liver move toxins out of your system. Marika’s 15 day Spring Glow Detox has daily email support and volumes of resources. If you are interested in this plan and are a patient of the Thompson Family Acupuncture Clinic, we would like you to schedule a 30-60 minute appointment to assess your constitution and receive guidance on which level to proceed on the Spring Glow Detox. We will also tweak some of the meal suggestions depending on your pulse and tongue diagnosis to make sure you have a successful detox without compromising your digestive system. Marika Tomkin’s 15 day Spring Glow Detox can help reduce chronic aches and pains associated with inflammation and food sensitivities, as well as improve mood, and energy.

Option 3:

21 day purification protocol. This three week program serves as a modified elimination diet to help you identify any potential food sensitivities that you may have. The program incorporates whole foods, a 21 day sample meal plan with recipes, supplements in both capsule and shake form, and a modified elimination diet to promote detoxification and reduce inflammation in the body. The first ten days of the program are the active detoxification process, while the remaining eleven days build your system back up and remove residual inflammation from the body by avoiding inflammatory foods. This is an excellent way to start building healthier eating habits, jump start weight loss, and improve your overall sense of wellbeing. Previous participants have noticed increased energy, less aches and pains, a reduction in headaches, better digestion, and overcoming acid reflux on this protocol. These three detox options are provided to help you find the right fit for you during this springtime opportunity to do a little internal spring cleaning. Please send us an email to ask further questions about which option maybe the best fit for you. These detox options are for local individuals only, as we need to have a face to face consultation to properly determine if you are a good fit for detox program at this time in your health care journey. If you are a local living in or within driving distance to Walla Walla, please feel free to email questions to thompson.acupuncture@gmail.com. If you are not a local and are interested in doing an internal spring cleaning, I hope you look for a healthcare provider near you to guide you through a successful detox.