Q: What are natural, not-insane ways to get ready for skin-baring season?
A: This is the perfect time for all of us to shed our winter coats—the dry, flaky skin from bitter cold and indoor heat and the extra pounds we accrued as a result of winter’s slower pace. Here’s my personal spring detox regimen.
Clean out the fridge.
This is spring cleaning for your health. Get rid of all the bad stuff and load the produce bin with lots of brightly colored fruits and vegetables, picking at least five different kinds every week. Cook them, juice them, or eat them raw—it doesn’t matter, as long as you get a minimum of five servings a day (though we’re partial to these delicious, green drinks). To jump-start your spring detox, drink 7 ounces of fresh juice daily, and pick 3 days of the week to eat only fruits and veggies. This burst of antioxidants will flood your skin with oxygen, resulting in a healthy glow. The fiber from fresh produce helps clean out the colon, getting rid of all those winter excesses.
Sweat.
Do whatever it takes to break a sweat every day—run, walk briskly, bike, do yoga. Sweating is the body’s natural way of getting rid of impurities, and even 10 minutes a day activates that mechanism. If you can’t exercise, then sit in a sauna or steam room or soak in a whirlpool.
Scrub your arms and legs.
With a dry brush, use gentle strokes to slough off dead skin. Then apply a mixture of 1 cup coconut oil with ¼ cup sea salt or brown sugar (be sure to be careful—oil is slippery), and scrub it all off with a loofah.
TASNEEM BHATIA, MD, is medical director and founder of the Atlanta Center for Holistic & Integrative Medicine.
Send your questions for Dr. Bhatia to askdrtaz@prevention.com.
