Eat Pretty: Spring Detox, Week 4

This week, we look at the detox that begins outside your body…

This post comes to you from Jolene Hart.

Over the past three weeks, we’ve explored some of the most effective nutrition and lifestyle shifts that you can make to rev up your body’s natural detoxification during the spring months. This is the key moment of the year to support detox, ensuring that your energy soars, your skin glows, and your body naturally lets go of any winter weight that you’ve been carrying. Spring detox can be an annual ritual that’s refreshing, delicious, and gentle—no stress and no juice cleanse necessary. In case you missed the earlier posts in this series, check out why you’ll want to eat green this season, use hot water for hydration, and pare down some specific foods that make detox more difficult. This week, we look at the detox that begins outside your body—within your daily environment— and can help make your spring detox last all year. The goal, as always, is for you to look and feel your best, from the inside out.

Week 4: Detox Your Environment

Your body is constantly detoxing unfamiliar, unnecessary and unwanted compounds, in the interest of keeping you at your healthiest. But that natural detox process has become increasingly more difficult for our bodies, given the frequency of daily exposure to environmental chemicals, in our beauty products, and our food supply. In the US, about 700 new chemicals are introduced every year, adding to the approximately 84,000 chemicals already in use. It’s become hard to calculate the number to which we are exposed on any given day (that number is likely to be several hundred). This spring, commit to some easy shifts in your routine that will lighten your body’s exposure to unnecessary compounds that could negatively impact your beauty and health. This is where little changes really add up, so it’s just fine to start small.

If you’re wondering where to begin, look first at personal care. Rather than stressing out about the need to go 100% organic overnight, look at the big picture– make sure the top five products you use most often, or over the greatest area of your body, are as safe and natural as possible. Body lotion, deodorant and lipstick are some of the top products I recommend switching first, to cut down unnecessary exposure to hormone-disrupting phthalates and parabens that truly impact our health and hormone balance. Just a note: Free People has a great selection of natural and organic personal care products, from brands like Maya Chia, Zoe Organics and Vapour Organic Beauty.

Beyond your beauty routine, think about the products used in the places you spend most of your time. Are there cleaning products, detergents or room sprays you use at home or in your office? Plastic products or Teflon pans that you use regularly? Walk through your day with fresh eyes, taking note of some of the places you may be able to switch to chemical-free or -reduced alternatives. An easy change with a big impact? Cut synthetic fragrances, which are a source of phthalate exposure, from your home. Skip the scented trash bags and plug-in air fresheners and try an essential oil diffuser instead. To detox your environment even further, bring air-purifying green plants like peace lily, philodendron and ferns inside to clean the air. As well, consider removing your shoes when you enter your home, which can prevent tracking pesticides into your space. The goal isn’t to live a completely chemical-free life; but, a few small changes can make a major difference. You’ll be supporting balanced hormones, radiant skin, energy, good mood and a healthier body with every change you make.

For more spring detox and nutrition inspiration, check out the Eat Pretty book series.

Jolene Hart, CHC, AADP is a Philadelphia-based health coach and founder of Beauty Is Wellness, a natural beauty and health coaching practice. Her coaching and Eat Pretty book series teach women to use nutrition and lifestyle choices to look and feel their best from the inside out. 

Text and recipes ©Jolene Hart. All rights reserved.