Spring Clean Your Diet…Winter Is Over!

Winter can mean rich soups, stews, pastas and other comfort foods that make you feel better as you hunker down and wait out the storms. Spring means cleaning house – literally – and also figuratively as you consider your body as the most important “house” you own.

Here are seven ways to spring clean your diet:

1. Clean out your refrigerator and cupboards: Deep six any expired and processed foods. Think about the “rule of five.” Check the labels on crackers, chips and cookies. If there are more than five grams of fat on the label, give those cookies a toss. Replace heavy sauces and dips with pre-cut veggies, plain yogurt for dips and bowls of fruit.
2. Cut back on sugar and salt: White sugar is especially evil. It’s an instant hit to your body and is linked to inflammation, diabetes, decreased immune response and even some cancers. Cutting back on salt lowers the risk of heart disease.
3. Add probiotics: Probiotics are a boon to your digestive health, so add plain yogurt or a yogurt drink to your daily diet. If you’ve been fighting colds and flus throughout the winter and treated them with antibiotics, probiotics are especially important to rebalance the bacteria in your gut. Opt to get your probiotics from food sources and skip the supplements.
4. Try different produce: Squash, apples and bananas are great, but spring means Farmer’s Markets and asparagus, green beans, berries, melons and mushrooms.
5. Control your portions: A portion size for most foods is about the size of your fist. Controlling your portions may help you lose the extra winter weight you may have acquired. Concentrate on stopping the “mindless munching” habit you may have slipped into.
6. Skip the dehydrating drinks: Winter means lattes, hot chocolate and red wine. Spring is the time to re-think your beverage choices. Caffeine and alcohol are diuretics and dehydrate your body. Cutting back will help keep your liver healthy – as the natural detoxification system for your body.
7. Replace sugar-sweetened and diet drinks with water. Add orange, lemon, lime or cucumber slices for a refreshing twist. Water hydrates your body, flushes toxins, keeps you alert, increases your metabolism and controls your appetite.

Spring is definitely the time to think about your body and the summer months ahead. Call to schedule a consultation appointment, today, and learn about the body enhancing procedures available: (617) 965-9500 or (800) 785-7860.