I just read this very sobering article about using impure water in a neti pot for nasal rinsing. Please, if you are using a neti pot, make sure you are boiling or otherwise sterilizing your water before using it. If you are boiling your water to help purify it, please make let it cool to an appropriate temperature before using it. Also, be sure never to force any water into your nasal passages. Neti pots are fantastic, so feel free to use them as you did before once you know your water is pure.
Spring Detox Remedy
To boost the immune system in the spring and also for the year to come, below is a very effective food remedy called 甘草綠豆水: (Licorice and Green Mung Bean Drink). The green color of the mung bean is associated with Spring and the liver, it has a cooling nature. The licorice harmonizes and strengthens the digestion.
- Serves: 1
- Fill a pot with 2,000 ml of water and bring to a boil.
- Put 100g of licorice in it, let it cool.
- Mix 400g of clean green mung bean in the pot, let it sit for 6-8 hours.
- Take the liquid.
Licorice and mung bean do detox well, especially the mung bean, which is used to purge toxins in liver. Doing this kind of simple detox several times a week, one’s immune system will become much stronger and in so doing prevent one from getting the spring cold. The beans provide enzymes to the digestive system. This remedy can be done for a week, every other day.
Another way to do the same in food is to have cooked daikon. It can be prepared in several different kinds of dishes, mostly either the daikon soup with ginger (in the bone broth) or the braised mixed vegetable dish with boiled eggs (i.e., Daikon, gobo, konnyaku, carrot, bamboo shoot, potato, lotus root, etc.). We often cook the daikon without peeling the skin because the fiber helps with the detox process.
The best vegetables to have in the spring is green onion/scallion and leek. Both of them have a stronger medicinal effect in the spring than at other times of the year and can boost the liver function and enhance one’s energy level.
Skin & Lymphatic System: Dry Brushing
I am a big fan of dry brushing. It stimulates the skin and helps move the lymph back to the center of the body to be processed and detoxified. Dry brushing also helps improve circulation and stimulate the nervous system.
Use a firm body brush (I like sisal brushes, but any natural brush will do, even a loofah) to brush your skin softly but vigorously in a circular motion. Start on the feet, first brushing the soles, then the tops and up the legs to the torso. Then brush the palms, the backs of the hands and up the arms to the torso. A long handled brush will help you reach your back. You are always brushing towards the heart. Avoid the face and delicate areas.
Dry skin is sometime sloughed off during this process. This is normal.
Follow-up with a shower and gently towel dry. Moisturize as you normally would.