Welcome to Beauty Is Wellness, a column about the link between nutrition, lifestyle and beauty based on my health coaching practice of the same name. I’m thrilled to share information about my favorite beauty foods, original recipes for beautiful skin, hair and nails and nutritional tips for beautifying from the inside out in the months to come. If you have specific questions about the beauty and nutrition connection that you’d like to have answered in this column, contact me at jolene@beautyiswellness.com.
Spring is the season to shed winter pounds, rev up your energy, and glow from the inside out. Your body knows how to do all of these things naturally with spring detox, but it really needs your help. That doesn’t mean suffering through a week of juice-only meals; you can support beauty detox easily every time you eat by filling your plate with cleansing spring beauty foods and skipping the foods that stress your beauty.
When filling your grocery basket, think fresh: greens are the most important spring detoxifiers, followed by vegetables from the allium family (think garlic and onions), and cruciferous veggies like bok choy, cabbage and broccoli. Lemon is another powerful detoxifier. It helps to squeeze some lemon juice into a glass of warm water every morning and drink it to support a healthy liver and clear skin.
My Wild Rice Detox Salad, below, combines several of the tastiest spring detoxifiers in one beautifying dish that you can serve hot or cold, as a main course or a side. What’s most important is that you skip the meat, dairy, refined sugar and processed foods when you eat it, to reduce the digestive burden and toxic load on your body.
In this salad, anti-inflammatory scallions and garlic protect youthful collagen in your skin and rev up the production of the mega-detoxifying nutrient glutathione that is essential to flush toxins from your body. Broccoli contains plant chemicals that regulate detoxification right down to the genetic level in your body. And dandelion greens are potent liver and kidney detoxifiers that support digestive health and reduce bloating, giving you a flat belly. The slight bitterness of these greens reminds you that they’re cleansing your body with every bite! Protein-rich wild rice (a grass, not a grain) also contains beauty minerals like iron and manganese that are essential for healthy skin, hair and nails. And cumin seeds are natural digestive boosters.
This season, build your meals around detoxifying foods like the ones in this dish (asparagus, artichokes, arugula and spinach are also powerful spring cleansing foods). And don’t feel pressure to consume your meals in liquid form. A delicious, filling supper with the right beauty foods can be just as powerful for your spring beauty detox!
Wild Rice Detox Salad
Serves 4:
1 cup wild rice
6 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp wheat-free tamari
1 tsp dry mustard
1 tsp coconut oil
3 scallions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1 tsp cumin seed
1 lb broccoli florets
3 large handfuls dandelion greens, roughly chopped
In a medium saucepan, combine wild rice and 2 cups of water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer until water is absorbed, about 45 minutes. In a small bowl, whisk together oil, tamari, and dry mustard. When rice is almost finished cooking, melt coconut oil in a skillet over medium heat and cook scallions, garlic and cumin seeds, about 3 minutes. Add broccoli and 1/4 cup water and cook, 5 minutes more. Add dandelion greens and cook until wilted. Pour dressing over veggies and stir to coat. In a large serving bowl, combine cooked rice and vegetables.
For more beauty nutrition news and recipes, check out beautyiswellness.com.
Text, recipes and images ©2013 Jolene Hart. All rights reserved.
Jolene Hart, CHC, AADP is a Philadelphia-based writer and founder of Beauty Is Wellness, a natural beauty and health coaching practice. She teaches women to use nutrition and lifestyle choices to look and feel their best from the inside out.
What is your spring detox plan? Tell us about your favorite spring beauty foods! Tweet us @OrganicSpaMag #springdetoxdinner
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