Green Foods

Ideal uses for any of the green foods listed below are; lethargy, bad breath, body odour and digestive disorders.  

• Wheatgrass, Barley grass and Spirulina all have high nutritional value, often used as a natural multivitamin and providing energy to those who use them on a regular basis. They are also very cleansing and restorative. 
• Literally any green food (green leafy vegetables etc.) contains Chlorophyll, responsible for the green pigment in plants; it absorbs energy from the sun to facilitate photosynthesis (energy production). Chlorophyll has a very similar structure to haemoglobin (blood) but contains magnesium where blood has iron. Chlorophyll along with all the super foods mentioned above that contain it, is known to have blood cleansing properties and increase energy levels. Generally used for lethargy, bad breath, body odour and digestive disorders.
• Aloe Vera is one of the first things to go in your natural medicine cabinet for external wounds, burns, rashes and the like and it has the same healing action on the lining of the gastrointestinal system so is beneficial for inflammatory disorders (peptic ulcers, IBS, indigestion etc.). Aloe Vera also has a mild laxative effect and stimulates bile secretion which increases the removal of toxins through the bowel.

Fibre

Fibre is essential to absorb toxins and cholesterol in the bowel and facilitate their removal from the body.

• Psyllium husk – must be taken with plenty of water, Psyllium is known as a bulking laxative, this means it absorbs water and helps to form a stool with sufficient size to be moved through the bowel effectively, binding toxins along the way to be passed out in the stool. It is also a demulcent which means it has a healing effect on the digestive system and reduced inflammation.
• A word of caution though, if your bowel has underactive muscle tone then Psyllium should be avoided, it will absorb water into the stool and form a mass that’s hard to pass, potentially causing more blockage. This is not common and this form is fibre is effective for most people but if you take Psyllium and it makes your problem worse then discontinue using it straight away and seek a more stimulating laxative rather than a bulking one. Ask your Naturopath for more information.
• Slippery elm bark has a demulcent effect which means it coats, soothes and heals the lining of the gastrointestinal tract; it also helps to soften the stool for easier evacuation and has a mild laxative effect. This bark is also very nutritive, mix it with warm water to make a paste, because it literally tastes like you are eating bark from a tree you can mix it with a tsp of honey, mashed banana or put it into a smoothie. Taken straight off the spoon as a paste this is fantastic for heartburn and reflux as it immediately soothes the inflammation, reducing that burning feeling.

Probiotics

• Probiotics (you may know as Acidophilus) are good bacteria and have many beneficial functions for the digestive system and body as a whole. When we’re cleaning out the digestive system, we want to make sure the good or friendly bacteria are being put back in!
• Probiotics have many functions within the body including production of vitamins within the bowel, detoxification of chemicals and assisting immune function. Therapeutically Acidophilus is used for skin conditions (acne, eczema, psoriasis), allergies (hay fever, asthma), any kind of digestive disorder (IBS, bloating, constipation, diarrhoea, flatulence) and inflammatory conditions such as arthritis.
• AThere are different types of Probiotics that differ the same way a plant does (genus & species), some types include lactobacillus acidophilus, l. rhamonsis or l.plantarum, Probiotics are available in capsule or powder (which can be mixed in water or food like yoghurt) and best if you buy the brands from the health food store rather than liquid forms in the supermarket.