The Modern Hippie is me ~ Desiree Winans, Natural Health Educator. I teach my clients and classes how to use the tools of Naturopathy to heal themselves and their families through natural, non-invasive, holistic means. Learn more about me here and check out my recent blog posts below!
Desiree Winans on Friday, September 16, 2011 
Today is day 12 of my Juice Fast (or juice feast as I'm trying to call it). Juicing has really improved my health in the last year. My digestion has improved; less bloating, gas, all that fun stuff has diminished.
Desiree Winans on Friday, September 9, 2011 
I woke this morning as normal between 7 and 8am; bounded down the steps with a load of laundry. As soon as I hit the bottom step I realized something: I have absolutely NO pain in my feet. Normally going down the steps the first time of the day is kind of like walking on painful egg-shells.
My ankles crack my toes protest. Today, nothing.
Then I realized that my hands which are normally a little puffy in the morning were completely deflated, no stiffness. I looked in the mirror and what seemed to be my normal face, but instead of having the crusty, itchy, irritated eyes from seasonal allergies; I hardly have so much as an eye goober.
Desiree Winans on Saturday, July 23, 2011 
Most of the foods below are acid forming. This is only part of why they made the naughty list but it's very important to become aware of the difference between acid forming foods and alkalizing foods. Here's the short version of the explanation: The body requires pH balance to function. The blood for example is ALWAYS between 7.35 and 7.45; side effects of varying outside of that pH window are death. Since the body creates acid naturally (all the cells of the body do); our bodies (in their infinite genius ness) also have procedures to eliminate the acid. For example, breathing. Just the simple act of exhaling eliminates acid. The body also requires minerals to buffer the acids and get rid of them safely. If you didn't, every time you urinated you would be burning out the lining in your urethra with acid urine- ouch! The body buffers the acids with minerals to safely eliminate the wastes we create and control the pH of the body 24 hours a day. These minerals MUST come from foods. If your body doesn't get them from foods, it pulls minerals from places like bones (which is bad). Mineral rich foods like fruits and vegetables are the answer. For a complete list of Alkaline and Acid Foods; click here.
Desiree Winans on Thursday, July 21, 2011 
Let me give you just a little background on dairy so you can fully understand why this is a no-no for cleansing purposes.
Dairy: First and foremost Dairy is acid forming food in the body. There is much to learn on the topic of pH balance but to keep it simple all the bodies organs (accept the stomach) work BEST in a slightly alkaline environment. Also Dairy, yummy as it may be, is mucous forming in the body. So that cold you can't kick or the phlegm in your throat you just cant seem to shake can sometimes be dairy related.
But then you say, "What about my Calcium?"
What's interesting about that (and what the milk industry doesn't want you to know) is that when milk is pasteurized, precious HEALTHY bacteria and enzymes needed for calciums absorption are completely destroyed. Milk IS a good source of Calcium; Unfortunately the milk we have access to commercially (whether it's organic or conventional) contains calcium that is NOT accessible by our body because it lacks the enzymes necessary for us to process it.
Desiree Winans on Wednesday, July 20, 2011 
"First Cleanse: Cleansing for Beginners" Part IWhen you eliminate foods that convolute the body's functions, you give it a chance not only to work efficiently, but allow the body to heal itself, repairing damage done over a lifetime. With this comes some difficult days and some amazing days. No matter what though- your body WILL thank you for it.