7 Days of Juice and Flu season is again upon us...

Juicing Recipes

Wednesday
1 Red Pepper
1/3 Diakon Radish
3 Kale Leaves
1 Beet with Greens

Thursday
1 Beet
1 Small head of Romaine Lettuce
1/2 Cucumber
1/2 Meyers Lemon

Friday
1 Cucumber
1/2 Pineapple
1/2 Lemon
1 Large handful of Mint

Saturday
2 Kale Leaves
1/2 cup Broccoli
1/2 Beet
2 Carrots
1 Orange (peeled)

Sunday
1 Pineapple
1 tsp Spirulina

Monday
3 Carrots
1/2 Apple
1/2 Orange
1/4 beet
2 Large Kale Leaves

Tuesday
2 Beets
2 Oranges
4 Carrots

Cold season is again upon us.

We all have complained about the minus almost 50c weather. Even for Central Alberta this is dreadfully cold for March.  Truthfully,  I have barely left the house the past week... one of the joys of homeschooling and working from the comfort of my home office. lol.  That being said, I have had 12 chickens who still depended on me bundling up and baring subarctic temperatures to take them water, food and collect my frozen eggs.

As we start into the spring thaw, getting excited over the return of that prickly grass, buds on the trees and the singing sweet birds we also face the second round of flu season combined with seasonal allergies... God bless the flying yellow pollen.  ha ha.

At this time of the year we return to our daily use of the following products.

• Echinamide Drops
• A single strain Vegan, Gluten Free probiotic (I prefer those do not contain FOS - Prebiotics)
• Vitamin C with Bioflavonoids
• Flaxseed Oil
• Antioxidant Blend
• A good Multi vitamin like this one for the hubby & I, and this for the kids

When we do start to get sick or feel under the weather we turn to these products

• We also always have Sambucal  on hand as well. 
• We start slamming oscillococcinum as soon as we start feeling run down and ill. 
• Another thing we do is put a few drops of Thieves oil on our furnace  vents, as well as I rub in on the kids feet and put socks on them. 

Things we do when we are sick

• We also use the sauna and or Epson Salt Baths
• 8 to 10 glasses of lemon, ginger infused water as well as regular filtered water.
• Make sure we are getting a minimum of 8 hours sleep a night - preferably between 10pm and 6am
• Exercise is so important for our lymphatic system and overall immune health.  That being said, if you are down with a fever or quite ill choosing to miss a day or opting for a restorative yoga session or meditative yoga practice is a much softer less aggressive approach. 
• We also up the juicing, smoothies, and bone broths.
• We are big herbal tea drinkers, so if a bug has got us I whip up a brew of the following
• a pinch of elderberries
• a pinch of pau d'arco
• a pinch of burdock
• a pinch of milk thistle
• a pinch of echinacea
• a pinch of passion flower
• and a pinch of valerian
• add a cinnamon stick
• Steep all the above in Bowling water for about 5 to 10 minutes, adding a tsp of Manuka Honey or Raw Organic Honey. Enjoy
• Another favourite is 
• 1 cut up lemon
• 1 tsp of Manuka or Raw Organic Honey
• Pinch of peppermint or 1 cinnamon Stick
• A chunk of ginger
• 3 elderberries
• Steep in boiling water for about 5 to 10 minutes and drink
• We avoid store bought fruit juices, sugar (other than honey), Chocolate, milk, meat, processed foods, caffinated beverages (coffee, black tea, etc), or yeast products,  when sick.  Filling our bodies with the simplest and cleanest forms of fruits and vegetables as well as bone broths,  herbs, and superfoods (spirulina, chaga tea, Chlorella, maca, lacuma, etc)

Remember if your immune system is down with a cold or flu so is your ability to rid the body of toxins so please limit the amount of over the counter remedies you use. They do not shorten your illness or aid in their repair, they do bring you temporary comfort.  Your focus should be on aiding your bodies immune system and rebooting your biochemical army. Focus on your fruits and vegetables, your whole Low Glycemic Grains, legumes, Complex Carbohydrates (trying as much as possible to limit to brown rice and sweet potatoes), and bone broths... don't forget the bone broths. Also remember things like - cinnamon, thyme, sage, lavender, basil, turmeric & pepper, ginger, onions, garlic. 

Remember to starve a fever (use lots of liquids) allowing it to fight the battle it is fighting on your behalf, and feed a cold ( clean, fresh, healing foods). 

Let thy food be thy medicine... said a super wise man once, Hippocrates

I can say truly this has worked for us every time we have been sick... sometimes with a shot of brandy as well (not for the kids, don't worry, lol). We don't fight fevers, we hydrate during them and allow the body to rest, we also sweat it out.  Our children have never been on antibiotics for anything, EVER. All we use is the methods our grandparents used, and their grandparents used.  I have never given my children the cough and cold formulas (I do use the Homeocan and Boiron brand cough syrups when necessary).  They fight through it and are usually over the worst in about 24 hours.

Well here is to warmer temperatures this week and hopefully the start of the melting.  

Please remember I am not a doctor and am not prescribing, diagnosing or treating in any way here.  This is just purely what we as a family use when the flu and cold bug hits us.  Please consult your health practitioner for more information.  Or you can email or call me to book an appointment to further discuss your personal health goals.  I also am not personally endorsing these products, nor do I get paid to endorse them.... lol. Have to love the old disclaimers. ;-)