Cleansing the body after New Year's Eve festivities

By Jonathan Evans Herbal Information Specialist /Business Representative for the Herbarium Special to PRIME Happy New Year! I hope you all have recovered from your holiday partying. Now it's time to pay the piper as it were. There are a number of ways to cleanse the body after abusing it with too much calorie-rich, fat-laden food and perhaps a wee bit too much of the booze. Please stay away from the "programs" you see and hear advertised. Most of the stuff is just going to purge your system (and clear out your wallet). Renew Life is a company that specializes in cleansing products. They are the top company in the country, using all organic material, and they even have a toll-free number for you to call for any questions. The products are readily available, and are reasonably priced. Stay away fro the junk you see on television, and watch out for the guys who want to soak your feet to "detox." Trust me, it is a crock. Herbarium offers several products for simple cleansing, and there is also a mini- fast to clean out and rest your system. It is very simple and very cost effective. For three days, you eat fruit, either raw, cooked, or dilute fruit juice every four hours. If you feel shaky, have some nuts or brown rice. Then for the next four days, you eat vegetables, in any form. Stews, soups, steamed, raw or however you like them. This helps to re-alkalinize your system, clear out the accumulated stuff from the holidays and get you ready for a new year. For a free copy of the mini-cleanse, send a SASE to Herbarium, 264 Exchange St. Chicopee, MA 01013. Along with any cleanse, it is important to replenish your intestinal flora with a good probiotic. Make sure it is a product that is refrigerated, and has a decent number of bacterial strains in sufficient quantities, such as at least six different strains, and numbers at least 12 billion per capsule. We carry several brands of probiotics that will do the job, including Renew Life, the same people who brought you the detoxing formulas. Dear Jonathan: My friend picked up Herbarium's Candida Rescue and ImmunoWell Rx. I just need to know if both are gluten-free. I noticed they are in grain alcohol and wonder if they would cause a reaction? -Anonymous Answer: What a great question! I have never been asked that before. I contacted my bottler who is also a chemist. He assures me the products are gluten-free and the alcohol is not from wheat or corn, so there is no problem with gluten reaction. Thanks for asking, I learned something new today. Dear Jonathan: I have a really tight chest and I cough a lot but nothing is coming. The cough syrup doesn't help at all. Do you have any natural remedies for this? -Ellen, Ludlow Dear Ellen: there are several items that might help. Buried Treasure makes a cough remedy that will loosen up the congestion quite well. One of our best things is Kathy's Detox tea. It was originally created as a tea to help smokers clean out from the nicotine and junk in cigarettes (hence the name Detox), but over the years Kathy added more ingredients and the tea is for any respiratory problem, from asthma to bronchitis. The tea contains many traditional herbs including mullein, coltsfoot, yerba santa, hyssop, and anise. There are many more ingredients, but we do have to keep some things secret. Lastly, the cold weather is here and one helpful hint I want to pass along is how to keep your feet warm in the coldest of weather. Sprinkle a teaspoon full of cayenne pepper, or ginger powder in your shoes or boots. These herbs will help bring the circulation to the surface and keep your feet toasty warm. Make sure not to touch your eyes or any sensitive areas without washing your hands, and make sure you have dry socks and feet before putting the powder in the shoe. Your feet can get wet later, but if you start with wet feet it could get uncomfortably warm. —Jonathan Please send your questions on botanical remedies to Natures Rx : Jonathan Evans via e-mail at info@theherbarium.com, or by regular mail at The Herbarium, 264 Exchange Street, Chicopee, MA 01013. If you are requesting additional information from Jonathan, please include a self-addrresed stamped envelope.