Just as we clean our houses and yards, spring is also the best time to do any "cleaning" of our bodies. In some cultures the winter diet is dried or preserved foods. Thus in spring, people would detoxify themselves by fasting, cleansing diets, or sweats.

Winter is also the time we tend to get flus and colds. The aftermath of these viral infections creates a heavy load on our liver, which is primarily responsible for any body cleansing. When our liver has to handle too many toxins, our bodies suffer. Symptoms of an overtaxed liver include fatigue, achy joints, hemorrhoids, skin problems, headaches, constipation, and cysts or benign masses.

Cleansing and detoxifying must be done with care. More is not better.

Natural health practitioners used to put everyone on liver and bowel cleanse programs, with dire results. Cleansing is hard on a body. It can make you feel cold, weak, and fatigued during the process, but utlimately much better afterwards. Detoxifying in winter is not good since your body is under more stress to fight off infections and ward off the weather.

Detoxifying should be done with the help of a qualified natural health practitioner. The best way is: rebuild first, then cleanse, rebuild, then maintain a healthier lifestyle.