Spring Foods You Should Be Eating

by Amy Medling, founder of PCOS Diva

It is time for spring cleaning! For your home, that means washing your windows to let all in all the radiant spring sunshine. For your body, it means flushing out all of the heavy foods that you have been enjoying all winter and recharging with fresh foods of the season which complement your PCOS diet.

The tradition of Ayurveda calls this season Kapha. Ayurveda has its roots in India but quickly spread through China, Tibet, and Greece. The practice encourages people to live in harmony with the laws and rhythms of nature and its seasons to achieve health and balance. This balance is just one of the reasons we should “eat local” all year long. When we stick to foods that are locally grown, our bodies can better balance and adjust to the changing seasons.

Kapha is all about new growth and renewal. In this season, we should consume lots of spring sprouts and vegetables that are naturally available to us. These spring foods are packed with vitamins, nutrients, and chlorophyll (a natural blood cleanser).

The goal is to cleanse your body of excess fat, proteins, and toxins stored up to help get through the winter and to stimulate fat burning. Throughout the winter, your body holds on to water to keep itself in balance during cold dry months. In the spring, it begins to flush all of this extra water. With the water, it flushes toxins that have built up. The body protects itself from these toxins by producing extra mucus.

Spring foods such as dandelion root, echinacea, chicory, watercress, mustard greens, parsley, and cilantro break up that mucus. All of these flushed toxins can begin to overwhelm the liver. Spring bitter roots such as dandelion are natural diuretics and liver protectors. In addition, the chlorophyll found in all of these beautiful spring greens promotes the growth of healthy bacteria in your intestines that protect you from parasites, yeast, and harmful bacteria.

Foods To Enjoy in Abundance:

• sprouts of any kind
• mustard greens
• leafy greens
• green beans
• asparagus
• kale
• spinach
• Swiss chard
• dandelion greens
• cherries
• berries
• onions
• watercress
• parsley
• celery
• cilantro

Foods to Reduce or Avoid:

Heavy dairy (ice cream, cheese, yogurt) – If you have PCOS, you should avoid dairy anyway. For more information, read my article about dairy.

Switch to gentle, whole foods for spring

As you begin to prepare your body for spring, concentrate on gentle whole foods.  In order to truly cleanse and help your body rid itself of toxins, you need to have proper nourishment, lots of filtered water, and plenty of seasonal produce – especially green leafy vegetables. These easily digested foods allow us to free up energy that can be used to help rid toxins from the body. This is the way to go, especially if you have PCOS.

Also, by removing common food allergens that often cause an immune response and inflammation, you boost your nutritional uptake, support your digestive tract, and support the liver in its work of neutralizing and preparing those toxins to be eliminated. So get out there and start enjoying the bounty of the season, from sunshine to vegetables!

Learn more about detoxifying whole foods here: 10 Super Foods for Cleansing with PCOS

My Spring Meal Plan contains tons of great, seasonal recipes to help you give your body a good healthy spring cleaning. You’ll find lots of recipes to start making the best use of spring seasonal ingredients that you and your family will love.

Next Steps:

Let go of toxins that worsen PCOS symptoms. My 14-day detox program will help clear the fog and cleanse your mind, body, & spirit.

Amy Medling, author of Healing PCOS and certified health coach, specializes in working with women with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS), who are frustrated and have lost all hope when the only solution their doctors offer is to lose weight, take a pill, and live with their symptoms. In response, Amy founded PCOS Diva and developed a proven protocol of supplements, diet, and lifestyle programs that offer women tools to help gain control of their PCOS and regain their fertility, femininity, health, and happiness.