How to detox and amp up your health quotient before Diwali   

Diwali brings in the the mood of revelry and of course rich delicacies. With our diets bidding adieu for a while, we should look at detoxifying ourselves before the festival so that what we tuck in, guilt free, during that time of celebrations.

Here are how you can detox and amp up your health quotient just in time…

Add some goodness to your diet now:

• Go easy on the fatty food. At least for now, you are going to devour them soon anyways. Pause before you reach out for fried foods. Look away from sweets and try to reduce your daily sugar intake. As mentioned before, this is only for a short period of time.
• Aim to eat at home. At any point in time, a home cooked meal is better than the ones you get at a restaurant. It will be nutritious and healthy. 
• Diwali also signals the time to choose ingredients which are not so commonly used in our kitchens. Have you tried singhara atta?  This is prepared from dried water chestnut which is milled. Take a bite of ragi roti or roti made of amaranth atta.  Try Rajgir…you can get it easily in the form of chikki.  All these attas are gluten free; a good news for those with gluten intolerance towards wheat flour.
• Add a variety of vegetables to your dish. See that your plate is colourful. Orange from carrots, and purple from brinjals, green from spinach and red from tomatoes. Get the drift?
• When we are harping so much about vegetables, can this staple be far behind? Yes, we are talking about fruits. Get your dose of potassium from bananas, Vitamin C from oranges and tangerine, antioxidants from red grapes and so on. All this will increase your immunity and keep you fit and fine for the festivities that are coming your way. These are also good detox diets.

However, when we are emphasizing on cleaning, we need to keep our health quotient at encouraging levels. For that include:

Proteins: Protein is used for practically every function in our body. So get your daily dose of this powerhouse nutrient. It is found in soy products, lentils, almonds, eggs; all these are good for bones and fix cell damage.

Calcium: Want to look bright and get that shine? Go for calcium that is great for your bones, teeth, nails and hair. Enjoy your fish, legumes, nuts, green vegetables and such other calcium-rich foods.

Vitamin B12: This potent vitamin is extremely beneficial for it keeps you upbeat, promotes healthy skin and hair as well as aids in digestion. It is found in cheese, eggs, soy milk, etc.

To push up your energy levels and detoxify your body of all the free radicals, get your daily dose of:

• Amp up your trace minerals and antioxidants supply with vitamin E which is found in great supply in ingredients like avocado, olive oil, spinach, almonds, broccoli and kiwi fruit. Keep your farsan away and much on almonds, wheat germ and walnuts. Enjoy your greens for meals.
• You can get your dose of beta carotene from sweet potato, carrots, cantaloupe melon, dried apricots, broccoli, and green peas.
• Vitamin C will mainly keep the cold and flu away. Drink up your lemon juice, have tomatoes in your salad and try amla juice too.
• See that your iron levels do not decrease. Indian women are found to be anaemic which is a huge reason to feel tired and lethargic all the time. Eat more of dried fruits, green leafy veggies, rajma, dark chocolate, pista, raisins to name a few.

So get going and ready yourself for fun and frolic by detoxing the healthy way.