Every other corner now has a Natural Juice Bar opposite a Starbucks Coffee. We go from caffeine high to vegetable high on a daily basis. These wonderful juice bars are really raking in the customers now though with their offerings of a “Slimmer Summer” by detoxing your body from processed foods by drinking a “set” of juices for one day to up to a week! These juices are cold pressed, made on site and very tasty (especially if you like grassy notes). I’ve tried it and recommend it. It is a little pricey, but it sure helps you get on your way to losing weight by cutting cravings!

A pedicure may not seem like a topic for detoxing, but the soak and subsequent pampering go a long way toward detoxing my mind as well as getting rid of winter’s calluses from wearing socks and boots as well as getting rid of extra skin that builds up around the nails and on our heels! There’s nothing that says “summer” better than a fresh coat of paint (er…polish) on our tootsies. Manicures are also a way to detox our minds and cuticles, although I wonder about breathing in all of the fumes that come along with the nail process.

That just means that its time to go to yoga or meditation to get our lungs functioning at maximum capacity to be “out with the bad air, in with the good” after any salon treatments. Practice in deep breathing not only detoxes the lungs, but also the soul! Our minds can get cluttered with all of the possibilities that Spring and Summer bring, like vacations, spring cleaning, kids home, parties and barbeques, etc. Come to think of it, a vacation would be the best type of detox for me! Yoga along with walking, Pilates, tennis, etc. can allow us to concentrate on ourselves rather than work, kids or dinner…so they are all definite brain detox activities.

Our hair needs a detox after winter and summer whether we live in cold climates or hot. Winter brings the dry heat of heaters, split ends of brittleness and breakage from wind or hats. Heat-styling tools are used even more often as we dare not go outside with a wet head in the winter as we might during the summer. Summer, however brings heat, sunlight, chlorine or ocean salts. The best detox for hair is a spritz of heat protecting spray whenever you style (blow dry, flatiron or curl) your hair. There are multivitamin, antioxidant, vitamin B5, vitamin E and biotin containing treatments which nourish every strand by rebuilding damaged lipids to retain moisture and add strength and elasticity. One thing to completely stay away from when detoxing your hair is any alcohol-based products such as hairsprays. They dry out the covering layer of each strand leading to brittleness and breakage. Detox to get your hair back to healthy!

Of course our scalp needs a detox too! Follicles work best when clean and clear of debris. Excess oils and skin cells clog the pores, closing off the opening for the new hair to exit. Proper circulation of blood to the base of the follicles is important too to bring nutrients and clear away toxins. Even with great care, hair can still thin or fall out with age, hormones, prescription drugs taken or heredity. The best natural hair loss treatment or treatment for thinning hair is the latest use for lasers. Nutreve has a Personal Hair Therapy Laser which uses 35 pulsing lasers of the cool, red variety housed in a lightweight laser hair brush. Rechargeable batteries, an ergonomic handle and the option of a hands-free stand make the 15-20 minutes, every other day treatments seem effortless. Improved circulation to the base of the follicles allows each to produce the thickest and shiniest hair possible. Investigate this method of detox and give your hair a spa day!

We are bombarded with “the Latest” as so many different companies compete for our dollar in the race to “stay younger looking”. We are hearing about skin rejuvenation, laser hair restoration, dark spot correctors and cellulite removal. Science is definitely improving…but it is hard to believe that ALL of the products out there actually work.

I recently read about “in home” cell therapy. It is a pill that contains an extraction of the DNA of certain deep water marine life which is touted to restore everything from cartilage to collagen. It is said to remove everything from headaches to wrinkles. Nowhere in the article, however, did I see any form of guarantee. In one ad it even says that one 60 year old woman’s skin improved so much she no longer “needed her regular Botox treatments.” Crazy…I didn’t realize that I might NEED Botox…perhaps I should look closer in the mirror! Wanting to look younger and needing to look younger have become interchangeable verbs in this “don’t grow old” society.

The term “in home” is a new buzzword that means that we no longer have to take the time or the gas money to drive to a clinic or office and none of our friends need to know that we are doing any type of treatment at all! We order on line and just about anything arrives in a few days in a “discreetly wrapped” package. We don’t have to fess up to any kind of treatment…and I’m sure there ARE actually “in home” treatments that work.

One product that has actually been on the market for decades, but finally made it to the “in home” stage is laser hair therapy. An easy to hold, laser hair brush is used as a thinning hair treatment for only 15-20 minutes every other day. It’s red or cool wavelength lasers target the hair follicles just below the scalp and cause increased blood flow to the base of the follicles to stimulate production. Hair grows thicker and shinier from each active follicle.

Now, they do NOT promise that hair will grow from a follicle that is already dead…but they do have a complete money back guarantee that you will see your thinning spots fill in and your overall hair quality will improve! Not too long ago, these treatments were only available in salons and dermatology clinics. Folks who had lost hair due to cancer treatments, patients recovering from hair transplant surgery and men and women with early balding patterns have been success stories. This treatment for thinning hair was costly and time consuming. Now, for a single fee of less than $600 for the best brand (the one with the most actual lasers..35…and a pulsing laser format) you can improve your hair quality and quantity right at home. The Nutreve Personal Hair Therapy Laser also has a curved faceplate that targets more scalp for the treatment time and offers a hands-free stand so you can work at your computer, read or whatever at the same time you are getting the benefits…without having to leave home. Rechargeable batteries keep the running costs down and lets you take it with you when you travel.

All this beats taking a pill or wearing a wig and certainly avoids the costs and downtime of surgery. No needles, drugs or clinic visits are needed and use of the laser hair brush for hair loss is a natural hair loss treatment that actually works…”in home”!