Why filtered water is your friend when it's time for a detox

For many, July is the month to ditch alcohol and do a detox. Anyone doing Dry July?

Dry July started as an initiative to raise money for cancer research and continues to gain momentum as a good time to detox.

Whether you’re doing the official Dry July fundraising or just see July as a great excuse to give up the bad stuff, we’ve put together some handy tips to help you have a healthy month…. and continue for the rest of the year and beyond!

Tips for a Healthy Dry July

Morning Routine

Start your day right. Forget your morning coffee! This is a good time to cut out not only alcohol but caffeine too! So that means no coffee, tea, green tea or hot chocolate.

Instead drink a glass of filtered water with lemon.

Before breakfast squeeze half a fresh lemon into a glass of warm filtered water. This will help cleanse your body, flush out any toxins and rehydrate your body after a night’s sleep. It also helps kick start digestion and stimulates your liver to detox.

The temperature of the filtered water is key here too. Research has shown that ingesting warm water is best as your body doesn’t have to work so hard to process it.

There are many other additional health benefits to drinking lemon water. Like the daily Vitamin C boost to help build a strong immune system, clearer skin and there is some research that suggests it helps maintain a healthy weight. (source)

Just make sure you swill your mouth with plain filtered water for 30 seconds afterwards. This is so that the acidity of the lemon doesn’t stay on your teeth. Of course, if you use a WFA water filter then the filtered water has all the contaminants removed but still has all the natural minerals and fluoride in it so it will help protect your teeth.

Lunchtime

Drink a glass of filtered water half an hour before lunch. This will help fill you up so there is less chance of overindulging at lunchtime.

Try some fruit infused filtered water, like cucumber, lime and mint or in season berries. The trick here is to soak the fruit for no longer than two hours and chill in the fridge. Make sure you cover the water so the fridge odours don’t seep in and affect the taste.

Or try some herbal iced teas. These are brewed with a tea infuser and again chilled in the fridge. Some ideas to try are Rooibos or Hibiscus tea for their various health benefits.

The 3pm Slump!

Often this is where many start to crave a sugar hit. This is the time of day when you may reach for a cup of tea and a biscuit. Often it’s because you are dehydrated and your body just needs water.

However, if it’s a warm drink that you are craving then swap your regular cup of tea for a herbal tea. Milk thistle and Dandelion teas are great when you are detoxing to help the liver regenerate. Peppermint and Ginger teas are also good for digestion.

Use filtered water and the teas will taste better. A quick way of preparing a hot drink without waiting for the kettle to boil is with an instant hot water system.

Dinner & Evening Drinks

For some this is the hardest time. The end of a long day when you are about to reach for the bottle of wine or a gin and tonic.

Try swapping champagne bubbles for healthy bubbles. You can do this by adding some fizz to your filtered water at home with a water carbonating system like a Sodastream.

Or drink mocktails rather than cocktails and get creative in the kitchen. How about creating a healthy mojito?

It’s simple.

Just add fresh lime, mint and crushed ice to glass of fizzy filtered water. Again another tip here is to use filtered water in covered ice trays for the best tasting ice!

If you feel like a hot drink, try a herbal tea like Camomile to help wind down and relax at the end of the day.

Other Health Tips

Sleep Lots

Get lots of sleep. Drink a glass of water before bed. It will help avoid muscle cramps and help you sleep better. Some research also suggests that it can also help prevent stroke and heart attacks.

Exercise More

Take some gentle exercise every day. Like walking, yoga, pilates, swimming. Remember to drink plenty of filtered water when you exercise too.

Drink heaps and heaps of water!

Water is your best friend. Drink lots. For healthier, great tasting water, try filtered water direct from your kitchen tap. With the contaminants removed you know it’s healthy. And without the chlorine it simply tastes better…so you’ll want to drink more!

Happy, healthy Dry July!

Read more on the health benefits of filtered water