Wildfire Smoke Support Suggestions
Written by Steve Spitalny, head Kvass maker and Kvetch.
We at La Vie Wellness are saddened by the loss of life and property the fires throughout California have caused. Our hearts go out to those who have been affected with such devastating losses.
And we thought it would be a good idea to offer some suggestions on how to support your health during and after these smoky times.
First of all, do you best to mitigate your exposure to wildfire smoke. Stay indoors when the air quality is poor and unhealthy, and wear a mask when you are outdoors. I particularly like the VogMask (https://www.vogmask.com/) which are available in many local stores and online. They are colorful, comfortable, stylish and some models are even made from organic cotton.
If you have been exposed to excessive smoke, probably your throat and lungs and eyes are bearing the brunt of the damage. Your throat and lungs are irritated and inflamed, and you want to soothe them to regain your balance. Additionally, you want to increase your intake of antioxidants to help eliminate the toxins that you inhaled.
What Could Really Be Happening in Your Lungs
Lets look at what is going on. Your cough is due to secretion of mucus in response to irritation and inflammation. This irritation can be either in your lungs or throat, or both. And you can have some chest pain from the coughing.
If you have any of these symptoms, see a doctor right away:
- coughing blood
- irregular heartbeat
- more than usual trouble breathing
Two aspects to healing from smoke exposure:
- Soothe the inflammation
- Eliminate the toxins your body has received.
Detox solutions include:
- Drink Lots of Water - water helps flush the toxins out of your body.
Remedies to Ease Your Symptoms and Discomfort
Drink Hot Liquids - bad air causes the cilium of the windpipe and lungs to stop moving. Hot liquids encourage them back into movement and back to their job removing mucous
Get lots of Ginger, Turmeric and Oregano Oil into your system - ginger is a natural detoxifier, and anti-inflammatory and supports lung function. Among the many benefits of Oregano Oil are lung support, detoxification, and anti-inflammatory properties.
Consider our Flu Fighter Wellness Shot. It is made of fresh ginger juice, oregano oil, lemon and cayenne. All of the ingredients can help with smoke damage to the body, and it supports overall immune system function!
https://www.drinklavie.com/products/flu-fighter-wellness-shot
And our Turmeric Wellness Shots are loaded with fresh turmeric and ginger juices, a great anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant drink.
https://www.drinklavie.com/products/turmeric-wellness-shot
Root Awakening - At La Vie Wellness, we are happy to also offer you our Root Awakening, a probiotic beet drink with ginger. With beets, you have the best liver detox food there is, and you also get the benefit of probiotics to support your digestion and natural elimination of toxins.
https://www.drinklavie.com/products/root-awakening-12oz
Beet Kvass Based Drinks - All of our Beet Kvass drinks are amazing sources of health support during these smoky times. Beets has an abundance of phytonutrients called betalain that provide the body with anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory and detox support. These benefits are highest when the beets are not cooked. At La Vie, all of our beet drinks are made from raw beets. Beets are also a good source of vitamin C, manganese and glutathiones. You couldn’t choose a better food for remedying exposure to toxins and all of the Beet Kvass drinks from La Vie wellness provide this support from delicious drinks made with organic beets! There are many other benefits of fermented beet drinks, and if you are someone who thinks about mega-detoxing after the exposure to toxins, organic probiotic beet drinks belong in your diet.
La Vie Wellness - we offer 4 options for delicious beet kvass drinks.
Start detoxing today!
- Beet Kvass - just organic beets, salt and cultures
- Blood - beet kvass plus pomegranate juice, apple and lime juices for added detox qualities.
- Root Awakening - beet kvass plus ginger, apple juice and lime juice
- Magenta Mojito - beet kvass plus lemongrass, mint and lime juice
Available for order online, and for purchase at our Capitola tasting room and locally at our many farmer's markets throughout the SF Bay Area and in Southern California.