Daily fresh juices are a sure-fire route to skin that’s as bright as a 1,000-watt bulb, glossy hair, sparkling eyes and bundles of energy. But now we are advised to add a bewildering array of exotic boosters. I asked naturopath and health expert Elizabeth Peyton-Jones (www.epjhealth.com), author of Eat Yourself Young, to reveal the super nutrients she recommends to her clients, including Thandie Newton, which you add to her base blend.

ELIZABETH'S FAVOURITE BASE BLEND

• Thoroughly wash (and chop if necessary for your juicer) two carrots, onebeetroot, one unwaxed organic lemon (remove half the peel), 2.5cm peeled ginger, a handful of parsley, spinach or kale, and the same of any sprouted seeds.

FOR ENERGY

Seaweed: sprinkle a teaspoon into your juice (or smoothie); fabulous for the thyroid and nervous system. Try Clearspring Japanese Arame – Dried Sea Vegetable/£4.49 for 50g, www.clearspring.co.uk.

Freeze-dried blue green algae: add 50ml liquid or 50mg powder to pep you up, help you deal with stress and alkalise your gut. Elizabeth’s top product is E3Live/£112 for five 480ml bottles, www.fresh-network.com. You could also try Source Naturals Blue-Green Algae powder/£18.45 for 113g, www.uk.evitamins.com.

FOR SKIN

Apple cider vinegar: add one teaspoon of this all-round alkalising healer, which cleans the blood and ups the glow. Higher Nature Organic Apple Cider Vinegar/£7.50 for 350ml, www.victoriahealth.com.

Turmeric: one teaspoon of this fabulous spice helps to improve skin quality and quell inflammatory skin conditions, eg, rosacea. Widely available, choose organic if possible. Organic Turmeric Powder/£8.62 for 500g, www.buywholefoodsonline.co.uk.

FOR EXTRA PROTEIN

As well as sprouted seeds (in the base juice above), add one tablespoon of flax or hemp seeds or hemp protein powder, one teaspoon of chia seeds, and/or 200ml raw almond milk. Choose organic if possible, www.buywholefoodsonline.co.uk.

FOR IMMUNITY

Probiotic: add the contents of a capsule from a good brand (try Mega Probiotic-ND, £18.50, www.victoriahealth.com), or add 50ml Go! Kombucha Organic Green Sencha tea/£4.99 for 735ml, www.buywholefoodsonline.co.uk.

Horseradish root: add 2.5cm to strengthen the immune system, increase blood flow and help flush out infected fluids. This antibacterial root also stimulates the lungs to cough up mucus. (Warning: it is strong.)

Small pinch cayenne pepper: rich source of vitamin C that helps produce infection-fighting white blood cells, and builds healthy mucus membrane tissue to mount a defence against viruses and bacteria.

 

Q. I caught head lice from my children. The treatment has left my coloured hair very dry and dull-looking with a greasy film.

A. Hair colourist Louise Galvin, founder of natural haircare range Sacred Locks, sympathises as she has personal experience via her nine-year-old daughter. Here are her tips for eradicating lice in adults and children, while keeping hair in good condition.

• Apply Full Marks Solution (from £11.59, www.boots.com), leave for ten minutes then comb through with a nit comb. It contains cyclomethicone, a silicone-based ingredient that dehydrates lice but also dries hair so you need to remove the silicone build up.

• Shampoo with a silicone-free shampoo, then apply Sacred Locks Vitox three-step Detoxifying Treatment (£25).

• Towel dry hair then apply hair mask (e.g. Sacred Locks Treatment Masque/£26). Comb through again with the nit comb – start with ends, then middle section, then from the roots, to prevent breakages.

• This process removes hatched lice but not eggs, so repeat every four days until you have three consecutive lice-free sessions.

• When clear, put two drops of tea tree oil in your regular shampoo to repel future lice. Occasionally repeat the condition and comb process.

Order Louise Galvin Sacred Locks products from www.louisegalvin.com. YOU readers will receive 20 per cent off online orders (but not postage) by quoting YOU15. Offer ends 31 March 2015.

 

A reader whose elderly father needs to take his temperature daily, but dislikes putting a thermometer under his tongue, recommends the Braun Thermoscan 7 Ear Thermometer, £44.99, www.boots.com. It’s simple, quick and stores the last nine readings. (It also offers different settings for babies and children.) For your first-aid box, try the Braun Age Precision Digital stick, £14.99, www.boots.com, which you put under your tongue or armpit.