It’s not a secret: Fantasy Fest wreaks havoc on the body. The sleepless nights, too much alcohol and late-night greasy food – it’s a fast turnaround from ordering shots to begging for detox. The only tried and true way to heal a liver is to avoid alcohol altogether, for weeks not days, according to the Cleveland Clinic. Two to six weeks of abstinence is recommended after “acute alcohol ingestion,” which “is generally reversible with abstinence.” But let’s look at some realistic alternatives.
Checking in with Radiant Life Spa on Whitehead Street, owner and Doctor of Oriental medicine, Luz Zappata has been practicing alternative holistic healing for almost 30 years. She opened Radiant Life three years ago and doesn’t bat an eye when asked for hangover help. Inspired by old ways of her grandmother in Colombia, Radiant Life offers a variety of holistic options to get relief.
The ionic foot bath detox, which claims to remove heavy metal and toxins through the bottom of your feet, doesn’t hurt but it can get unpleasant, smelly even. By soaking feet in charged, salted water the negative and positive ions draw out the bad stuff. Maybe it’s another health fad but it is interesting. “It’s not a cure but it certainly makes you feel better,” said Dr. Zappata. “People say they have better sleep afterward and many chronic pain sufferers have experienced changes and results after a few treatments.”
The National Center for Biotechnology counters, “In this proof-of-principle study we found no evidence to suggest that ionic foot baths help promote the elimination of toxic elements from the body through the feet, urine, or hair.” But sometimes the proof is in the pudding, literally. Dr. Zappata has seen worms and cheese-like chunks excrete into a foot bath. Something must be happening to the body if the soaking water goes from clear to a broth-like sludge. Regardless, it’s a nice soak and if it can reduce any bad substances, proteins, acids, that tequila worm … yes, please.
Dr. Zappata describes other methods as “powerful” for sweating out the toxins leaving happier, healthier skin… or maybe that’s a Neutrogena commercial? One method is the infrared sauna that emits ultra low EMF technology, or in other words, it heats up your core temperature. While there have been no case studies proving a sauna can remove metals or toxins from the body , warming the muscles and relaxing sounds good any time. Feel even more adventurous? Try a seaweed body wrap (no, it doesn’t smell like Smathers Beach); it is the healing essence of the ocean rubbed all over.
If the edge needs to come off the hangover, then turn to the needle. Intravenous nutrition therapy adds vitamins, minerals and amino acids directly into the bloodstream to correct intracellular nutrient deficiencies and fight nausea commonly associate with over-imbibing. Radiant Life has a nurse on hand to administer the goods. This can be combined at the same time as an ionic foot bath if the hangover is worse than a bad body paint job on Duval.
Lastly, this week Dr. Zappata is unveiling hyperbaric oxygen therapy –not hospital grade, but rather the spa-friendly version. “We are excited to get the chamber because everyone needs more oxygen.” After breathing in Fantasy Fest musk, who can argue? Radiant Life is located at 624 Whitehead St. or radiantlifekeywest.com
