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Nutrition and Detoxification

The simplest way to understand symptoms and disease integrates Western linear thinking, Chinese medicine and its philosophy of yin and yang, and the naturopathic approach to health and illness. Problems in the body (and mind) often arise from either DEFICIENCY, where we are not acquiring sufficient necessary nutrients to meet our needs and body functions—and CONGESTION, where we are having excessive intake, both from reduced elimination functions and the over-consumption of foods or non-food substances, such as caffeine, alcohol, nicotine, refined sugar and food chemicals.

People who are deficient may experience such problems as fatigue, coldness, hair loss or dry skin, and they need to be nourished with wholesome foods to aid healing. Congestiveproblems, however, are more common in Western, industrialized civilizations. Many of our acute and chronic medical diseases and dilemmas result from the clogging of our tissues and tubes, and the suffocating of our cells and vital energy. Colds and flus to cancer and cardiovascular diseases, arthritis and allergies are all examples of congestive/toxicity/inflammatory disorders. These medical problems may be prevented or treated at least in part and often dramatically, by embarking on a process of cleansing and detoxification. The incorporation of dietary changes, including consumption of more fresh fruits, vegetables and water while reducing animal fats and proteins plus eliminating any damaging substance abuses is the beginning of the rejuvenation process for the human body. This was discovered long ago and is still true today even though medical science may make light of it in deference to the quick solution to major diseases.

I consider the cleansing/fasting/detoxification process (they are different degrees of the same process of reduced toxin intake and enhanced toxin elimination) to be the missing link in Western nutrition and a key to the health and vitality of our civilization. In more than 35 years of medical practice, I have utilized various detoxification programs extensively along with other healing and rejuvenation practices for both myself and literally thousands of patients, I can tell you I truly believe cleansing and detoxification is virtually one of the most powerful healing (real healing of ailments and not just suppression of symptoms) therapies I have seen.

I have written extensively about detoxification, as can be seen in the last section of myStaying Healthy With Nutrition textbook and as the focus of my most popular book, The NEW Detox Diet: The Complete Guide for Lifelong Vitality, wherein I discuss both the medical and health factors of the vitalizing cleansing process. What I attempt to do in my writing and practice is to place your health and that of your family back into your hands, because so much of it is up to you. It really matters how you live—what you do and what you eat, and what you think and feel. Take hold and do what you can to be vital and healthy. It is really worth it!

Some of you may wish to do a Spring Cleanse like the Master Cleanse or other juices. Yet, there’s a simple eating program—consuming three specific meals a day that can help your body to detoxify while taking a break from your SNAAC habits. That’s my acronym for Sugar, Nicotine, Alcohol, Caffeine and Chemicals. Do you have a daily habit to one or more these substances? Do you also consume wheat and dairy products regularly, or do other foods play a dominant part of your diet? If it’s not green vegetables, maybe you want to lighten up and take a holiday from some of your habits. This is what The Detox Diet can help you do—transition to a healthier eating plan. Also, when you take a break from some of these foods and “drugs” you may feel much better and be able to assess how they undermine your health. I encourage this Detox Diet for two-three weeks to help your body alkalinize.

Reducing the acidity of the diet and our body helps to lower toxicity and inflammation. Understanding the ideas of acid/alkaline in both foods and the effects on the body. This is an important concept. Next month, I will go into that more deeply. For now, let’s look at how to do the Detox Diet.

The Detox Diet

Special Guidelines For The Detox Diet:

1.     Chew your food very well and take enough time when you eat.

2.     Relax a few minutes before and after your meal.

3.     Eat in a comfortable sitting position.

4.     Eat primarily steamed fresh vegetables and some fresh greens.

5.     Take only herbal teas after dinner.

The Detox Diet Menu Plan
Morning (upon arising): Two glasses of water (filtered, spring, or reverse osmosis), one glass with half a lemon squeezed into it.

Breakfast: One piece of fresh fruit (at room temp), such as apple, pear, banana, grapes, or citrus. Chew well, mixing each bite with saliva.

15–30 minutes later: One bowl of cooked whole grains—specifically millet, brown rice, amaranth, quinoa, raw buckwheat, or buckwheat.

Flavoring can be two tablespoons of fruit juice for a sweeter breakfast taste, or use the “better butter” mixture mentioned below with a little salt or tamari for a deeper flavor.

Lunch (noon–1 P.M.) One–two medium bowls of steamed vegetables; use a variety, including roots, stems, and greens, e.g., potatoes and yams, green beans, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, beets, asparagus, kale, chard, and cabbage. CHEW WELL!

Dinner (5–6 P.M.) Same as Lunch

Seasoning, Butter/canola or flaxseed oil mixture. Make this “better butter” by mixing a half cup of cold-pressed canola oil (or olive or flaxseed oils) into a soft (room temperature) half-pound of butter; then place in dish and refrigerate. Use about one teaspoon per meal or a maximum of three teaspoons daily.

11 A.M. and 3 P.M. One–two cups veggie water, saved from steamed vegetables. Add a little sea salt or kelp and drink slowly, mixing each mouthful with saliva.

Evening: Herbal teas only, e.g., peppermint, chamomile, pau d’arco, or blends.

Note: You may feel a little weak or have a few symptoms the first couple of days; this will pass. Clarity and feeling good should appear by day three or four, if not before. If during this diet, you start to feel weak or hungry, assess your water intake and elimination; if needed, you can eat a small portion of protein food (3–4 ounces) in the mid-afternoon. This could be fish; free-range, organic chicken; or some beans, such as lentil, garbanzo, mung, or black beans.

15 Easy Ways to Detoxify Your Body Today

Every now and then I read or hear someone say that the body doesn’t need to detoxify.  This is an appalling statement since the body cannot live without effective and efficient detoxification, which needs to occur in the lungs, liver, skin, intestines, kidneys, lymphatic system, and other areas of the body every minute of every day.

Our bodies are surprisingly good at detoxification but these processes can easily become overwhelmed due to the volume of toxins to which we’re exposed from our air, water, food, pharmaceutical and over-the-counter drugs, and many other sources.

These detoxification processes also rely on many critical nutrients (you’ll discover which ones below) to function properly.  Fortunately, there are many easy things you can do to help your body eliminate harmful toxins.  Here are 15 easy ways to detoxify today based on my book, The 4-Week Ultimate Body Detox Plan:

1. Eat pectin-rich organic apples.  Pectin binds to toxins in the intestines to escort them out of the body.

8 Delicious Apple Recipes

2. Drink a freshly-made veggie juice daily.  This can be as easy as throwing a couple of handfuls of leafy greens into a blender with some frozen berries and water.

3. Drink a large glass of purified water with the juice of one fresh lemon in the morning.  Lemons have over 20 proven anti-cancer compounds.

4. Eat blueberries daily.  They are rich in anthocyanins that reduce inflammation in the body and brain, as well as help reduce allergies and excess weight.

5. Remember to breathe.  Oxygen kills bacteria, viruses, and helps us to feel more energized.  Breathe deeply as much as possible.

6. Eat at least a half cup of legumes daily.  If they cause you gas, build up slowly and add a digestive enzyme with cellulase (breaks down the fiber in beans).  Fiber in beans helps keep the bowels eliminating properly.

7. Find the positive in every day.  Smile and laugh.  A positive attitude reduces the number of stress chemicals in the body.  And, as the adage says, “laughter is the best medicine.”

8 Fun Ways to Manage Stress. Take turmeric daily (a teaspoon in a small glass of water), added to soups or stews, or in capsule form.  It contains the phytonutrient curcumin that is one of the most powerful liver protectors and healers.  The liver is largely responsible for detoxification.

9. Eat more raw fruits and vegetables.  They contain enzymes that aid digestion and improve nutrient absorption.  Many nutrients are needed for efficient detoxification, including:  beta carotene, folic acid, niacin, pantothenic acid, riboflavin, thiamin, vitamin B12, pyridoxine, vitamin C, vitamin E, calcium, copper, germanium, iron, magnesium, manganese, molybdenum, selenium, sulphur, and zinc, among others.

10. Switch from chemical cleaning products to natural ones.  Chemical cleaning products contain toxins like formaldehyde, chlorine, petroleum products, ammonia, perchloroethylene (“perc”), and many other harmful chemicals that research links to cancer, skin conditions, asthma, and other serious health conditions.  Baking soda, vinegar, or orange oil work well.  No chemical cleaner removes stains as well as orange oil.

11. Eat at least three of the best detoxifying foods daily: broccoli, garlic, spinach, cabbage, sprouts, blueberries, and ginger.

12. Drink plenty of pure water to help flush toxins from your body.  Almost every process in your body depends on proper hydration to function smoothly.

13. Help remove toxins in your intestines by using aloe vera juice (about a quarter cup) or drinking a few cups of slippery elm bark, marshmallow root, or rhubarb root tea (about one teaspoon of the dried herb per cup of water).

14. Take a probiotic supplement with live cultures on an empty stomach daily (morning or evening works well).  The beneficial bacteria kill harmful bacteria and yeasts and help to heal the lining of the intestines.