Food and Drink for Detoxing
Remember from earlier articles, I mentioned my research and experience has identified that the root cause of dis-ease is excess toxins and acidity in the body.
Certain foods and liquids aid in inactivating toxins or in removing them from your body. These tend to be on the alkaline side and include some fruits and fruit juices, fresh vegetable juices, chlorophyll-rich foods (mainly greens), herbal teas, and sea plants. For optimal results, these foods should be organically grown and consumed fresh. I am a big advocate for having your own organic herb & veggie garden. It is surprisingly easy to do and the health benefits can be profound.
Blend or juice your favourite veggies and/or fruits in the morning for a detoxifying and energising breakfast. Apart from providing their nutrients quickly, juices help speed up your metabolism to release waste quickly and have an alkalising effect (acid-neutralising) on the blood. Citrus fruits and their juices (especially lemons, limes & grapefruits) in particular are rich in alkaline salts, mainly potassium. High-fiber fruits can aid digestive regularity and stabilise insulin levels. Together, these properties of fruits reduce fat storage, speed up your metabolism, and minimise sugar cravings. Fruits should be eaten by themselves, without protein or complex carbohydrates, and before midday for best energy conversion and cleansing benefits.
Fresh & primarily green vegetable juices provide the body with necessary vitamins, minerals, and enzymes to power the natural detoxifying activities of cells and provide mega-nutrition easily assimilated for your body. For example, a combination of carrots, celery, spinach, parsley and some lime or lemon juice is high in potassium and is one of the most effective juices for cleansing the blood and tissues, neutralising acids, and rebuilding cells.
Leafy green vegetables contain chlorophyll, a detoxifying agent that helps clear the skin, cleanse the kidneys, and cleanse and rebuild the blood, our river of life. Not many people appreciate that chlorophyll has the same chemical structure as haemoglobin (our red blood cells). Its green colouring is due to having Magnesium in the centre of the molecule whereas haemoglobin in your blood is red due to Iron (which displaces the Magnesium and releases this vitally important Mg alkalising nutrient into the body). Eating any chlorophyll rich food will help to boost immunity, treat illness, and rid the body of unwanted acidic wastes & substances.
Alas, all foods today are not what they used to be so some supplements are required. Powdered concentrates of these green ‘superfoods’ may be purchased at health food stores and added to fruit and vegetable juices. I have tried many kinds and have finally settled on using Core Greens as it has a wide variety of greens included and also has an abundance of ‘free’ electrons which help to chelate acids out of the body. I add Core Greens to my 3-4 litres of Pi-Mag water that I drink every day.
Sea ‘Vegetables’ aid in detoxification by transforming toxic metals into salts that the body can eliminate. They also are rich sources of vitamins, minerals, complex carbohydrates, and proteins. Examples are nori, kelp, seaweed, dulse and wakame. Two tablespoons of dry minced sea vegetables added daily to a bowl of miso soup or too your salad is a wonderfully therapeutic dose.
China introduced Green Tea to the world which is high in antioxidant content and combats free radical damage to help protect against degenerative diseases. It also boosts enzyme production in the body. It has antibiotic, antiviral, and antibacterial properties, and is highly valued as a cancer preventative.
There are many Herbs which can also naturally assist your body with cleansing. Fresh is more often than not the best so organically growing your own is my recommendation. Even simple culinary herbs such as Sage, Oregano, Parsley, Thyme etc can have amazing health benefits. So even if you don’t have a garden space, a few herbs in some pots in a sunny window or balcony is a better option than the commercially available dried herbs you can buy in jars. Most of the essential oils have been removed from dried herbs and often they are irradiated too.
One other herb of note is Burdock, often touted as the plant of longevity, and is one of the best blood purifiers of the herbal world. Its use goes way back to ancient Greece. The leaves make a wonderful natural therapuetic addition to soups and salads, or chop it into a mix of Olive or Flax oil, some freshly squeezed lemon or lime juice & Himalayan salt to drizzle over green salads. A truly delicious salad dressing that is super healthy and detoxifying. Milk thistle is another herb & one of the best liver cleansing tonics, used with honey by the Romans, is also rich in nutrients and antioxidants to prevent free radical damage.
When taking herbs such as these in tea form, drink over a long time period as opposed to all at once. This allows your tissues to absorb as much of the medicinal value as possible. Drink a few cups daily for optimal effect.
Now there is nowhere near enough space here to go into the all the reasons why certain foods and drinks can be immensely beneficial for cleansing and detoxification.
Living mostly raw and alkaline are the best options. Keep it simple. The next article in this series will be delving deeper into Liquid Alkaline Cleansing. What is it, why you should consider doing so regularly and the immense benefits of doing so. There is so much to cover, it will become a book one day but in the interim, I plan to have a new website providing further information in this important area to be available for you as a resource soon as well.This site is up & running now though not 100% complete at www.alkalise2live.weebly.com. Check it our for information on my 1st scheduled Alkalise2Live Group Cleanse & Coaching program plus loads more.
And before I sign off for today, just a little reminder. Two quotes resonate for me when it comes to our health. Thomas Edison is quoted as saying, “The doctor of the future will give no medicine, but will interest his patients in the care of the human frame, in diet, and in the cause of disease.” And Hippocrates said ‘Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.’
Unfortunately, a typical western trained doctors today gets as little a 4 hours of education on nutrition while studying to qualify as a physician. So it really is up to you to learn more about how food, nutrition & lifestyle choices can be a solid foundation for your health.
Now I’m wondering if you can help me as I have a vision of a world without dis-ease. It’s a big dream and it starts one person at a time. I trust you found this article today useful and truly appreciate the benefits of owning your own health. Reward your body regularly with a living, liquid, cleansing feast and let the detoxifying techniques shared in this series of articles to help you to improve your own life. May you help yourself and those you love to foster prevention, allow your body the God given resources it needs to heal naturally and inspire a future that is stress-less, at-ease, and live happier longer lives! And remember to…
Be Healthy…You Deserve it
Kevin Carle
Health Coach
Body, Mind, Spirit Environmentalist
www.yourhealthcoaching.weebly.com