Losing weight, having more energy-boosting immunity function, reducing inflammation, ridding yourself of allergies, balancing hormones, experiencing total nourishment, clearing your mind, sleeping better. These are all benefits you could receive from a detox or a cleanse with many more positive side effects like glowing skin, stronger hair, sparkling eyes, improved nails, better breath, etc.
Before attempting it, however, it is important to learn the difference between detoxing and cleansing:
Detoxing is more targeted at removing an unwanted waste product or substance from the body like chemicals or medications, while cleansing provides more general support for the organs of detoxification, including the colon, liver, and kidneys, without trying to remove a specific target from the body.
Why do you need a detox or a cleanse? We can take toxins in from our diet (processed foods contain over 3,000 different chemicals), through our skin (beauty products), and through inhalation (more than 80,000 chemicals are released into the environment on a daily basis). No matter how careful we are, toxins are everywhere and unfortunately will find a place inside our bodies.
Thankfully, our bodies are perfect machines that are working every second of our lives and do the best they can to flush all those toxins out. With the aid of a healthy diet, a detox or cleanse will make it easier for them. If you want to get rid of what your body does not need any more, whether it is medication, substances, alcohol, pollution, cigarette smoke, or fat, detoxes and cleanses will be your best buddy.
They come in various forms: dieting, colon therapy, alkalinizing your body, and juice fasting. The juice fast is the most common way and, to be honest, it is pretty enjoyable. By eliminating the intake of solid foods while juicing, you will give your body a break from the process of digesting solids and will let the nutrients into your bloodstream in an almost direct way. Cleanses will also aid in flushing waste trapped in your colon that might be keeping you from losing those extra pounds. Most importantly, detoxes and cleanses work at a cellular level, letting out toxins and extra fat that were trapped inside the cell due to high toxicity levels in our system.
Cleanses must be done carefully, so be sure to follow these Do’s and Don’ts
Do’s
- Search for an expert to guide you through the process.
- Set an intention for your detox and cleanse.
- Prepare your body by gradually eliminating heavy foods from your diet for the two weeks before the detox or cleanse.
- Prepare yourself psychologically for the absence of solids in your diet, fasting is not easy.
- Use only organic produce for your fast.
- Practice a cleanse during weather changes (spring or autumn)
- Drink lots of alkaline water.
- Include natural supplements that support the cleanse or the specific organs you want to treat.
Don’ts
- Follow a detox or cleanse program that you found
- Drink caffeine, alcohol, or soft drinks.
- Smoke.
- Do a water-only fast.
- Do it when going through rough periods, like emotional distress or other difficult times.
- Do it if you are ill or going through chemotherapy.
Recipes
Liver Cleanse Juice
- 1/4 cabbage
- 1 cup orange juice
- 2 carrots
- 1” ginger root peeled
Juice all the solids and mix with the orange juice add water to desired constancy. Drink accompanied with 2 Milk Thistle supplement pills.
Detox Water
- 1 cup watermelon, diced
- 1/4 cucumber, sliced
- 4 mint leaves
- 2 slices of lemon
- 600 ml water
Infuse in a jar overnight, and drink the water all day long. The infusion will help flush out the toxins.