When the calendar turns to the beginning of the year, many people start thinking of weight loss. There are many types of weight loss plans, from the Atkins diet to a Mediterranean diet, and everything in between. But in order to entirely reset your body’s digestive system, many people swear by a cleanse.
A Cleanse Defined
There are so many toxins that our bodies have to deal with on a daily basis, whether they are from our food, the air we breathe, or our water. Add that to any bad habits we might have like smoking or drug use, and your body really could use a break! Most of the time our bodily systems do a good job of filtering these toxins out, but sometimes our systems can simply be overwhelmed.
Food and Beverages to Leave Behind
A detox cleanse means many different things to different people, but there are a few things that they all try to leave behind. The heavy hitters to exclude from your daily intake when you are on a cleanse diet include caffeine, sugar, gluten, dairy products, alcohol and any processed foods. Typically, there are sometimes people’s go to foods and beverages, but can certainly overwhelm the liver.
Food and Beverages to Add
If we lose all of the foods above, what SHOULD we be eating? Fill your plate with cruciferous vegetables, healthy fats like avocado and flax, as well as blueberries, apples and lemons. These foods help reduce inflammation and get your bodily systems back on track. Legumes are an often overlooked food group that can help with your detox.
How Long Should I Cleanse?
The length of time is up to you and depends on your goals. You can give your liver a break with a 5 day detox, or you can take it farther by doing it for a month. The mindset is more important than the time limit, and even 5 days will be a gift to your liver.
If you give your body a break from toxins for a while, your organs will work more efficiently and you will achieve other health benefits as well. The best benefit would be if you keep up with some of the changes you have made, such as not eating processed foods, gluten and caffeine.
