Are you Feeling tired or out of energy most of the time? Suffering from skin problems, aches and pains, or digestive problems? Can't lose weight easily? It might be time for a body detox. Practiced for centuries by cultures around the world — including ayurvedic and Chinese medicine systems — detoxification is about resting, cleaning and nourishing the body from the inside out. By removing and eliminating toxins, then feeding your body with healthy nutrients, detoxifying can help protect you from disease and renew your ability to maintain optimum health.
Basically, detoxification means cleaning the blood. This is done by removing impurities from the blood in the liver, where toxins are processed for elimination. The body also eliminates toxins through the kidneys, intestines, lungs, lymph and skin. However, when this system is compromised, impurities aren't properly filtered and every cell in the body is adversely affected.
1. Add more antioxidant foods to your diet
For 3 days, focus on eating brightly colored fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and beans. Antioxidants activate liver enzymes that "knock out" harmful substances and make them water soluble, so your body can get rid of them more easily. Spinach, kale, and cranberries are super-antioxidant-rich.
2. Replace a meal each day with a detoxifying smoothie
Though you never want to go to extreme measures where your diet is concerned, there are some ideas that can work wonders. When it comes to naturally cleansing the body a great measure can be to replace one meal a day with a detoxifying smoothie. This isn’t extreme and won’t cause any harm, but it can be exceptional for getting rid of the substances that your body doesn’t need.
A good green smoothie example :
• 1 cup kale or collard greens firmly packed, stems removed, coarsely chopped (4 ounces)
• 1 Granny Smith apple, coarsely chopped
• 1 ripe banana.
• 1/2 cup loosely packed fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
Combine kale, apple, banana, parsley, and 2 1/4 cups water in a blender; blend until smooth. If the mixture is too thick, add a little more water.
3. Turn organic when possible
While you don’t have to eat only organic, there are certain foods where this is a necessity. The food list known as the “Dirty Dozen” contains a list of foods where pesticides and preservatives can build up and therefore be consumed and ingested by you during digestion. The rule of thumb generally goes that if you eat the peel or the outside of the fruit or vegetable that you should really opt for organic. Strawberries, apples, and tomatoes are good examples of the types of foods where organic really does matter. When you choose the right organic foods then you avoid the toxins that can be harmful to your health. This is a simple way of detoxifying the body and all it takes is making good choices at the grocery store.
4. Drink a lot of water
Part of the goal is to pee, poop, and sweat toxins out of your system, says Mary Purdy, RD, clinical nutrition supervisor at Bastyr Center for Natural Health in Seattle. So drinking 8 to 12 glasses of water or decaffeinated tea a day is essential. (An added bonus? You'll look gorgeous, too.
5. Exercise and sweat more
We all know that exercise is an essential part of a truly healthy lifestyle and that it helps with weight loss—but there is much more to it than that! When it comes to naturally and effectively cleansing the body, exercise can be a great option to turn to. Though many people don’t think of exercise in this manner, it can be what helps you with the cleansing process dramatically.
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