The Do It Yourself Diet Plans to Detox Your Body

The Editor, 11th February 2015

[wp_ad_camp_1]Detox short for detoxification is the process of eliminating toxic substances from the human body. There are plenty of off the shelf products that are on sale nowadays to help you detox. But many people fail to do simple things at home that can also help with detoxification. The Do It Yourself Diet Plans to Detox your body is a guide to help you do this in your own time without the need to go and buy expensive products from the chemists.

The Detox Diet

A detox diet gives you the simplest and most effective way to rid your body of the toxins that accumulates on a day to day basis. The most important thing to remember in a detox diet is, the more fiber and water you consume the better. Lots of vegetables and fruits , beans and nuts will help cleanse your body. Important thing to note also is to stay away from caffeine, fizzy drinks and sugary products like chocolates, alcohol and yeast. Eat one type of fruit after every meal. For example an apple for breakfast, orange after lunch, grapefruit juice at tea time and in the evening grapes or bananas after your dinner.

Antioxidants

Antioxidant – Green Tea

Antioxidants flush out toxins from your body. They work like scrub brushes removing internal build up of toxins that get in the way of natural healing. They are also known as compounds that protect the body’s cells from free radical damage. Free radicals are produced during the human body’s natural processes such as digestion or after exposure to your natural environment’s contaminants such as passive or active smoking, radiation or other chemicals. It is believed that such contaminants in the human body may eventually contribute to diseases like cancer, heart diseases, Alzheimer’s disease and many more. Research shows that eating food rich in antioxidants such as fruits and vegetables helps reduce the free radicals in the human body.

Antioxidants may also be available in liquid form such as Ginger Healing Tea with Turmeric, and other green and herbal teas sold on the high street shops. Best teas for detox are known to be Oolong tea, black tea and green teas as they all come from the same source called Camellia Sinensis. Amazing fact but true, many asian people have better health and longer life as besides healthy diets, they are regular tea drinkers, especially in Japan and China where Green and black tea are very popular. You will be intaking many more antioxidants from a simple cup of tea than from a serving of fruits or vegetables.

Vitamin A and C

Good source of Vitamin A and C

Food sources that are rich in Vitamin A and C are also good antioxiding agents. Delicious sweet berries such as raspberries, blueberries and strawberries offer good amount of detoxification to your body. They are rich in proanthocyanidins that help prevent cancer and heart diseases. So eat them with your breakfast , put a handful over your morning cereals and enjoy the benefits.

Broccoli is the most nutritious of vegetables. This vegetable contains an abundance of Vitamin C , even more than an orange and contains more calcium than a glass of milk. It is loaded with disease fighting chemicals called phytonutrients. Sulforaphane which is a phytonutrient in broccoli is known to lower risks of various types of cancers. Steam broccoli or boil it and add it to your dinner. This is a good do it yourself detox diet.

Garlic for Detox

Garlic is widely used around the world as a flavouring agent for any dish. The benefits of garlic has been well known for centuries and have been trusted as a natural antibiotic agent that kill harmful bacteria in the human body. Garlic decreases blood pressure and cholesterol, removes heavy metals from the body preventing cancer and plays an important role in removing fungi and viral infections. One clove of garlic contains Vitamins A, B and C, lots of iron, zinc and magnesium.

Tomatoes as detox agents

Tomatoes contain Lycopene

A rich source of anti cancer agent, tomatoes contain lycopene. Lycopene is believed to be a powerful disease fighter even stronger than beta carotene. Start by adding more tomatoes in your food is an excellent way to improve your diet for detoxing.

Water – An essential agent for detoxification

Water for Detox

Drinking plenty of water is the most important part of a detox diet. Water helps maintain your body’s fluid levels and at the same time helps your kidneys flush out the body’s main toxin, blood urea nitrogen. Also try lemon water, orange or lime juice to your liquid diet during the day. These contain citric acid that helps the body cut down fat. 8 Cups of water daily is the minimum recommended daily intake.

What to avoid during your detox diet

Ok we have given you some great tips on what to add to your diet to help detox but it is also essential to know what to avoid in order not to negate the diet.

Cut down Alcohol

Alcohol increase toxins

Stick to one glass of wine a day is good enough. Too much alcohol on a daily basis will increase toxins in your body and therefore should be cut down if you drink regularly. If you have withdrawal problems from alcohol but still want to keep on track with your daily detox plan there are medicines that can help you to stay away from alcohol.

Acamprosate is a type of medicine that can help ease alcohol cravings. Usually started in hospitals and continued by GPs

Naltrexone is an alternative to Acamprosate but usually only available on prescription by specialists.

Disulfiram may be recommended by hospital specialists following a successful detox process. This medicine acts as a deterrent when you are tempted to drink alcohol.

Other help to combat drinking is counselling. You may need to seek help if you are serious about detoxing but cannot avoid alcohol addiction.

Avoid Excess Sugar

Sugar is toxic

Excessive blood sugar levels will put your health at greater risk especially for the heart. Heart diseases, diabetes and certain cancers are the results of consuming excess sugar.

“Sugar is toxic beyond its calories” Dr Robert Lustig , an expert on childhood obesity at the University of California told the Fifth Estate’s Gillian Findlay

According to his research sugar is a poison because of the way the human body breaks it down. Metabolising excess fructose which is contained in sugar, the liver turns that energy into liver fat that eventually causes downstream metabolic diseases. Fructose also contained in sugar when metabolised almost entirely by the liver can result in the generation of free radicals, damaged cells and uric acid which can lead to kidney disease or gout. This in turn can result in a process called de novo lipogenesis, which contributes fats into the bloodstream. The byproducts of sugar cause obesity, insulin resistance and diabetes. A study in 2009 performed on 16 men with a controlled diet with added 35 percent fructose supplement to their calorie intake concluded that their livers had fat deposits, increased triglycerides and decreased insulin sensitivity after one week.

Limit exposure to harmful toxins in the air

Avoid Air Toxins

Avoid smoking or passive smoking. Carbon monoxide, radon, asbestos are dangerous chemicals that intoxicate the human body. Known also as air toxins, they are suspected to cause cancer and other serious health effects such as reproductive or birth defects. Air toxins also damage human cells, cause immune suppression, making the body more susceptible to diseases. They can also trigger a secondary immune response by promoting the release of other various chemicals or breakdown products. When air pollutants are inhaled they can enter the human bloodstream and their potential harmful effects distributed throughout the body. As blood passes through all the organs and tissues in the body, the toxins are carried through to all these parts of the body.

Meditate to detox

Ok this is one of the least known ways to detox. Not many people know that meditation is a very good way of detoxing the body. Detoxifying your mind is as essential as detoxifying your body. Feeling stressed, anxious and depressed can seriously affect body functions including how effectively it eliminates waste and toxins. Therefore it’s good practice to meditate and relieve stress and generally improve mental health.