Detoxes are loved by the rich and famous for adding some zing into daily life. But why should you do a detox and are there any benefits to them?
Do we need to detox?
In my view, when done right, a detox can aid your gut health and give your energy a boost too.
Think of our car analogy again. If you put diesel in a petrol engine, what’s going to happen? It will cough, splutter and stop working. Now think of all those processed and refined foods that you are putting into your pipes….if you only add these into your system, eventually you will reach a point where you need to flush them out and put back some premium fuel!
Refined foods are processed foods that lack many of the nutrients (fibre, vitamins and minerals) that they originally had. They often have more calories than nutrients too and mostly apply to carbohydrate products like grains and include sugars. Replacing these with beneficial foods that are whole (fruits, vegetables, whole grains and animal proteins – not Easter eggs unfortunately!) can ease the stress of the digestive system and help it to repair any damage.
Undertaking a detox is really about flushing your pipes. Moving from a sluggish system to enhanced engine performance & improved acceleration (more energy, less fatigue).
How to do a simple and healthy gut detox.
For a simple and healthy gut cleanse, you need to start with a diet of unprocessed, unrefined whole foods and add in some healing supplements or foods too.
Here are my five simple and easy steps to help you flush those pipes and pep up your engine!
- No cabbage soup diets here. I always recommend going for a food based detox with elimination of bad foods and addition of good food. It will be healthier for your body overall, as it still needs essential nutrients from food to work optimally. So no crazy maple syrup only diets please!
- Firstly, look at your diet. Add in more vegetables to give your digestive system a break. They are easy to digest and help it to function more effectively. They also add in extra water to your diet, which helps to flush it through. Add all the veggies that I always remind you about (green cruciferous veg, berries, fruit with high water content such as melon). If you can include three portions of veggies with each meal, that’s a great start.
Cutting out diary for a little while can help too. Replace it with plant based milks for this period (natural bio yoghurt is ok though). Replace processed wheat products with whole grains – no processed cereals or breads while you are doing this.
If you’re feeling brave, I would also recommend no alcohol or sugar for the period of detoxing to give your system a rest (a big ask, I know!). If you can’t cut sugar out completely, you can eat fruit, or dates are a good sugar hit (and great for constipation too!).
- Let your gut flora bloom. While you’re flushing those pipes, adding in some much-needed healthy gut flora is a good idea too. Fermented foods with natural prebiotics and probiotics aid the elimination of bad bacteria. Sauerkraut, pickles, Kimchi and miso promote a healthy balance of good bacteria. If you don’t like these though, a high quality probiotic will help tip the balance too.
- Water, water, water! This advice will never grow old! You need to drink at least three litres of water a day to flush everything through. The more water you have in your system, the less toxins will stay in there. Drinking warm water, especially first thing in the morning when you have an empty stomach is one easy step to add to your daily routine that will instantly aid detoxification.
Herbal teas are often overlooked and are an effective way to not only drink more water throughout the day, but you can also combine some helpful herbs into them to make them even more effective. Think of them as your extra engine treatment formula! Try adding some fresh ginger with lemon, or a pinch of turmeric to boost the liver. Apple cider vinegar is a great way to stimulate digestion if taken just before each meal.
If you struggle to drink enough water – check out my free download of ways to add in extra water to your diet HERE.
- Proper planning and preparation prevents piss poor performance. If you’re suffering from symptoms of a poor performing engine (bloating, constipation or diarrhoea, fatigue, a spluttering exhaust…), then you might want to consider a colonic hydrotherapy treatment to empty out what is causing the problem and add give those pipes a thorough flush through. My herbal or coffee enemas are a soothing and healing alternative that will improve your engine performance in one foul swoop. I can also add a probiotic implant in afterwards and help you with aftercare changes to your diet to aid repair and improve symptoms.
The key thing to understand is that you don’t need a hard-core three-day detox cleanse – these changes can be added to your daily routine and you will continue to support your digestive system on a regular basis – the benefits will only increase.
If you’re simply looking for a quick boost to bring some life back to your digestive system, then a two-week period will work well. However, if you’re suffering from more serious health complaints, I would recommend you do a detox gut cleanse for a period of 4-6 weeks.
So, if you’ve been experiencing symptoms of engine fatigue and wondering if you should do a detox, why not take the plunge and give your engine a thorough spring clean to flush through those pipes? Or if you’d rather take your engine to the garage instead, book a consultation with me and I’ll happily get under the bonnet and empty out your system!
