Detoxification is not just for the movie stars who abuse painkillers anymore. New evidence has shown that just about everyone needs detox – not for drug use, but to clean out the colon, blood system, liver, and other organs that have been building up potentially toxic amounts of unhealthy matter over the years. Lots of people are jumping on the detox diet bandwagon, and for good reason, too.
With all the preservatives, hormones, air pollutants, pesticides, and even fat (think fast food) that gets into our bodies every day, it just makes sense to clean the temple from time to time. You wouldn’t go without cleaning the house for very long, and you shouldn’t go very long without cleaning out the body, either.
Here are three delicious recipes for detox diets. Give them a try if you want to help cleanse your system and/or lose some weight:
1) Veggie Broth
• A head of fresh broccoli
• A cup of fresh spinach leaves
• A of celery
• A pot full of distilled water
Simply cut up the vegetables into very small pieces. Put them in the pot of water, cover, and bring them to a full boil. Then, reduce the heat to a simmer and let all those nutrients seep out of those vegetables into the water. After about thirty minutes, drain the mixture. Discard the vegetables, and drink the broth. Yummy and a good colon cleanser!
2) Tomato-based Hearty Detox Soup
• A pot of purified water
• A head of green cabbage
• Two medium green bell peppers (or one large and one small)
• An onion
• Three stalks of celery
• Three carrots
• One-third to one-half of a pound of fresh or frozen green beans
• One or two cans of diced tomatoes or tomato sauce
Slice the cabbage into strips. Chop the peppers into bite-size pieces or smaller if you prefer. Cut up the onion, celery, and carrots into pieces of the same size. Prepare the green beans.
Some folks will say to ad the ingredients to the water a little at a time, beginning with the “hardest” vegetables first. I find that unnecessary. Just throw all the vegetables into the pot of water, cover, and bring to a boil. Then, lower the heat and allow the soup to simmer for several hours. Enjoy!
3) Lemon and Citrus “Tea” Detox Recipes
Lemon is quickly becoming a popular detox ingredient, probably because of its high citric acid content, vitamin C density, and abundance of bioflavonoids. Besides for all these benefits, there is something that is generally pleasing about the lemon, don’t you think? Lemon furniture polish still b rings back childhood memories of helping my mom dust the living room furniture, my dishwashing detergent is lemon-scented, and lemonade on a hot day – are you kidding? It gets no better than that.
• A glass of grapefruit juice
• The juice of one large lemon
• Two teaspoons of olive oil
• One to two teaspoons of flaxseed oil
• Optional – a clove of crushed garlic
• Optional – split the juices to half a glass of grapefruit and half glass of orange
• A scoop of your favorite protein powder from the nutrition store
Simply combine the above ingredients in your blender and drink. Try to drink it on an empty stomach; perhaps the first thing in the morning, and be prepared to be cleaned out.
Recipes for detox diets are a sure and fast way to help clean your digestive system out as a whole. However, it is important for you to follow the directions carefully and only use for the length of time that is appropriate.
