How to Choose a Detox Plan

Detox is a popular term you hear today, and many people speak out about the fantastic benefits they see from a detox program. However, not everyone knows how to choose a detox cleanse.

If you have never started a detox plan before, use this information to guide you. First, we’ll talk about how you get started and what detox plans are available. This information will help you find the right detox program for your needs. 

How to Go On a Detox

First Step

The first step is always the hardest! To start a detox, think about what toxins you may come in contact with daily. Toxins mainly come from the air around you and the foods you eat. However, even the everyday products you use, from cosmetics to cleaning products, contain harmful toxins. Once in the body, they build up over time to cause disease.  

If you know, for example, your family eats processed foods, it may be the leading cause for your severe health problems like reproductive issues and cancer (1). Drug store cosmetics and skincare products have chemicals known to cause various health issues, and workers may be exposed to a myriad of environmental toxins each commute. 

Some people also have food sensitivities they don’t know about, so eliminating or restricting some foods for a week can help you better understand your digestive system. Gluten and dairy are the most common food groups to cause discomfort, particularly in the digestive tract. 

Not many people think to prep before they detox, it’s a crucial part to get your body ready and to make sure it’s not shocked. We love this Detox Prep. It’s perfect for helping you stay energized during a detox. 

Next Step

After you better understand what foods to restrict from your diet, you can begin. Holistic health is all about understanding your body and what you need to live your best life. 

Prepare for detox by cutting out all alcohol, sugar, and processed foods from your diet. Replace them with more raw, organic vegetables to aid proper digestion. I can’t stress the importance of organic enough, as produce often comes with chemicals known to cause breast cancer as well (2). 

Types of Detox Plans

Next, consider what types of detox plans are available. The right option for you may depend on how and what you prefer to ingest. 

Most detoxes either:

• Replace food with liquid
• Support your natural detox process
• Cleanse the digestive tract through your colon

Many people believe that they are detoxing by only drinking smoothies or juices rather than eating real foods. This type of detox can become dangerous. There are misconceptions about fasting with liquids, but most experts claim this is due to drinking unhealthy beverages. Pre-packaged options are full of sugar, and they only make you feel hungrier over time because the body doesn’t receive the necessary nutrients. It’s the same as why you don’t feel full after munching on junk food (3). 

Instead, the safer option is to support your body with freshly made vegetable-based juices and smoothies (more on this later). Or, you can help your body’s natural mode of detox with natural foods. Natural foods are the best way to achieve ultimate health, and even supplements can’t ultimately make up for their importance. 

Colon or full-body cleanses can also be highly dangerous. The truth is that the human body is excellent at eliminating toxins without our help, but you can help the body’s natural detox process. 

Benefits of Detox Plans

Studies haven’t yet confirmed if detox programs can improve your health, which is mostly due to the mass of incorrect information on the subject. 

Detoxes are made to rid your body from the toxins that build up over time. By fasting just before a detox cleanse, you can restart the metabolism. However, not everyone recommends fasting, as the most crucial thing is to load the body full of the right foods. Replacing the unhealthy toxins in your body with nutrients helps the immune and digestive systems rest. When both systems function correctly, research shows you can prevent disease (4).

Detox diets help with an array of health problems, from obesity and digestive issues to autoimmune diseases like eczema, allergies, bloating, inflammation, and even chronic fatigue (10). 

Other people claim that eliminating the toxins built-up in your body boosts your health automatically and aids weight loss. Too many toxins in the liver, in particular, can cause fat to accumulate around the belly region. This weight is difficult to remove and keep off, but with a regular detox or lifestyle change, you can help the liver function better. 

Think about it: Do the benefits of the detox plan align with your goals?

How to Choose a Detox Program: Selecting a Detox Program

Here’s how to choose a detox plan, based on the part of the body you’re trying to detox. Consider your personal needs and whether you have any preexisting health conditions. 

You may want to learn how to choose a detox program for the following reasons.  

Liver 

Uses: Detox for liver; detox for bloating; detox for alcohol

Responsible for cleaning the body of environmental toxins, the toxins in your liver cause serious harm. Standard liver detox cleanse recipe options include milk thistle, which research shows can decrease inflammation and aid cell repair (13). For liver help, you can also increase the amount of garlic you eat and definitely refrain from alcohol. 

Gut 

Uses: Detox for weight loss; detox for digestive health; detox for bloating

A popular choice for weight loss, detox diets are the best way to rid your gut of toxins and boost digestive health. If you have trouble with constipation, bloating, nausea or diarrhea, low energy, or feel sluggish, a gut detox is beneficial. You may eat poorly or drink too much soda, but a diet balanced with whole, unprocessed foods can aid weight loss. Eat plenty of leafy greens and stick to drinking water. Probiotics and fermented foods also help digestion. Avoid sugar, preservatives, refined grains, fatty meat, and condiments. 

Skin 

Uses: Detox for acne

Cosmetics and skincare products are full of toxic chemicals. They cause breakouts and acne, as well as other more severe skin conditions such as psoriasis and eczema. Cleaning your face twice per day as well as drinking water lemon water in the morning can help you detox for acne. You might switch out your morning coffee for green tea as well. Avoid alcohol and sugar. Focus on leafy greens and tons of water for the best results. 

Colon 

Uses: Detox for digestion; detox for weight loss

The colon is a piece of the digestive system, and cleaning the organ out can aid weight loss. However, supplements and enemas are highly dangerous. Natural colon cleansing is easy with around 6-8 glasses of lukewarm water each day and foods high in water content, such as tomatoes, celery, lettuce, and watermelons. Herbal teas may also help you discharge toxins faster. 

Blood  

Uses: Detox for fatigue; detox for digestive health; detox for women’s problems

A pollutant not easily removed from the body, heavy metals accumulate in fat tissue and the blood. The process takes years, but you can speed it up by not eating foods high in heavy metals like processed foods and fats. Certain foods, such as those high in essential vitamins and minerals, can bind to the metal and remove them before they reach your digestive system. Luckily, heavy metals aren’t in many commercial products today (11). 

Finding the Right Detox Plan for You

The right detox plan for you will either target a problem area of the body, such as the liver or skin, or aid a specific issue you’re experiencing. You could detox for alcohol after a fun night out, detox for weight loss when you need a boost or even a detox for men – who often have different needs than women. 

How to Choose a Detox Plan For Your Needs

Next, you must select a type of detox program. Natural foods are the best way to create a healthy lifestyle and detox the body. They also show promising results in weight loss and when detoxing for medical reasons. 

Weight Loss

Eating more organic, whole veggies is the fastest way to detox for weight loss. Detox drinks also help you add in the right amount of vegetables every day. There are two main diets to show promising results in weight loss: Low-carb diets and weight-loss diets.

Both diets emphasize eating more leafy greens, and both low-carb and keto diets show promising results in weight loss and several other chronic conditions, such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer, epilepsy, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, brain trauma, and even acne. 

The diets are similar, but low-carb includes slightly more carbs per day than keto. Full ketosis requires a much lower amount of carbs. The right diet for your weight loss journey may depend on how your body reacts to carbs. Gluten, for example, is one of the most common food allergies or sensitivities people don’t even realize they have. 

Medical Detox

For centuries, medical detox techniques have involved activated charcoal pills. They mix easily in water and remove poisons from the inside out, particularly from the liver. Activated charcoal supplements also aid hangovers for this reason.

Remember, cleanses don’t correct or reverse preexisting organ damage. If you have a health condition, you should always consult your doctor before altering your eating habits or taking on a detox. 

Easy Plans 

You can also prepare for your next detox to ensure your safety using a detox cleanse kit. Kits like this help you feel energized throughout the detox process. We also have a cellular vitality kit our customers love. Backed by scientific research, these detoxes in a box are the simplest way to get to the cellular level for a complete cleanse

Detox Prep-in-a-Box 

Cellular Vitality Kit 

Brain Phase Detox

 

The Most Successful Weight Loss Method: Top Detox Foods

If you want to detox for weight loss, the easiest and quickest way to shed pounds is to change your exercise and eating habits. Your lifestyle may change as you replace harmful foods with detox foods. 

Expect to drink plenty of water to flush the toxins from your body before they cause hard-to-lose belly fat, particularly in women. You’ll exercise for at least 20 minutes per day to sweat out detrimental substances from your food or environment. (5).  Instead of eating processed foods, you’ll also consume more organic vegetables. 

Detox Foods

Some foods help your body naturally detox. They contain antioxidants, which protect the cells from harmful free radicals (8). Although your body already makes its own antioxidants, pollutant exposure, poor diet, and alcohol or tobacco can become too much for you to handle alone. Enter detox foods. 

The top diet plan includes detox foods like:

• Lemon
• Ginger
• Garlic
• Artichoke
• Beets
• Cabbage
• Tomato
• Avocado
• Banana
• Orange
• Pineapple
• Grapefruit
• Berries
• Nuts
• Brown rice
• Watercress

Add these foods into your daily meals where you can, and make sure to eat more foods rich in antioxidants when you feel sluggish. 

Studies show other sulfur-containing foods also help you remove heavy metals such as cadmium from your body (9). These foods include:

• Eggs
• Onions
• Broccoli
• Garlic
• Chlorella
• Cilantro

Detox Drinks

Detox drinks are an excellent way to help the body detox and replace toxins with healthy nutrients. They come with tons of benefits, from weight loss to fighting off cancer. However, be careful with juice cleanses and detoxes that claim to replace your diet completely. 

Juicing, detox drinks, or supplements should never replace 100% of the nutrients you gain from real, whole foods. Store-bought, pre-packaged juices are often high in sugar, and techniques like cold pressing only remove the nutrients you want. Homemade juices made with celery and spinach or even lemons are the best for detoxing, but you must drink them immediately. 

The best way is to use a detox drink to make up for the nutrients you’re not getting through foods.

• Detox tea – Herbal teas make an excellent detox cleanse tea. They help detoxify vital organs and aid weight loss. Try mixing ½ teaspoon of ginger with 2 teaspoons of hibiscus for the best homemade detoxifying tea. 
• Juice cleanse – Homemade juices with celery or spinach are high in antioxidants known to stop chronic inflammation, which lowers your risk of other diseases (12). 
• Smoothies – Swap out juices, which can be high in sugar, for vegetable and fruit smoothies with more fiber and protein. The peels and cores add more fiber to your diet, while the antioxidants and nutrients don’t bleed out as you make the drink. Never buy pre-packaged detox smoothies and avoid adding fruit or sugar. 
• Green tea – With tons of active ingredients to aid detox, studies show green tea is an antioxidant that boosts liver performance and protects the organ from disease (6). For the best results, brew homemade green tea from loose leaves. 
• Apple cider vinegar – Organic apple cider vinegar shows promising results in weight loss, heart disease prevention, and regulating blood sugar. You can mix it with water or try one of our delicious drink recipes. 

A Detox Cleanse is a Challenging but Critical Process

You must complete a detox the right way. If something goes wrong or the detox is performed incorrectly, you could face more health problems (7). Long-term fasting (for more than a couple days for most people) is also unsafe. The main goal is to create a well-rounded diet with foods to boost your overall health while detoxifying the body.

Although a detox cleanse is a challenging process, it’s rewarding. Detox diets are the best way to safely eliminate toxins, promote weight loss, and improve overall health. Avoid supplements and smoothies with extravagant quick-fix claims. Even herbal supplements like St. John’s Wort can negatively interact with some medications and health conditions. Stick to organic foods, sleep, exercise, and plenty of water instead. 

You can also prepare for your next detox to ensure your safety using a detox cleanse kit. Kits like this help you feel energized throughout the detox process. We also have a cellular vitality kit our customers love. 

 

Sources:

1. Johnson, Paula I., et al. (2016). Cosmetics Containing Ingredients Linked to Cancer or Reproductive Harm. Retrieved from: https://prhe.ucsf.edu/sites/g/files/tkssra341/f/CA%20Safe%20Cosmetics%20Program%20Report.pdf
2. Breast Cancer.org Exposure to Chemicals in Food. Retrieved from: https://www.breastcancer.org/risk/factors/food_chem
3. Severson, Katy. (2019). Here’s Why You Don’t Feel Full After Eating Junk Food. Retrieved from: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/feel-full-after-junk-food_l_5c76b279e4b08c4f555650fc
4. Fields, Helen. (2015). The Gut: Where Bacteria and Immune System Meet. Retrieved from: https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/research/advancements-in-research/fundamentals/in-depth/the-gut-where-bacteria-and-immune-system-meet
5. Doheny, Kathleen. (2009). U.S. News Health. Post-Exercise ‘Glow’ May Last 12 Hours. Retrieved from: https://health.usnews.com/health-news/family-health/brain-and-behavior/articles/2009/05/29/post-exercise-glow-may-last-12-hours
6. Chacko, Sabu M., et al. (2010). Beneficial effects of green tea: A literature review. Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2855614/
7. Picco, Michael F. (2010). Is colon cleansing a good way to remove toxins from your body? Retrieved from: https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/consumer-health/expert-answers/colon-cleansing/faq-20058435
8. Lobo, V., et al. (2010). Free radicals, antioxidants and functional foods: Impact on human health. Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3249911/
9. Suru, S.M. (2008). Onion and garlic extracts lessen cadmium-induced nephrotoxicity in rats. Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18521705/
10. Allen, J., et al. (2011). Detoxification in naturopathic medicine: a survey. Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22103982
11. Wasser, J., et al. (2015). Biological monitoring of Persistent Organic Pollutants in human milk in Israel. Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26246042
12. Hosteltler, Gregory L., et al. (2017). Flavones: Food Sources, Bioavailability, Metabolism, and Bioactivity. Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5421117/
13.  Achufusi, George O. and Raj. K. Patel. (2019). Milk Thistle. Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK541075/