By Joseph Palumbo | IFBB PRO BODYBUILDER
First and foremost: forgive yourself. You tried your best to be virtuous, but you lost your “diet halo” in a wave of overindulgence. If you woke up the next day feeling overstuffed, bloated, and nauseated, don’t worry. Use a good detox (plus plenty of water) and get back to your healthy, happy self in no time. A study, published in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, assessed the use of clinical detoxification therapies by licensed naturopathic doctors in the United States. One hundred ninety-six naturopathic doctors completed a survey. Ninety-two percent of respondents reported using detox therapies. Over 75 percent utilized detoxification to treat patients for environmental exposures, general cleaning, preventive medicine, gastrointestinal disorders and autoimmune diseases.
Homemade detox drinks have major health benefits including weight loss. My personal favorite is Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV). It gives the body a good dose of enzymes, increasing potassium intake, supporting a healthy immune system, helping with weight control, promoting pH-balance, aiding with healthy digestion, adding good bacteria to the gut, helping to remove “sludge toxins”, soothing skin and helping to keep it healthy. The use of apple cider vinegar for detoxification, diet, or other benefits goes back thousands of years. Some claim it to be the “father of medicines.”
If you find it a little hard to swallow, try adding other detox ingredient, Cucumber. Cucumber nutrition includes some impressive benefits when it comes to fighting free radical damage and inflammation. Cucumber also contains some powerful polyphenol compounds that can help to naturally slow aging caused by oxidative stress. Cucumbers are diuretics, so they stimulate urination which helps to cleanse the liver, flush out bodily toxins and avoid water retention.
Detox teas are herbal teas (aka: tisanes) that are used to detoxify the body. Most detox tea blends are based on Traditional Chinese Medicine, Ayurveda, and other forms of herbalism.
Cleanse thy self and be healthy.
