Cleanse & Feel Great
Cleanse & Feel Great – article written by Juliette Bryant
We all want to feel good and our food choices can play an important role in helping us achieve this. At the start of the year we have a great opportunity to cleanse out some of the accumulated toxins by following a sensible nutritional programme. Toxin-related illnesses are on the rise, and detoxing is such an important aspect of a health routine – for our physical and mental health.
In this article, I’ll look at some of my top tips to feel great and get in shape.
Water
Water, after oxygen, is the most vital component of life. Our body is 70% water and our brain is 80%. Proper hydration through clean water is one of the most overlooked aspects of health, as your body and brain will simply not work properly without it. Drink water throughout the day, especially in the morning after cleaning your teeth. A good tip to increase hydration is to add a small pinch of good sea salt and/or lemon to your water.
Raw Greens
Greens, such as kale, broccoli, spinach, celery, watercress, parsley, coriander, spirulina, marine phytoplankton and chlorella are very high in nutrients, especially when consumed raw. Other benefits of raw greens are that they help to detoxify and cleanse the body and alkalise our blood, leading to greater oxygen and life in our cells. We may struggle to eat a plate of raw greens but it is easy to turn them into a fresh juice.
Fruit
Fruit has been given a bad press by some people because it is ‘high in sugar’. Yes, fruit does contain fructose, a type of natural sugar, which we shouldn’t consume too much of but we need natural sugars to provide energy for our system. Fresh fruit has to be one of the best foods to help you cleanse and heal. Packed with vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and phytonutrients that modern science is discovers more about their incredible healing powers every day. Add in healing fruits such as cucumber, pineapple, apples, pears, lemons, papaya, cherries, melon and mixed berries to your daily life.
Replace Alcohol & Caffeine
Alcohol and caffeine are drugs that can accumulate in the system and depending on levels of consumption cause serious health problems. I had a delicious non-alcoholic ‘champagne’ recently that made me feel just as uplifted as the real stuff. I used to drink coffee and it did take a few days of withdrawal symptoms whilst detoxing from it but now I only drink herbal teas as well as my (caffeine-free) Longevity Coffee. If you can’t cut alcohol and caffeine out altogether, cut down – replace with a healthy alternative and give it a month to see how you feel.
Fermented Foods
Our gut biome plays a prominent role in our physical and mental health. It is said that 80% of our immune system resides in the gut, and it is home to billions of neural cells, effectively being our ‘second brain’. I recommend regularly having probiotic foods such as sauerkraut, kim chi, miso, kombucha and kefir to help return harmony to the gut. This can improve mood, concentration, digestion, skin health and help us achieve optimum weight.
Garlic, Ginger, Turmeric & Basil
We can put lots of good food into our bodies, but if our gut is overrun with bad bacteria, parasites and fungal overgrowths we absorb the nutrients effectively. Garlic is one of the most powerful plant medicines for keeping the physical body healthy. It is one of nature’s top antibiotics and has anti-parasitical, anti-viral, anti-bacterial, immune boosting and blood cleansing properties.
Ginger is a wonderful healing plant, great for our digestion and as a powerful anti-inflammatory.
Turmeric has to be one of nature’s most beneficial foods as science has discovered the awesome antioxidant and anti-inflammatory power it possesses.
Basil is another powerful herb to remove bad bacteria and reduce our viral load.
Exercise
Find a form of exercise you like to do, and do it regularly. Team up with others if it helps your motivation. Our bodies are designed to move. Walking, cycling, swimming, yoga, park run, Tai Chi, weights, gardening……find what does it for you – and just do it.
Cleansing Juice – serves 2
Run the following through a juicer.
1 apple, ¼ cucumber, ½ lemon, 1 cup kale, ½ cup cabbage, 1 small beetroot
If you would like to go deeper into a new year cleanse and gently and safely detox I am on tour throughout January at several locations throughout the region giving workshops. I also have my super Divine Detox e-book with information and a 7-day meal plan. All details are on my website. www.juliettebryant.com