Your body is designed to detox every day, all day long. For every organ system in your body, you have an organ of elimination. Your digestive system has your colon, your respiratory system has your lungs, your urinary system has your kidneys and so on.
It would stand to reason that your body should just be dealing with toxins on its own, without needing you to do anything special but unfortunately if you’re like most of us, you’re living in a toxic world that your body was not designed for. Plastics, flame retardants, polluted water and pesticides in food are not organic toxins our bodies are designed to get rid of naturally.
Sometimes it can feel good to nourish your detoxification organs without doing a full blown detox program. Supporting your detox organs on a daily basis can be a great form of maintenance to ensure that you maintain the results you have gained from doing a full detox program, or to help make sure your body is being supported in its detoxification work.
There are several instances where a full detox protocol may not be needed, but where you can benefit from detox supporting practices. Here’s a little list of reasons you may consider adding more cleansing meals into your day:
- If you are eating a generally healthy diet, getting adequate sleep, drinking lots of fresh water and generally enjoy a good disposition.
- If you have recently done a detox but want a little top up.
- If you swing from doing a detox to eating whatever you want and back again often.
- If you have recently been sick.
- If you are travelling.
- If you have a medical condition in which doing a full detox program would be harmful.
- If you have a lifestyle that does not support a full detox program (ie. working very long or odd hours, don’t have time to rest etc.)
Daily detox maintenance can be done by anyone at any time, as a way to give your body a little boost if you are feeling sluggish. You don’t need to do complete detox protocols on a regular basis. There is such a thing as over cleansing, and the body needs stability. This is why doing little detox supporting things daily is a great approach and then taking on a full cleanse or detox 2-4 times a year. This way you are not bouncing back and forth between ‘detoxing’ and ‘retoxing’ but are rather supporting your body in functioning optimally at all times.
My Top 5 Favourite Detox Recipes
1. Lemon Vitamin Water
Drinking lemon water first thing in the morning is one of the best things you can do to help your body detox. The water will help to hydrate and flush out your system, and the lemon will stimulate a contraction in your gallbladder which will kick start your liver and encourage the movement of your bowels.
All that with just some water! By adding other fruits and herbs to your water you will be adding vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and other health supporting nutrients as well, plus it’s just plain fun to drink fancy water. Starting your day with lemon water is a great daily detox practice.
Ingredients:
- 1 liter water
- 1 lemon or lime – sliced or juiced
- pinch of himalayan or sea salt
Optional Add Ins:
Herbs:
- Basil leaves
- Mint leaves
- Parsley
- Cilantro
- Ginger slices
Fruits/Veggies:
- Cucumber slices
- Orange slices
- Grapes
- Strawberries slices
- Rasberries
- Blueberries
- Blackberries
- Pear slices
Instructions: Place your water and lemon or lime juice and any fruit/veggie slices into a large glass or jar. Allow to sit for 1-12 hours (it can be nice to let it sit overnight in the fridge, as your water will absorb more flavour and nutrients the longer it sits).
2. Whole Body Cleanse Green Juice
Green juice is hands down my favorite way to support my detox organs. In fact, I generally enjoy at least 1 liter of green juice every day when my life allows. This is the basic recipe I use, with only slight variations every once in a while. I like this particular recipe because I know that it helps to alkalize my body.
It provides your digestive system with a little break while still saturating your cells with good nutrition. It helps gently pull heavy metals from your body, supports your kidneys, removes excess mucus from your system, cleanses your digestive system and gives your liver a boost.
Ingredients: (This makes one liter of juice, if you want less you can cut the recipe in half)
- 1 cucumber
- 5 celery ribs
- 1/2 head fennel (or baby bok choy, or lettuce)
- 1/2 bunch parsley
- 1/2 bunch cilantro
- 1 lemon, peeled
- 1 lime, peeled
- 1-inch piece ginger root
- 1 green apple (optional)
Instructions: Run all ingredients through a juicer and enjoy!
3. Cinnamon Chia Pudding
This is one of the best things you can do for your digestive system. Chia seeds are rich in both soluble and insoluble fibre, meaning they will help draw toxins out of your digestive system and will help keep you regular. It is so important to have a bowel movement at least once a day. Chia seed pudding helps ensure that you are not at risk for building up waste in your digestive system which can actually ferment in your gut and leach toxins back into your body. Chia seeds are rich in omega 3 fatty acids which are needed for a whole variety of basic bodily functions. Cinnamon is known for its ability to help stabilize blood sugar levels, which means it supports both your liver and pancreas.
Ingredients:
- 1-2 tbsp chia seeds (if you are experiencing constipation, grinding your chia seeds and then making this pudding will be extra beneficial for you)
- 1 cup water or almond milk
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
Optional Add Ins:
- Blueberries
- Strawberries
- Raspberries
- Sliced almonds
- Chopped walnuts
- Hemp seeds
- Honey
- Maple syrup
- Coconut sugar
- Dates
- Coconut sap
- Sliced banana
- Other spices like ginger, nutmeg, allspice and cloves
Instructions: Combine chia seeds, water or almond milk and cinnamon in a bowl and stir. Let your mixture sit for 30-60 minutes, or until your chia seeds have expanded and absorbed most of the liquid. Add any optional items you like. Enjoy!
4. Seaweed and Beet Salad
Both beets and seaweed are total detox superstars. Beets are amazing for helping support and cleanse the liver which is your body’s largest detox organ. When your liver is working optimally you will process toxins more efficiently, and that is very important for overall health and daily detoxification. Seaweeds are also amazing at supporting the body’s detoxification systems.
The high iodine content will nourish your thyroid gland and can help protect you from radiation. The high mineral content of seaweed will nourish all your detoxification organs so they can work optimally. Seaweeds also have a musiligenic quality, which means that they will draw toxins to themselves, and help facilitate their removal from the body. Sea veggies are also packed with fibre and can help cleanse and clear the colon. Sea veggies are also helpful in balancing female hormones.
Ingredients:
- 2 cups greens of choice
- 1 small beet, grated
- 1 avocado, sliced
- 2 tbsp cilantro, chopped
- 1 lemon, juiced
- 2 tbsp sea veggie blend OR any organic seaweed that you like (soak in water for 30 minutes if your seaweed is dried)
- Pinch of pink Himalayan salt
Instructions: Combine all ingredients in a bowl, toss and enjoy!
5. Liver Loving Raw Green Soup
Raw soups are a great tool to have in your daily detox tool kit. Greens are amazing for your body because they are packed full of vitamins, minerals, amino acids and other compounds that are essential for your health. But all those nutrients are locked away inside tough cell walls.
Humans actually do not have the digestive enzymes necessary to bread down the cell walls present in greens, which is why blending them is so beneficial. The blender is going to do a great deal of the digestive work for you, meaning that your body can spend more of its energy on healing and cleansing. It also means that you’ll be getting more nutrition from your greens than you normally would.
Ingredients:
- 5 kale leaves, stems removed
- 1 cucumber
- 1-2 tbsp tahini
- 1/2 avocado
- 2-3 tbsp cilantro or parsley
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 lemon, juiced
- Pinch of pink Himalayan salt
- Water to blend
Instructions: Place all ingredients in a blender and blend.
- 5 Ways to Listen to Your Body for Deeper Awareness and Personal Power - Sep 7, 2015
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- 5 Daily Detox Recipes to Keep in Your Back Pocket - Apr 4, 2014
