Easter is a time of indulgence for many and if you found yourself enjoying a few too many treats this Easter a healthy detox may be in order.
Our body detoxifies naturally daily and the key to helping the body detox, is to provide the body with an array of foods containing compounds supportive to detoxification processes.
With that being said, here are some key foods and ingredients to provide your body to help support a healthy detox:
Water – adequate water is needed to support the digestive system and to stabilise appetite. Sip water regularly throughout the day and add some fresh cucumber, mint and strawberries to make it more palatable.
Take a break from alcohol and replace with healthy alternatives such as kombucha or sparkling water with fresh fruit and herbs.
Include a source of fibre at each meal: healthy bowels are critical for clearing wastes, you don’t want to undo any hard work of the liver:
- Try oats at breakfast, sweet potato at lunch, rice at dinner
- Snack on fresh fruit, hemp seeds and vegetables with hummus dip
- Toss chickpeas, lentils, beans into salads or through steamed vegetables
Bulk out the diet with foods rich in natural compounds supportive of liver health including bitter greens (dandelion, radicchio, watercress, rocket) brassica vegetables (broccoli, cabbage, brussels sprouts), beetroot and turmeric.
- Beetroot can be juiced, roasted and tossed into salads or made into a dip
- Try stir-frying your favorite brassica as a healthy side
- Make bitter greens the base of salads or toss through a stir-fry right at the end to wilt
- Use turmeric in smoothies, salad dressings, dips and sauces
Green tea
Green tea is known for weight loss abilities as it helps with metabolism and digestion. This is why taking green tea before and after meals is a great idea. Additionally, drinking green tea, even in small quantities helps with dehydration and with a hydrated body, one rarely feels hungry, Amoko adds.
Avoid juice fasts
While a juice fast will help you lose weight, Kwame says many will still feel hungry after a juice breakfast. In such instances, they will be tempted to cheat and eat, leading to a lot of guilt. To avoid this, Kwame says, rather than juicing your fruits and vegetables, eat them whole or opt for a serving of oatmeal topped with fruits such as bananas.
Plant-based foods
After binge eating, guilt sets in, making some people eat poorly by excessively cutting their food portions. However, Kwame says this does not help since the body is being starved of nourishment. Instead, opt for fruits and vegetables and other plant-based proteins such as beans, peas, and groundnuts. These keep you nourished without adding excessive fat to your body.
Intermittent fasting
According to healthline.com, intermittent fasting is an eating pattern where you cycle between periods of eating and fasting. It does not say anything about which foods to eat, but rather when you should eat them. There are several different intermittent fasting methods, all of which split the day or week into eating periods and fasting periods.
With this fast, the feeling of depravation is reduced greatly. There are several protocols followed such as the 16 hour, eight hour and the 24 hour fast.
One of the things is skipping breakfast because you eat between 11am and 7pm, save for the 24 hour fast. That said, water, coffee (without milk) and any non- processed foods are allowed during the fast.
