Detoxing

When we think of de-toxing, we often think of a post Xmas detox after a period of festive overindulgence, with the aim of losing that bloated feeling as well as a few pounds in weight. With so many detox remedies available and so much advice in magazines and papers, it's difficult to know what advice to follow and why.

At Alexandra Worsley, we hope to simplify the confusion and offer some simple recommendations that are easy to follow and also explain a little about why de-toxing can be an incredibly positive step to take for your overall health and wellbeing at any time during the year.

The main purpose of a detox is to support and revive the digestive system and the liver which are the cornerstones of good health. There isn't a process in the body that doesn't involve the amazing liver in some way. It breaks down toxins (food, alcohol, medicines and inhaled environmental toxins) and makes them safe. It produces bile to help break down fats and promote regular bowel movements, and helps remove excess hormones from the body. If your digestive system is sluggish and you are constipated, your body can't remove toxins efficiently and they re-enter the blood stream and have to be handled by the liver again. This can cause gradual damage which can eventually manifest itself as illness.

The liver also converts food into nutrients that can be used by the body, for example it breaks down dietary protein, repackages and ships it out to cells that need it such as your muscles, heart and kidneys. It also handles cholesterol ensuring that fats are delivered efficiently to all our cells, and that excess cholesterol is removed from our body. In fact the liver has more than 500 different functions, so it pays to ensure that you give it as much support as you can.

A good detox plan will help boost your liver and digestive function to ensure that foods and toxins are handled efficiently. The result of this is good health and a sense of wellbeing. A positive side effect, is that by eating the right foods and cutting out the unhelpful foods, we may also lose those difficult to shift few pounds.

The following are our tips for a simple detox which are based on the principles of many of the detox books that are available. We are also happy to recommend supplements that can help support your detox, based on a quick one-to-one chat. Supplements should only be used to support detox and should not be prioritised over diet and lifestyle changes.

We recommend that a detox should last 4 weeks, but this can be extended if you feel you really need to give your body a break. You may also feel so great after 4 weeks that you want to continue.

Include	Why
Wholegrains – wholegrain rice, quinoa, rice pasta, barley, amaranth, wholegrain rice cakes. Porridge (if you are OK with oats, if not, try quinoa porridge)	Release energy slowly into the body, therefore avoiding blood sugar imbalance and energy peaks and dips. Wholegrains also contain important minerals and B vitamins for energy.
Fruit – 2-3 portions a day – apples, pears, plums, berries, kiwi, oranges, lemons, bananas (max 3 per week as high in sugar). Pineapple and papaya are also great as a starter as they contains enzymes that boost digestion. Avoid dried fruit if you can as this is high in concentrated sugar.	Remember to “eat a rainbow” to benefit from the wide range of antioxidants (especially vitamin C) that fruit has to offer. Antioxidants help boost our digestive and liver function and to fight dangerous free radical molecules that can lead to disease. They also contain fibre to keep bowel movements regular.
Vegetables – 5 portions or more a day. Have a large salad with your lunch and 3 vegetables (excluding potatoes) to your evening meal and ensure half your plate is made up of veg. Particularly good for detox and liver function are dark green leafy vegetables, sweet potatoes, carrots, beetroot, fennel, broccoli, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, kale, bean and seed sprouts, Jerusalem artichoke, leeks, onions, radish and dandelion.	Help reduce acidity in the body and a rich in nutrients essential for health especially vitamin C and folic acid (green leafy veg). Green leafy vegetables and vegetables that grown above the ground contain more calcium per calorie than milk! A rich source of fibre to give bulk to stools and help regulate bowel movements.
Fibre – in addition to fruit, veg and wholegrains add the following: Pulses and legumes - chickpeas, kidney beans, lentils, cannellini beans, borlotti beans. Linseeds/flaxseeds – add oil to salads or ground seeds to soups/smoothies. Also try sprouted pulses and seeds such as alfalfa or a sprouted seed mix.	Pulses and legumes are a rich source of fibre to help keep bowels regular. A good source of complex carbohydrates and protein. People with a very delicate digestive system may find pulses and legumes hard to digest, so avoid them if necessary. Some people find lentils the easiest to digest.
Protein – during this detox, stick to fish. Fresh where possible and as a last resort tinned mackerel or sardines (not tuna). Choose organic where possible. Best sources are oily fish which is rich in omega-3 essential fats – choose fresh salmon, mackerel, herring, sardines but avoid tuna both fresh and tinned. Add eggs in week 3.	Some detoxes don’t include protein, but as the liver requires it to function normally, without drawing on its own reserves, we recommend fish which is lower in saturated fat than meat and often easier to digest.
Add fresh herbs and spices	This will help add flavour to your food and they are a rich source of nutrients. Experiment with fresh coriander, basil, parsley, rosemary, thyme and sage. Also try, spices such as turmeric, cumin, cinnamon and chilli.
Water – 2 litres per day	Helps to flush toxins out of the body, hydrates all tissues including the skin. Helps promote softer and bulkier stools.
Remove
Sugar – including honey, syrups and foods that contain hidden sugars (glucose, fructose, dextrose, sucrose – anything with an –ose on the end or contains malt is sugar based – check food labels). Also remove fizzy drinks (even diet ones)	Sugar causes blood sugar imbalances giving you energy highs and dips which create cravings for more sugary foods and can lead to fatigue. This puts stress on the liver and gives your body empty calories with no nutritional benefit.
Gluten grains – all foods containing flour – including pasta, pizza, bread, cakes, biscuits and many sauces.	Many people are unable to digest or are intolerant to gluten. Also white, refined flour and refined carbohydrates release energy more quickly (like sugar) and therefore lead to blood sugar imbalance causing energy highs and lows and create cravings for more refined carbohydrate foods.
Yeast – bread, yeast extracts and anything containing yeast – it’s in some surprising places so check food labels	Excess consumption of yeast (and sugars) can enable the yeast candida that lives inside us to proliferate and become out of hand. This often causes bloating and discomfort.
Red meat, poultry and smoked fish.	These sources of protein can make hard work for the digestive system and acidify the body.
Alcohol	Alcohol is damaging to the liver and increases the amount of fat it stores. By eliminating it for 4 weeks, you will reduce the burden your liver has to deal with. At the end of the detox aim to drink no more than 2 units of alcohol per day.
Dairy Products – avoid milk (try oat/almond/rice milk) cheese, yoghurt, butter and margarine (try olive oil, avocado or houmus)	Many people are slightly intolerant to dairy and may not be aware. Dairy can also encourage the yeast, candida albicans to grow, upsetting the balance of healthy gut bacteria.
Caffeine – experiment with the wide range of herbal teas. Dandelion and nettle teas are particularly good and excellent for the liver. For coffee substitute try dandelion coffee (ground if possible) or chicory.	Not only does caffeine place a burden on the liver, but both coffee, tea and chocolate have additional compounds that the liver has to break down. Caffeine also leads to energy peaks and dips.

What to Expect

A 4 week detox can be challenging at times, especially at the start. You may experience head and/or body aches, particularly when you stop drinking caffeine, but these should go within a few days as your liver starts to process and remove more toxins from the body.

As you will be giving your digestive system a kick-start, you may find that you need to empty your bowels more often. Everyone is different, but it's not unusual to go 3-4 times per day and for stools to be much looser. Watery diarrhoea is not a normal sign, so please refer to your GP if this occurs.

During your detox you may be tempted to fall off the wagon and you may crave certain foods. Sometimes we crave the very foods that don't suit our bodies, so don't give in, it will pass. If you do fall off the wagon, don't panic or give in and don't beat yourself up. Just get back on track as soon as possible.

Again, everyone is very different, but by weeks 3 and 4 you should be noticing some wonderful changes in the way you feel. You may have more energy and find you can wake up more easily in the mornings without the need for stimulants. You may also find that you have good energy levels throughout the day without energy slumps which lead you to crave sugary snacks and drinks. Often people find that their overall mood is much improved and they feel better to cope with life stresses. You will also probably notice that you lose that bloated feeling as well as a few pounds of weight.

It is always important to seek the advice of your GP before embarking on any type of detox or diet and also in the event of any adverse reactions.

Source: Xandria Williams (1998) Liver Detox Plan, Vermillion.

Here at Alexandra Worsley, we can support and guide you with advice on which products and lifestyle changes we consider would be best for you. Just ask! Email us or call 0161 439 9856 or pop into the shop for a FREE shop floor consultation. If we can't help immediately, we have a team of therapists who can help, particularly in more complex cases. We always recommend that with any health condition, you consult with your GP in the first instance.