Detoxify your body through Proper Food and Diet

There are many reasons for going on a Food/Diet detox. It can be choosing to live a healthier life or trying to lose weight. Some people yearn for better-looking skin; others may want to adopt it as a way of life. Whatever the reason is, the benefits of doing such a diet are wide-ranging. Chief among these benefits is a cleansing of the total body system from harmful toxins, which eventually contributes to improved blood circulation, higher energy levels and a more radiant complexion. Little wonder that more and more people all over the world are advocating the wonders of a body detox just through proper food and diet.

Juice Fasting
Fasting with vegetable juices can be another excellent way to develop good health and cleanse the body of toxins. Juices, minus their pulp (fiber), contain an excellent source of vitamins, minerals and enzymes. When the pulp is not added, one is able to drink more juice than they are able to eat. For example, one can easily consume the juice of several heads of lettuce in one sitting, but may not be able to eat the lettuce whole. This allows the body to get an abundance of nutrients with minimal processing (digestion). Fasting on mono-juices also allows the body proper time to process these juices and helps to preserve our valuable digestive enzymes.

Juice fasting has helped many people over come serious diseases like cancer, because it gave them optimal nutrition and allowed the body to cleanse itself of toxins. [According to many nutritionists, cancer is merely a toxic condition.] With some juicers, the pulp is discarded, but it may be saved and added back for fiber (not too much). Juices contain good sources of antioxidants and enzymes, both of which are needed for cleansing and eliminating toxins. Juices are also easy to digest and help those with digestive problems

Enzymes
The use of enzymes in detoxification is important, because the body needs an adequate supply of enzymes, not only for digestion, for also for detoxification.[iii] Enzymes are best obtained from fresh raw fruits and vegetables, but may be taken daily with meals as nutritional supplements of multi-digestive enzymes. Enzymes in our food helps us to digest that food, but many foods today are processed, refined, heated (cooked), radiated and stored, which destroys enzymes and leaves it non-vital.[iv] Foods with enzymes destroyed will have a longer shelf life, but will not give one health when it is eaten. Fresh raw fruits and vegetables are the best source for enzymes and help to give one vibrant health. Enzymes are also used by the body in detoxification of toxic substances. The liver is the source of most detoxification enzymes, which it must make, or store. To aid the body in removing and eliminating wastes and toxins, enzymes are best taken in between meals. This way they do not get involved with digestion, but go to the liver and to the blood for detoxification.

Many therapies have utilized enzymes for improving health and enzymes have long been the key to many detoxification therapies which have helped many to over come that dreaded disease, cancer. Kelley, Gerson, Moerman, and Neiper used alternative nutritional therapies with enzymes for curing cancer. The famous Wobe Mugos enzymes from Europe were utilized with Laetrile therapies for cancer. Never was Laetrile give alone, but was used with vitamins, diet and enzymes. This made the Laetrile therapy very successful in the 1970s. If cancer is a toxic condition, which many feel that it is, then taking enzymes will help it. And it does.

The use of raw foods in many detoxification diets are using the enzymes found naturally in those foods. Additionally, these raw foods provide fiber and, with proper food combining, will not waste the body enzymes reserves. Preserving enzymes is the key to over coming disease and living to ripe old age and remaining healthy. Yes, vitamins and minerals are important, but vitamins are enzyme co-factors and many minerals are use to activate enzymes. Therefore, the vitamins and minerals themselves are only augmenting the role of the enzymes which are detoxifying toxins and supporting metabolism.

Enzymes also help the bowels in cleansing, because they liquefy the bowel content, which makes transit much easier. The role of enzymes in digestion is to break down foods for digestion and absorption. When foods are broken down they become more liquid and the bowels move much easier and faster. Transit time is decreased and our health is increased when toxins are removed and eliminated. Perhaps, this is a link to breaking the "constipation chain." Enzymes are the key to health. Preserve our enzymes and we will be healthy for a long time.

Flora
Our bowel flora is also important for detoxification and normal health. Probiotics is the term given to the normal bowel flora, which are taken as supplements. It has been found that these normal flora actually defend our body from the pathogenic species of bacteria and perform many vital functions, such as detoxification of toxic chemicals and making valuable vitamins (mainly the B vitamins). When our normal flora are present they secrete mediators in which the pathogenic forms cannot grow. But the reverse is also true, that when the pathogenic forms take over, they will exclude the normal flora with their toxins.

Many scientists feel that it is the toxins secreted from the pathogens and not the pathogens themselves that create disease. The ability of all bacteria to change and grow under specific conditions of their immediate environment is called pleiomorphism. Cell wall deficient forms are "bacteria" which lack a defined cell wall, yet have all the specifications of being bacterial-like. Even viruses have been found to exhibit morphological forms, which resemble bacteria and fungus. While this is not widely accepted by modern medical scientists, it has been proven beyond a shadow of doubt by eminent scientists, like Virginia Livingston Wheeler, Irene Diller, and Royal Rife. Their microscopic studies have revealed that bacteria and viruses and fungus may be all different forms of the same organism, differing only by the environment in which they are grown.

Antioxidants
The use of antioxidants, like vitamins A, E, and especially C, are very essential for detoxification since they are involved with the detoxification of toxins. Antioxidants are involved with helping cells to neutralize free radicals that can cause mutations and cellular damage. As these free radicals are neutralized, the antioxidant vitamins will be used and exhibit low levels. Vitamin A and E are fat soluble and will be found in our fat tissues/stores, but vitamin C is water soluble and will be found mainly in our skin (between the cells according to Reams). Vitamin C is also involved with many other important bodily functions, like collagen formation, wound healing, energy production and fighting off colds (viruses).

The function of antioxidants is so important that any deficiency of them will be seen as catastrophic to one's health. When our antioxidants are low, energy is not available and detoxification cannot take place in a normal fashion. Therefore, toxins accumulate or are stored until they can be processed. The liver and many other organs are compromised in their functions when antioxidants are low. Just the lack of energy is enough to cause the body to have compromised or poor health, because it is energy that is required for the removal of toxins and wastes. Vitamin C should be taken with bioflavinoids to ensure that all the components of the vitamin C complex are taken together, since they work together. Pure ascorbic acid is called vitamin C, but does little by itself. We tend to think that ascorbic acid as vitamin C, but it is only part of the vitamin C complex. Vitamin C is very essential to any detoxification program, because that is what the body uses for energy to process and eliminate these toxic waste Vitamin C can be taken in very high doses until the bowel tolerance level [BTL] is achieved. This BTL is different for different people. Some persons reach tolerance at 4-5 grams (4,000-5,000 mg), while others may not reach tolerance until 10-15 grams (10,000-15,000 mg). Cancer patients notoriously can take 20-30 grams (20,000-30,000 mg) of vitamin C before tolerance is reached ... meaning that they needed more vitamin C than most people.

By taking vitamin C to its tolerance level we find out 1) what our BTL is and 2) how saturated our body is with Vitamin C. Vitamin C was found by Linus Pauling and Ewan Cameron to be very effective in helping many patients to over come that killer disease, called cancer. Perhaps, this was because vitamin C was needed for detoxification of toxins, which "caused" the cancer in the first place. Although Pauling and Cameron were greatly criticized for their work with vitamin C, they were able to help many people overcome cancer and without compromising their health with toxic drugs.

One might ask when we need to do body detox diets. There is no particular time but when you notice you get tired more easily or you have sudden mood swings or suffer from bad skin breakouts and constipation, your body is telling you that it is time to flush out the toxins. That said, it is always good to have regular body detox diets as they can help prevent you from being easily sick from flu or even cancer.

Altogether, body detox diets in addition to regular exercise are highly beneficial for people who seek a better night’s sleep, more energy to work, look and feel great. If correctly taken over a long period of time, your body will feel more rejuvenated and fresh; it will thank you for taking care of yourself.