Nourish

Nourishing the body and building a strong, healthy immune system is also essential for healthy detoxification. This crucial third step in the RENEW program involves following a well-planned detoxification diet that includes plenty of healthy organic foods and replenishing your cells with high-quality natural supplements. When properly nourished and maintained, the human body has remarkable recuperative powers. For this reason, supporting your body’s natural cleansing physiology is an essential part of preserving your overall health.

The Detoxification Diet

The concept of nourishing your body is directly related to what you eat. The foods you eat will ultimately determine whether or not your cells are getting the sustenance they require to function optimally. During a cleanse or prior to beginning a cleanse, we recommend the following dietary changes to assist with the body’s natural detoxification processes.

• Eat plenty of lean meats, poultry and fish, and choose meats from organically raised, grass-fed animals whenever possible. Try to avoid fatty meats.
• Choose smaller fish such as flounder, sole, and halibut instead of larger fish such as shark and swordfish. Choose wild fish over farm-raised fish, and avoid raw fish.
• Limit egg consumption to no more than six each week. Choose organic, free-range eggs.
• Eliminate sugars and artificial sweeteners, including foods made with them.
• Choose grains that do not contain gluten, such as corn, millet, teff and quinoa. Select only whole grains, and eat them sparingly.
• Eat plenty of fruit, especially those that are low on the Glycemic Index (a measurement of how quickly the body breaks down carbohydrates into glucose in the bloodstream). Low-GI fruits include berries, pears, peaches, plums, cherries, bananas, apples, grapefruit, kiwi, grapes and dried apricots.
• Eat plenty of non-starchy vegetables. Minimize your intake of starchy vegetables (such as potatoes and yams), as well as legumes (all beans, peas and lentils).
• Avoid all canned, bottled and frozen juices, as well as freshly prepared fruit juices (which lack the fiber of fresh fruit and are higher on the Glycemic Index). Stick with freshly prepared vegetable juices, especially green juices.
• Avoid commercial dairy products such as milk, sour cream, buttermilk, cheeses and margarine. The exceptions are butter and plain (not low-fat or no-fat) yogurt, in small amounts— no more than one-half a cup per day.
• Avoid or greatly minimize your intake of alcoholic beverages.
• Avoid or limit your intake of coffee and tea. Choose organic, decaffeinated coffee and/or herbal teas instead.
• Eat nuts and seeds in moderation (and always soak them in water overnight before eating to deactivate enzyme inhibitors).

^ RETURN TO TOP

Among the beneficial nutrients necessary to nourish and support the body are antioxidants, amino acids and enzymes.

• Antioxidants are substances that will help protect your body from the damage of free radicals (highly reactive chemical compounds that can damage healthy cells) and may help to prevent poor health and disease. An effective antioxidant complex should include vitamins, minerals, and nutrients that are known for their antioxidant properties.
• Amino Acids are the building blocks of protein, and dietary proteins perform countless important functions in the body. They help repair and rebuild muscle tissues; grow hair and nails; create enzymes and hormones; and maintain the health of your internal organs and blood. They are also necessary for digesting fat, where toxins can be stored.
• Enzymes are protein-based substances that play an essential role in every function in the human body, including digestion; seeing, hearing and smelling; breathing; kidney and liver function; reproduction; and elimination. Historically the best sources of enzymes have been from the consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables, but the enzymatic level of fresh foods is often reduced by long-term storage, pesticides, and toxins in the water and soil.

Essential fatty acids, probiotics and beneficial greens also play an essential role in nourishing the body by supporting healthy digestion and elimination, and promoting healthy immune function.

• Essential Fatty Acids (EFAs) are often referred to as ‘good fats’ because of the healthy benefits they provide. Since the body cannot produce EFAs on its own, the only way to get them is through a proper diet or supplementation, thus making outside sources of these fats essential. EFAs promote cardiovascular and nervous system health, as well as proper brain function, hormone balance and healthy elimination.
• Probiotics are the beneficial bacteria that live in your digestive tract, which is home to more than 500 different species of bacteria. In addition to supporting a healthy balance of bacteria in the intestines, research has shown that probiotics play an important role in healthy digestive and immune function.
• Beneficial Greens formulas offer combined extracts from various nutrient-rich sources such as dark, leafy vegetables and sulfur-containing vegetables, sprouts, and green tea. Liquid formulas are best, as they are more easily absorbed by the body.

^ RETURN TO TOP