Tailor make your
own
3 day herbal detox programme
Herbal expert and grower, Di-Di Hoffman of Bouquet Garni,
recommends following a gentle three-day herbal detox programme. 'Some people
go to extremes with fasting, laxatives, enemas, colonics, diuretics and even
exercise. Most of these rigid detoxes do more harm than good, as they rob
the body of essential nutrients,' he warns.
Rigid detoxes leave you
feeling listless and unable to cope with everyday tasks. To help you
function at your best, we've included the following guidelines to help you
tailor your three-day detox to suit your needs and lifestyle.
Tailor-make your programme using the
following guidelines
Each day for three days, include the following in your diet:
- One cup of hot water and lemon first thing in the morning. It'll
jumpstart your liver and help balance your pH during the detox.
- At least eight glasses of water a day.
- Take any combination of two of the liver tonics over the three days:Two cups dandelion, chamomile or fennel tea, one medium glass pure carrot
and beetroot juice, a fresh garlic clove, or a medium bunch of black
grapes.
- Two doses of either kidney tonic. Two cups
of parsley or yarrow tea.
- Kelp supplements - only if you are not
allergic to iodine or seafood. The iodine will help keep your metabolic
rate balanced.
- One portion of rice - preferably
short-grain brown rice.
- At least three portions of vegetables. One
of these should be eaten raw.
- At least three portions of fresh or dried
fruit.
- Three or more portions of salad, if
possible.
- Two portions of either pulses, nuts, fish
or olive oil.
- Fresh culinary herbs included liberally
(no spices or salt). Parsley is particularly good, especially when juiced
with apple juice.
- Walk for at least 30 minutes a day.
Why go herbal?
Di-Di Hoffman believes that herbal remedies should be included in any detox
programme because of their cleansing actions. However he cautions that
herbal remedies aren't a quick fix - a healthy lifestyle also needs to be
maintained.
Another advantage of a short herbal detox
programme is that the detox symptoms, like headaches and feeling fluey, are
minimised or eliminated. Other side-effects include altered bowel movements,
irritability, tiredness and lethargy. If you do experience these symptoms
though it is a sign that the detox is working, and they'll normally only
last a short time. The severity of these symptoms lessens the more often you
detox.
(Essentials October 2002)
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