Nowadays, it seems as if everyone wants to start some type of detox. Primarily “diet” detoxes such as juice cleanses or “skinny” teas tend to be the most popular. While there are so many detoxes out there, all of them keep making the same promise – to rid your body of harmful toxins, lose weight, and other health benefits. However, many of these “detoxes” involve giving up food altogether which can really be harmful to your body and overall health.
What many people don’t know is that our bodies are in a constant state of detox. Therefore, if you eat the right foods, this will simply encourage your body’s detoxing process. Research has proven that enzymes, antioxidants, and nutrients found in whole foods can help to support our bodies in the detoxification process. Which, will ultimately help to prevent toxin buildup and boost our overall health and wellness!
That being said, here are 6 healthy foods to help you detox naturally and heal your body from the inside out!
1. Turmeric
I have talked about my love for turmeric in many previous posts. Such as this one! Turmeric is a powerful anti-inflammatory that contains curcumin, a mighty substance that has polyphenol and antibacterial properties. In fact, scientific research has shown that curcumin plays a significant role in regulating oxidative stress as well as therapeutic effects on liver health.
With this, there are numerous ways to use turmeric and add it to your diet every day. You can sprinkle turmeric on pre-roasted veggies such as carrots, squash, sweet potatoes, etc. along with cinnamon, cayenne seasoning, or any other warming spices that are perfect for the upcoming fall season! Another way you can easily add turmeric into your diet is by sprinkling it on your morning (or afternoon) latte! Add in some almond milk, coconut, cinnamon, and turmeric and you have a healthy and great-tasting Turmeric latte!
2. Garlic
Who doesn’t love cooking with garlic?! Not only does this superfood make almost every dinner meal taste better, but it also protects your body against harmful bacteria, intestinal parasites, and viruses from your body, especially from the blood and intestines. Garlic also contains the sulfur compound, allicin. This is what gives garlic the strong-smelling scent as well as helping the livers antioxidation and detoxification process. It has also been proven to have hepatoprotective effects against heavy metals in the liver.
3. Cruciferous vegetables
Cruciferous vegetables are any green, leafy veggies such as broccoli, spinach, cabbage, collard greens, and even cauliflower. These veggies are the highest in folate and chlorophyll, and aid to support the body to detox your blood and cleanse your intestines. Broccoli, however, should get the most attention as it has an especially high amount of glucoraphanin. This is converted to sulforaphane in our bodies and allows our bodies to detox naturally and support overall liver function & health.
Luckily, adding cruciferous veggies to your current diet is fairly easy! For example, I love to add spinach to my morning egg whites or to smoothies. Roasted cauliflower is delicious and makes an excellent side dish to any meal. I’ve even seen people add riced cauliflower to their oatmeal (or use it as an oatmeal replacement), and you can’t even tell that it’s in there or taste the difference! Here’s a delicious and easy recipe to try out if you want to add more veggies to your breakfast!
4. Avocados
Not many people would consider their avocado toast or side of guacamole as a cleansing food that naturally detoxes your body. Nonetheless, avocados are nutritional powerhouses that lower cholesterol and dilate blood vessels while blocking artery-destroying toxicity. Additionally, avocados have a very high concentration of glutathione, which neutralizes free radicals, supports, and protects the liver.
5. Blueberries
Blueberries are one of the most powerful healing foods! This is because they contain natural aspirin that helps lessen the tissue-damaging effects of chronic inflammation while lessening pain. Blueberries also act as antibiotics by blocking bacteria in the urinary tract, thereby helping to prevent infections. Not to mention, they also have antiviral effects to help prevent infections and protect your cells from any free radicals in your body.
Blueberries make such an easy, on-the-go snack. However, here is a detoxing smoothie recipe that only takes 10 minutes and contains several naturally detoxing superfoods!
6. Flaxseed
Last, but certainly not least, on this list is flaxseed! Flaxseeds are loaded with healthy, detoxifying nutrients that contain many benefits. They are loaded with essential fatty acids, primarily Omega-3’s, which are essential for your overall health and wellness. Flaxseeds are also a rich source of lignans. Lignans are plant compounds that have antioxidant and estrogen properties, both of which can help lower the risk of cancer and improve health!
Not to mention, just one tablespoon of flaxseed contains 3 grams of fiber! Therefore, I love adding flaxseed to my oatmeal or baking with ground flaxseed meal. For example, most of these delicious, healthy cookies that I talked about last Christmas contain flaxseed meal! Making them full of healthy, essential fats and fiber!
There you have it! 6 of my top healthy foods go help you detox naturally and heal your body from the inside out! Who knew to cleanse and detoxify your body could taste so good and be this simple?! So skip the “skinny” teas and the strict juice cleanses, and stick to something more sustainable and actually beneficial for your body and overall wellbeing!
Have a beautiful day, my friend!
xo, Cydney
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