Recognized by evidence-based medicine and very popular in recent years in the direction of dietary culture direction-detox diet-is the collective name of cleansing diets aimed not so much at weight loss, but to cleanse the body of so-called toxins and toxins. At the same time, modern dietetics recommends that any weight loss program be carried out only after one or another detox diet is applied, the target of which, I emphasize, is not excess weight, but toxins. This cleansing diet lasts 3-10 days. And please note that the detox diet is not intended to treat diseases – it is practiced to eliminate obstacles to health and to ensure that all body systems work effectively.
It is better to carry out a detox diet once a year, in the spring, when it is especially important to clear the body of toxins that have accumulated over the winter. Therefore, spring is the optimal time to put yourself in order for the summer season. It is recommended to use detox diets after prior consultation with a general practitioner, and ideally – with a specialist nutritionist.
Objective indicators of the effectiveness of the spring detox diet, as well as any cleansing procedure, are primarily the exit of a person from a series of winter acute respiratory infections, the elimination of constant fatigue, irritability and depressed mood, as well as the restoration of the natural color of the skin, the disappearance of pathological elements on the skin, improving the condition of the hair, normalizing sleep, improving memory, restoring the overall tone of the body.
If you decide to stick to a detox diet, then you need to thoroughly prepare for this. Within a month, I recommend that my patients exclude alcohol and fast food, fatty, fried, spicy food, pickles and canned food from the diet. A week before the start of the detox diet, it is necessary to clean the intestines with a laxative, and then switch to plant-based food. Modern laxatives are more effective than traditional bowel cleansing with enemas. Such drugs with osmotic properties have a laxative effect, do not allow the absorption of water from the gastrointestinal tract and accelerate the evacuation of intestinal contents through frequent defecation. Due to the content of electrolytes in laxatives, the water-electrolyte balance is preserved.
Among the laxatives in various detoxification and weight loss programs, nutritionists prefer those where the active ingredient is macrogol (polyethylene glycol). These molecules retain water in the intestine and thus dissolve its contents and accelerate its evacuation. Preparations based on macrogol are available in the form of bags containing powder. In addition to macrogol, it includes electrolytes.
One package is dissolved in a glass of water, in total, for the course of purification, you need to take all 15 bags from the package, one bag every 20-30 minutes. When taking a laxative, it is necessary to use only liquid food. The recommended hours of taking the drug are 14: 00-19: 00. In our country, the most popular means for cleansing the intestines is Lavacol – the only Russian drug that includes macrogol. It tastes like ordinary mineral water, so it is extremely easy to drink. At the same time, Lavacol not only wins in price compared to imported medicines, but also surpasses them in the quality of intestinal cleansing.
Your diet for the week before starting a detox diet should consist of vegetables, fruits and herbs. Recommended foods: carrots, beets, broccoli, sweet red peppers, apples, grapes, citrus fruits, pomegranates, bananas, prunes, herb shoots and sprouts, cereals, seaweed. Once a day, you can eat cheese, fish or poultry. In the morning, on an empty stomach, be sure to drink 1 glass of hot water with lemon. After 20: 00 – do not eat. It is recommended to do morning exercises and exercise at the end of the day in the form of a walk before going to bed for at least 30 minutes.
Let’s now get acquainted with the detox diet itself. The general principles of the detox menu are as follows. From 8 to 12 o’clock it is allowed to eat an unlimited amount of citrus fruits, kiwis, apples, grapes, drink filtered water, herbal tea. Menu from 12 to 20 hours: vegetables-beets, cabbage, asparagus, carrots, zucchini, eggplant, turnip, parsley, pure water, herbal tea. From these components of vegetable food, you can prepare salads, eat fresh, stew and bake. I will now give you an approximate menu of a 3-day detox diet.
Day One
Breakfast 1:
- 0.5 grapefruit, 1 apple, small bunch of grapes,
- 200 ml of rosehip tea or mineral water without gas.
Breakfast 2:
- salad of grated vegetables and fruits: fresh white cabbage, apple, carrot, pumpkin, tomato, season with 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil,
- 200 ml of carrot juice or mineral water without gas.
Lunch:
- 100-150 gr. steamed brown rice, 70 g boiled chicken without skin, 70 g grated carrots with sour cream 15% fat content or 1 tomato,
- 250 ml. any herbal tea or mineral water without gas.
Supper:
- 250 ml kefir, 1 banana, a few grapes, 1/4 grapefruit,
- 200 ml of mineral water without gas or mint tea.
Day Two
Breakfast 1:
- 0.5 orange, 1 apple, tangerine,
- 200 ml of grape juice or mineral water without gas.
Breakfast 2:
- 100-150 g of oatmeal or granola without sugar on water, you can add a spoonful of honey or vegetable oil,
- 200 ml of lime tea or mineral water without gas.
Lunch:
- 2-3 baked potatoes, 80 g stewed fish, 1 tomato,
- 250 g. green tea or mineral water without gas.
Supper:
- bio-yogurt, banana, kiwi, 1/4 grapefruit,
- 200 ml of mint tea or mineral water without gas.
Day three
Breakfast 1:
- 0.5 grapefruit, 1 apple, small bunch of grapes,
- 200 ml of kefir or mineral water without gas.
Breakfast 2:
- salad of grated vegetables and fruits: fresh red cabbage, apple, carrot, celery, season with vegetable oil,
- 200 ml of lime tea or tomato juice.
Lunch:
- 100-150 gr. steamed brown rice, 70 g boiled chicken without skin, 70 g stewed asparagus or 1 tomato,
- 250 ml of green tea or mineral water without gas.
Supper:
- 250 ml kefir, 1 banana, small bunch of grapes, kiwi, 1/4 grapefruit,
- 200 ml of mint tea or mineral water without gas.