A Juice Detox Can Have Amazing Health Benefits

You see them in grocery stores – cold-pressed juices that seem to offer health in a bottle, but do they?  It’s true, a  few days of vegetable juices can help you boost your daily nutrient intake and help you get started on a path to lose weight, reverse illness, or resolve food cravings. And, for people with health issues, it can be a good way to rest the digestive system while maintaining an intake of nutrients. Fasting or intermittent fasting with juice can help your body repair and heal. Even when a juice fast is over, occasionally skipping dinner and having a glass of juice instead can slow aging.

How to Do a Juice Detox Right

Make a plan. The idea is to incorporate some periods of calorie restriction into your life. You decide what works for you. Juice one or two days each week, or do a single 3-day or 1-week juice cleanse, etc.  A typical day of juice detox consists of three to four 12-ounce vegetable juices plus an optional salad for lunch.

Select ingredients wisely. Juices should be mostly vegetables, not fruit. If you aren’t making the juice yourself, know what you are getting. Some pre-bottled juices contain a lot of fruit or even sweeteners. Since juices contain no fiber, too much fruit is a problem; there is nothing to slow the absorption of the sugars entering your blood stream. Juices containing more fruit than vegetables mitigate the health benefits of a juice detox. I recommend mostly green juices and using a half to one serving of a low-sugar fruit, like green apple or fresh or frozen berries, for flavor. However, for most juices which use carrots or beets, no fruit should be used as the juice is sweet enough already.  Lemon or lime can be added to any juice, and doesn’t count toward the fruit content. Do not add sweeteners such as agave nectar, honey or stevia to your juice.

Follow up your juice cleanse with healthful eating. A bout of juicing, with or without salads, can strengthen the taste buds, alleviating their desensitization to sugar and salt, making simple foods more flavorful. It’s the perfect time to commit to a health-promoting diet. On the other hand, if you think of the juice cleanse as a temporary method to detox, and then go back to toxifying with junk food, there will be no benefit.

The Bottom Line: If you find that your healthful diet has slipped, a detox may be the way to help you get back on track. You can get support and join others who also want to rejuvenate and recharge through my three-week home detox experience happening May 5 - 25. Receive step-by-step instructions, video lectures to support you throughout the detox and access to an online discussion board for any questions that may arise. For added support, you will also gain encouragement through access to a private Facebook group where you can chat with others who are also doing the detox.  

Spring is the time for renewal. Join me for this amazing group event that will give your body the boost it needs to help you lose weight, reverse disease and resolve food cravings.