1. Remove from your diet the packaged and processed foods and drinks that contain additives, preservatives and other chemicals including “hidden sources” you might not think about, such as condiments and sauces.
  2. Reduce potential ir

    ritants and allergens in your diet. Some of the most common foods in your diet may have hidden irritating effects. The nightshade family of vegetables–tomatoes, potatoes, sweet peppers, and eggplants–can cause sensitivity. In Ayurvedic medicine, they cause the buildup of “ama” in some body types when eaten in excess by suppressing digestive strength. Strawberries, chocolate, shellfish, and certain nuts are also common allergens.

  3. Reduce acidity and create a more alkaline body environment. Most red meats, milk products, bananas, and excessive grains such as wheat are all acid-making foods. These are also the main “mucus-making” foods that cause the stickiness in the intestines that prevents healthy nutrient absorption and elimination. Avoid acidifying foods during this program. Add alkalinizing foods!
  4. Remove foods that have an inflammatory effect in the body. Simple carbohydrates such as sugars and grains, especially refined grains (white flour, white rice), cause the body to release greater amounts of insulin into the blood to regulate absorption of the sugars into the cells. Insulin is a pro-inflammatory hormone. The hydrogenated cooking oils known as “trans-fats” also cause inflammation. Cold pressed oils are not hydrogenated there for permitted in this program.
  5. Fill the diet with anti-inflammatory nutrients: omega-3 fatty acids from fish; polyphenols (plant based compounds) from berries and many plant-based compounds that boost liver detoxification.
  6. Remove foods, such as grapefruits, that tend to suppress certain reactions in the liver detoxification function.
  7. Remove foods that tend to have fungi on them (peanuts) or that feed the yeast in the intestines causing dysbiosis (sugar, alcohol, and dairy products). Remember, alcohol is made by fermenting grain or fruit sugars into ethanol. It also contains its own mix of preservatives (sulfites in water)and is a depressant.
  8. Remove caffeine, alcohol, and ideally, cigarettes, all of which tax the adrenal glands, negatively impact liver detoxificaiton, and create free radicals that can damage cells, particularly when used daily and in quantities.
  9. Remove the most prestiside-laden crops and hormone- and anti biotic-filled meat, dairy and egg products.Also remove the main sources of genetically modified foods that go unlabeled into our food supply, the damaging effects of which we are still learning about (especially in the soy, corn, and wheat).

Exclude the following foods during this program unless otherwise instructed for specific detox protocols.

  1. Fruits: oranges, orange juice, grapefruit, strawberries, grapes and bananas
  2. Dairy, milk, cheese, cottage cheese, cream, yogurt, butter, ice cream, nondairy creams
  3. Wheat, corn, barley, spelt, rye, couscous, oats
  4. Raw fish, pork, beef, veal, sausage, cold buts, canned meats, hotdogs, shellfish
  5. Soybean products (soy sauce, soybean oil)
  6. Peanuts, peanut butter, pistachios, macadamia nuts
  7. Corn, creamed corn or vegetables, tomatoes, potatoes, eggplants, peppers
  8. Oils: Butter, margarine, shortening, processed oils, sald dressings, mayonnaise, spreads
  9. Alcohol, coffee, caffeinated beverages, soda pop, soft drinks
  10. Refined sugar, white or brown sugars, honey maple syrup, high-fructose corn syrup, evaporated cane juice, any type of artificial sweetener
  11. Chocolate, ketchup, relish, chutney, soy sauce, barbecue sauce, teriyaki sauce, other similar condiments

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