Perhaps you’ve decided to make the leap to eat cleanly and work out, but you feel as though your body needs to detox before you take this step.
A common misconception about detoxing is that laxatives, diuretics, vitamins, minerals, teas, and other miracle cures are required to rid your body of toxins.
Despite this, every one of these substances can do your body more harm than good when consumed incorrectly, especially laxatives.
Therefore, the best way to detox your body is to do so through natural means, which often means just making smarter lifestyle choices.
Reduce Your Processed Foods Intake
Firstly, the world has never been as full of processed foods as it is today. In a mission to make food last as long as possible, it’s doused with all sorts of chemicals, which aren’t great for our bodies.
Meat is a very big factor in this, meaning you should try to eat the freshest meat possible. Fresh meat isn’t just an influential factor in physical well-being; it also plays a big role in a number of cultures and religions.
For instance, the Islamic practice of Qurbani works to distribute fresh meat among the poorest members of society to ensure they’re not going without a nutritious meal on the days of Eid.
Eat Antioxidant-Rich Foods
Antioxidants work to protect cells against the damage that’s caused by free radicals, as an excess number of these molecules can lead to oxidative stress.
Free radicals are naturally produced by the body to aid with a number of cellular processes; however, there are various lifestyle choices that can produce these in excess.
Foods like green tea, coffee, spices, vegetables, cocoa, nuts, fruits, and berries are all rich in antioxidants.
It’s recommended that you up your antioxidant intake via foods rather than supplements, as too many antioxidant supplements can increase your risk of certain diseases.
Drink More Water
Almost anyone and everyone could benefit from drinking more water. As with anything, drinking too much water can cause problems, but it’s very unlikely that you’ll ever get to the stage of drinking too much water.
Proper water intake helps your body to remove waste products, assists nutrient absorption and digestion, lubricates joints, regulates your body temperature and, of course, hydrates you.
It’s recommended that men consume at least 125 ounces of water daily, while women should consume a minimum of 91 ounces daily.
Despite this, the figure can change depending on your activity level, where you live, your diet, and your size.
Focus on Sleep
While it’s true that we’re not machines, our bodies require time to recharge and reorganize themselves.
This charging comes in the form of sleep, and adults should be sleeping anywhere from seven to nine hours daily.
Part of the recharging process involves the removal of toxic waste byproducts that accumulate throughout the day.
Beta-amyloid is one of these products, and it has the capacity to contribute to the development of Alzheimer’s disease.
When our bodies are sleep deprived, they can’t carry out these functions, contributing to our risk of diseases.
Reduce Alcohol Intake
You might think that a detox involves eliminating alcohol from your diet completely, but a low to moderate alcohol intake is said to have some benefits.
This is because your liver metabolizes upwards of 90% of the alcohol you consume. During the process, the alcohol becomes acetaldehyde, a cancer-causing chemical.
Your body then recognizes it as a toxin, converting it to acetate, a harmless substance, which is then expelled from the body.
Too much alcohol, though, means that your liver can be permanently damaged, preventing it from carrying out vital functions.
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