The Top 11 Foods for Detoxing Your Body Naturally

Detox is a hot topic, and there are a million products on the market that promise miracles in weight loss, boosting energy, giving your skin a gorgeous glow and even managing your mood. 

Whether it’s an article promoting the latest fad diet or advertising for detox teas, keto coffees, juice cleanses, appetite suppressant pills and more, it can be hard to figure out what is safe and effective.   

To silence the chatter and get results, we can turn to nutrition and science.  Using whole foods to support the innate, natural detox pathways in the body is not only safe and effective but also tasty, easy, and fun! Below are the top 11 foods that you should incorporate in your diet if you want a healthy and effective whole foods detox.

1. Beets:

This red root vegetable works as an amazing detoxifying agent for the body. Beets are jam-packed with vitamin B3, vitamin B6, vitamin C, magnesium, iron, calcium, zinc, and beta-carotene.

Those nutrients help the gall bladder and liver break down toxins so they can be flushed out of the body. Beets contain fiber which promotes digestion and supports the elimination of toxins through healthy, bulky, easy-to-pass stool.

Add beets to your smoothies, shred them raw in your salad, bake or boil them; they will be delicious any way you choose.

2. Lemons:

Lemons are very popular in detox drinks.  The natural enzymes in lemon juice and essential oils in lemon peels support the detox functions in the liver while vitamin C helps break down toxins so they can be flushed out in the urine.  

I put lemon in warm water or room temperature water and drink it first thing after waking up. But just make sure you don't brush your teeth for an hour afterwards because it can have negative effects on your teeth!

3. Apples:

Apples contain a lot of nutrients and fiber that love the liver and digestive process!

This is my favorite go-to snack, I just cut up an organic apple and put some nut butter on it. Easy and delish!

4. Green Vegetables:

The chlorophyll in the green vegetables flushes out heavy metals, pesticides, herbicides, and toxins while fortifying the blood.

You definitely want to buy organic and use them in smoothies or salads!

5. Garlic:

Garlic stimulates the liver into generating enzymes that detoxify toxins from our digestive system. Raw garlic can be used minced in salad dressing, or cooked in almost any savory dish! Garlic also has anti-microbial and anti-bacterial properties that help take care of parasites, viruses, and bad bacteria.

6. Sea Vegetables:

The sea vegetables, such as seaweed have a lot of antioxidants which strengthens our digestive system and alkalize our blood. The alginate in seaweed binds to fat and toxins from our digestive tract and helps transport them out of the body in our stool.[1]

You can add Kombu strips or Dulse flakes to your soups or stews, so that you get the health benefits without actually eating whole seaweed on its own!

7. Broccoli Sprouts:

They contain sulfur-rich phytochemicals and antioxidants which promote and accelerates the detoxification process in the body.[2]

You can add them to your salad or wraps!

8. Green Tea:

The antioxidants in Green Tea are detox superstars. Liver supportive and enzyme-stimulating, the antioxidants in green tea are unlocked with a generous steep in hot water.  Easy peasy.  Sip and support your natural detox process![3]

9. Artichokes:

Artichokes contain two phytonutrients that are especially beneficial for the liver: “cynarin and silymarin. Cynarin is an antioxidant compound which aids the liver in producing bile.  Bile is important for the digestion of fats, as well as for flushing toxins out of the body. Silymarin is a flavonoid that aids in the protection of liver cells and cell membranes. Both of these compounds help to regenerate liver cells.”[4]  There are other compounds in artichokes that act as diruetics.  Diuretics help the body release excess fluid and can stabilize blood pressure.

10. Cilantro:

Love it or hate it, this earthy herb is known to help flushes toxins and heavy metals from the body in a process called chelation.[5]

Cilantro is good in smoothies, tacos or curries. 

11. Raw Carrots

Carrots contain undigestible fibers that help clear excess estorgen from the body. Estrogen dominance is a common hormonal imbalance that can lead to PMS, acne, infertility, man boobs and erectile dysfunction. Yes, men can have estrogen dominance as well!

Carrots can also help you lose weight! Some people avoid carrots because they think they are high in calories but they can actually help you lose weight because they have such a high fiber content. They bind to fat and carry it out of the body.

Who knew raw carrots were so good for you and your hormone health?! Just make sure you eat the full carrot, which you can chop or grate and put into your salads. The baby carrots don’t contain the special fibers you need. [6]

If you want to start incorporating these foods into your diet but don't know where to start, then you can check out my 21 Day Hormone Reset. It includes three weeks of meal plans and two recipe guides (Vegetarian & Omnivore) with all of these delicious detoxifying foods in them! 

[1] https://nutrawiki.org/alginic-acid/

[2] https://www.yogajournal.com/lifestyle/broccoli-sprouts-detox-superfood

[3] http://the.republicoftea.com/teablog/green-tea-cleanse-a-guide-to-detoxify-and-feel-better/

[4] https://www.thealternativedaily.com/cleanse-liver-artichokes/

[5] https://draxe.com/health/detox/heavy-metal-detox/

[6] https://www.functionalps.com/blog/2012/09/28/ray-peat-phd-on-the-benefits-of-the-raw-carrot/