A green juice cleanse after the holidays has numerous advantages.
The holidays are a festive time to treat ourselves to sweets, and is most pleasurable. It is indeed a treat. I must admit, all that sugar left me feeling a bit foggy, and sluggish.
How about you?
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Studies have linked that sugar can be harmful to the brain because it affects certain neurotransmitters, which can result in sugar addictions.
Also, a diet that's high in sugar can eliminate the beneficial bacteria.
The goal for juicing is oriented around starving out some of the bad bacteria.
So, I decided to do a juice cleanse. I pulled my juicer out after living in the dark of my cabinet. A couple of days of nutritious juicing, made a big difference in how I felt, almost immediately. Miraculously, it interrupted my sugar cravings, as sugar has an addictive quality. The more we eat, the more our body craves it. The difference in how our body responds when we get the right nutrients, can be motivating. It reminds us to nourish our body on a regular basis, particularly after a binge of sugar.
By drinking green juice, the body absorbs nutrients more quickly, without having to digest fibers and other components in whole foods. Moreover, it helps us get a larger intake of vitamins and minerals. I have found that a juice cleanse for 2-3 days left me with more clarity, and energy. You can go longer if you like.
However, like all things, they should be done in moderation. We can over do the good things as well.
For example: Raw Spinach contains Goitrogens along with Raw Kale. Goitrogens are compounds found in raw cruciferous vegetables and can interfere with thyroid hormone production, when consumed in large amounts.
Before I became a health coach, I overdid my kale intake in my morning smoothies, and it did effect my thyroid. Again, everything in moderation.
I gave myself a kale break for 3 weeks, and was able to re- introduce raw kale in my diet. In moderation. There are many other healthy greens if kale, or spinach aren't favorable for you. I now look at the attributes in ingredients that are considered healthy, and check in with my body to see if it feels beneficial.
Buying a juicer, and making my own has converted me from store bought juice.
When you make your own, its fresher, and sooo much more delicious. You also have control as to where the ingredients are coming from. There are juicers out there for all budgets, so I hope you will give juicing a try.
To your good health.