7 Day Liver Cleanse - Day 1

Yesterday I started a 7 day Liver Cleanse supervised by my friend Jim Chialtas a licensed Acupuncturist here in San Diego. The point of the this cleanse is to remove toxins from the body which can lead to adverse health effects, as well as eliminate stress caused by food allergens, diagnosed and undiagnosed. Even if you lead a healthy lifestyle you are exposed to pollutants found in the environment, non-organic and processed foods, and you may have food allergies that you are unaware of, so this is a way to give the body a break for a week.

Before the cleanse we were given a questionnaire that helps indicate toxicity level - I didn't score too well! Based on 60 symptoms and a point scale of 0-4, 4 being the most severe, I scored a 34 which indicates a moderate level of toxicity! I am hoping that he cleanse will improve some of my problems with allergies and congestion and get me on track to eat healthier. I live under the illusion that I am a healthy eater but in reality I munch on potato chips every once in a while, NEED my cup of coffee in the morning, enjoy my wine a little too much sometimes, eat more refined sugars and grains than I would like to and could stand to have more organic fruits and veggies in my diet. I am so happy I already kicked the diet soda!

As far as this weeks diet, we were provided with a rice powder supplement and two capsule supplements as well as a list of detox friendly foods - lots of organic fruits and veggies, lentils, beans, certain nut butters, whole grain rice quinoa, the list goes on. We can NOT have wheat or foods with gluten, dairy, soy, eggs, processed foods, refined sugars, caffeine (except green tea), alcohol, and meat should be organic and limited if ingested at all. Day one and two was an optional fast that I decided to do, so just the rice powder supplement and capsule supplements, as well as herbal tea, water and whole fruit juice but no food. I slept most of the day yesterday but managed to take a short walk and make some veggie broth as a base for some of my meals this week! Today I woke up thirsty and hungry but the rice powder shake satisfied me enough to take a brisk walk - I snuck in a banana and a few raw almonds after the walk and I am looking forward to the next shake!

here is the recipe for the broth:

Vegetable Broth (use organic when possible)

1 T Extra Virgin Olive Oil
6-8 celery stalks chopped
1 large onion chopped
4 medium carrots chopped
1 large leek chopped
10 cups distilled water
4 large garlic cloves whole (you can leave the skin on)
handful of fresh parsley
6 sprigs of fresh thyme
4 bay leaves
handful of fresh basil
skin from two potatoes
2 teaspoons whole black peppercorns

1) Heat oil in a large stock pot on medium heat, add onion, garlic, leek and cook until translucent (I like to get a little color on them as I think it adds a richness to the stock flavor)
2) add celery and carrots cook about 5 minutes.

3) add distilled water and the remaining ingredients to the stock pot, bring to a boil then cover and simmer for about 90 minutes.

4) strain stock squeezing out the liquid from the solid. Let cool, transfer to a container and refrigerate for 2 days or freeze.