Are you toxic?

I have had a few people ask me more about the detox, so here are a couple links that will help.

Click here to find out how toxic you are and to see if you can benefit from the detox. 99% of the population can benefit from it!

To find out more about the detox, you can view the purification guide by clicking here.

Live Well

Detox Diary: Week 1 Recap

Well, the first week of the detox is in the books. The first week is definitely the hardest and the rest gets much easier. The cravings are very minimal and my energy has been fantastic, but I am a little tired of chopping vegetables. ;) Although weight loss is not the primary goal of the detox, I did lose 8 pounds in the first week. I tend to lose the most weight in the beginning and then I level out. Weight loss is different for each person. Some lose it right away, while other people don't lose it until the end.

The rest of the detox:

For the most part, everything stays the same for the next 2 weeks except that chicken and fish can be added after Day 10 of the detox. Yea!! Also, on Day 8 you stop taking the SP Cleanse pills and start taking SP Green Food for the rest of the detox. The shakes and the fruits and veggies all stay the same.

Here is what is in the SP Green Food:

Buckwheat Juice Powder
Barley Grass Juice Powder
Brussels Sprout Powder
Kale Powder
Alfalfa Sprout Powder

These are all great to help promote healing in the lining of your gut.

Here is what you may feel after the 21 days:

More energy
Better sleep
Softer skin
Better digestion
Less headaches, join pain, and allergies
Weight loss
Better overall health!!!

And I know it sounds crazy, but you really won't want to go back to how you were eating before the detox. Sure, you might add a couple things back to your diet. In general, people tend to continue to eat a balanced diet of fruits, vegetables and lean meats.

If you are interested in trying the detox yourself or have any other questions, feel free to call me at the office. 847.888.3131.

Live Well.

Detox Diary: Day 5

Yesterday and today have been going much better. I have more energy, my digestion has been great (I know you wanted to know that!), and the cravings have been much less. I actually didn't feel hungry at all today and the 21 SP Cleanse pills per day really help. Speaking of the SP Cleanse pills, if you were wondering what is in them, here you go...

SP Cleanse

Juniper Berry Powder
Red Clover Flower
Collinsonia Root
Apple pectin
Burdock Root Powder
Barley Grass Powder
Globe Artichoke Leaf
Spanish Black Radish Root
Oregon Grape Root Powder
Cayenne Pepper Powder
Fenugreek Seed Powder
Choline
Inositol
Dandelion Leaf
Fennel Seed
Oat Flour
Beet Leaf Juice Powder
Beet Root Powder
Milk Thistle
Tillandsia Powder
Carrot Powder
Broccoli Powder
Kale Powder

Yes, there is a lot of stuff in the pills! These all play a role in detoxifying the liver, supporting the gut, aiding with digestion, and stimulating the immune system.

My menu for today:

Breakfast: Fruit shake. Green Tea.

7 SP Cleanse pills.

Mid-morning snack: Cantaloupe and sweet potato chips.

Lunch: Big salad with lots of veggies and apple cider vinegar and olive oil dressing.

7 SP Cleanse pills.

Mid-Afternoon: Apple and carrots.

Dinner: Home-made soup with lots of veggies and a steamed red beet.

7 SP Cleanse pills.

After-Dinner: Fruit shake.

Well, 5 days down and feeling good! Bring on Day 6!!

Live Well.

Detox Diary: Day 3

Today was a little easier for me. I still had some carb cravings, especially while watching the Bears game, but it wasn't too bad. I didn't feel as grumpy or tired. We even had family over for a birthday and I didn't really miss the cake.

Breakfast: Fruit Shake. Green Tea.

7 SP Cleanse pills

Mid-Morning: Carrots and grapes.

Lunch: Big salad with olive oil and apple cider vinegar dressing and some collard greens.

7 SP Cleanse pills

Mid-Afternoon: Sweet potato chips and an apple.

Dinner: The same soup as yesterday.

7 SP Cleanse pills

After-Dinner: Fruit Shake.

I drink tons of water throughout the day also.

This detox program definitely needs some determination and focus, but it is well worth it!!

Live Well.

Detox Diary: Day 2

The second day of the detox was definitely a little tougher for me. Not only did I feel more tired and a little grumpy, but it always makes it harder on the weekend. It also didn't help that we did some shopping at Whole Foods with all the free samples just teasing me. But I am drinking my last shake of the day and feeling good about the healthy eating today.

I wrote about drinking the fruit shakes yesterday and mentioned that there are 2 scoops of the SP Complete powder in them. Well, here is what is in the SP Complete...

Flax Meal Powder
Brown Rice Protein Powder
Buckwheat Juice Powder
Brussel Sprouts Powder
Kale Powder
Choline
Inositol
Barley Grass Juice Powder
Alfalfa Powder
Soybean Lecithin
Calcium
Carrot Powder
Grape Seed Extract
Red Wine Extract
Whey Protein

These natural, whole food ingredients help to support healthy cardiovascular, digestive, and nervous system function and deliver powerful antioxidant protection to promote cellular health.

Here was my menu for today:

Breakfast: Fruit shake with blueberries and mango.

7 SP Cleanse Pills

Mid-Morning snack: A pear and some home-made sweet potato chips (sliced sweet potato brushed with olive oil and baked). Green tea.

Lunch: Boiled collard greens with sea salt and butter and a big salad with lots of veggies and the olive oil and apple cider vinegar dressing.

7 SP Cleanse pills

Mid-Afternoon snack: Some grapes and some more sweet potato chips.

Dinner: Home-made soup with organic vegetable broth, beets, carrots, kale, broccoli, onion, brussel sprouts, garlic, and sea salt.

7 SP Cleanse pills

After Dinner: Fruit shake with blueberries and mango.

Please let me know if you have any questions about the detox.

See you tomorrow!

Live Well.

Detox Diary: Day 1

In general, I would consider myself a good eater. I am definitely not perfect, but my wife and I focus on eating a lot of organic foods and getting a good variety of fruits and vegetables every day. I tend to eat good during the week and then splurge a little on the weekend with a pizza or a burger or some ice cream and maybe some wine or beer. So the detox is definitely a little challenging for me, but it really does help to refocus my brain and body.

In previous posts, I have talked about the 21-day purification/detox program that I offer to my patients. You can read some more about it here. I like to do the program 1-2 times per year to help detox my liver, clean up my gut, increase my energy, and just get me back on track with eating better. And it is always nice to lose a few pounds in the process. Well, I started the detox today and I plan to describe my first week to give you an idea of what I am eating and how I am feeling. I just got over a pretty good 2-day cold, so it is good timing for the detox.

I did all my shopping yesterday and bought all organic fruits and vegetables. (The first 10 days of the detox is only fruits and vegetables.) I also spent about an hour chopping and preparing all the veggies, so that can just put together a meal quickly each day.

Breakfast: Fruit shake. (I actually have this for my breakfast when I am not doing the detox)

Fruit Shake:

1/2 cup filtered water
1/2 cup organic unfiltered apple juice
1/2 cup frozen organic blueberries
1/2 cup frozen organic spinach
1/2 organic banana
2 rounded scoops of SP Complete Powder (included in the detox kit)
1 Tablespoon of Whole Food Fiber (included in detox kit)
1 teaspoon fish oil

Mixed in a blender

With the shake, I took 7 of the SP Cleanse pills (included in the detox kit).

Before lunch: Pear and some carrots. Green tea and filtered water.

Lunch: Big salad with romaine lettuce, kale, broccoli, carrots, radishes, tomatoes, and alfalfa sprouts. Dressing of olive oil, apple cider vinegar, tumeric, and sea salt.

7 SP Cleanse pills

Afternoon: More carrots and an apple. Filtered water.

Dinner: Spaghetti squash topped with tomato paste, broccoli, zucchini, onions, sea salt and organic butter.

7 SP Cleanse pills

After dinner: Fruit Shake with blueberries and mango.

How I am feeling:

Usually the first 3 days I tend to feel a little tired. Today, I had a lot of energy, but this could be do to me just getting over my cold and getting a lot of sleep the last 2 nights. I did not feel too hungry. Believe it or not the 7 SP Cleanse pills three times in a day help to fill you up. I will get into what is in the pills and the shakes over the next couple days. Just know that it is made up of real, whole foods such as juniper berry, buckwheat juice, barley grass, and others.

Continued tomorrow...

Live Well.

Fight Inflammation

Now that you know how inflammation can effect the body, let's go over what causes this inflammation and what we can do about it. Like so many other things, it all comes back to diet and exercise. Our society is surrounded by inflammatory foods. Processed foods, sugars, soda, white flour (bread, pasta), hydrogenated oils, high fructose corn syrup, vegetable oils, etc. These can all have a direct effect on increasing our blood sugar and insulin levels as well as creating free radicals in the system which can damage healthy tissue. If we looked back at our ancestors, we would see the women out gathering fruits and vegetables, while the men were hunting and fishing for the meat. Their diets consisted of fresh fruits and vegetables and meat and fish. Is it a coincidence that the incidence of heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and other diseases has drastically increased over the years with poorer nutrition?

I'm sure you have heard it a hundred times before, but so many health issues can be helped through a better diet and some regular exercise. Well, the same holds true for helping to avoid inflammation in your body. The closer you can eat to how our ancestors once ate, the better off you will be. One of the best ways to combat the inflammatory and free radical damage in your body is through phytonutrients and anti-oxidants which are found primarily in fruits and vegetables. Eat as much fruits and vegetables as you would like throughout the day. Just remember that fruit contains a lot of sugar and vegetables tend to have more beneficial phytonutrients, so try to eat more veggies than fruit. As far as meat, lean meats such as chicken and fish are much better than the pro-inflammatory red meats. The omega-3 fats found in fish are also very anti-inflammatory in nature.

Here are some more anti-inflammatory tips:

• Use herbs such as tumeric (found in curry), ginger, and cayenne pepper
• Use olive oil instead of vegetable or canola oil
• Avoid processed and commercially processed foods which usually contain hydrogenated oils and high fructose corn syrup
• Eat other omega-3 rich foods such as walnuts, flax seeds, almonds, green leafy vegetables
• Get 4-5 days of 30 minutes of cardio exercise each week (easy as taking your dog on a walk)
• Eat fresh food

Live Well.