FitSugar

Love Your Liver

FitSugar — Mon, 04 Dec 2006 10:45:00 PST

There must be 50 ways to love your liver, but to truly love something you have to know what it is all about. Right?

Well, what impresses me most about the liver is not that it is the largest internal organ of the body, but that it performs over 5,000 functions. A small list includes balancing your cholesterol, storing vitamins, activating hormones, and metabolizing fat into glucose to give your body energy. It also acts as a filter to remove toxins (harmful substances) and waste products from the blood. Check this out - a healthy liver filters blood at a rate of about 1.5 quarts per minute. That's 540 gallons of blood a day and more than 13 million gallons over a lifetime! Wow.

The liver continues to function even with considerable damage, but that doesn't mean it is doing all of its jobs well. Signs of poor function include: tiredness, dark circles under the eyes, poor digestion and dull skin.

If your holiday season started out with a partying bang and lots of alcohol and fatty foods, you might want to do something nice for your largest organ. Want to know what foods help your liver out, then

Bitter food like broccoli, dandelion greens, cabbage and brussels sprouts have a cleansing effect on the liver.
In multiple studies, artichokes have been proven to promote liver health.
The spices turmeric, cinnamon and licorice are beneficial to the liver.

Of course it helps to avoid: saturated fats, refined sugar and alcohol (limit yourself to two drinks a day). Drinking plenty of water is always a good idea.

The Burning Question: Is Doing a Detox a Good Idea?

Health — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 04:12:46 PST

We are pumped to share one of our favorite stories from Health.com here on our site.

Cleanses have become a "celeb trend", but are they really safe?
By Health.com

NO: It's risky — and you don't need it.
Glenn Braunstein, MD, professor and chairman, department of medicine, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles

Our bodies have built-in detoxifiers.
The liver, the kidneys, and the colon are naturally designed to remove toxins and eliminate them through our waste, so there's no need for additional help.

A (Safe!) Jump-Start Cleanse

It's potentially harmful.
Many extreme programs, like fasting, juice diets, and the Master Cleanse, can leave the body weak and devoid of vital nutrients, like protein and essential vitamins, even if you do them for a short time. Colonics — which flush the colon with warm water to remove a supposed buildup of waste there — carry the risk of dehydration, infection, and even perforation of the colon wall.

Diet Tricks the Pros Tell Their Friends

Detoxes can create more toxins.
Plans that severely restrict food can cause the body to burn fat for fuel. Burning large amounts of fat releases chemicals called ketones into the blood — and a buildup of these can cause bad breath, loss of appetite, nausea, and in rare cases, coma or death.

Keep reading to hear the argument for detox cleanses.

Is Going on a Juice Fast a Good Idea?

Leta Shy — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 03:07:10 PDT

Going on a juice cleanse, or drinking nothing but pressed juices extracted from fruits and vegetables, has been all the rage lately. The idea sounds like a good one - combat the effects of a wild night out or a life of indulgent eating with a few days or weeks of "detox" to rid your body of lurking toxins. Backed by celebrities and celebrity doctors alike, it's no wonder that drinking your diet has been gaining popularity. But is following a juice cleanse safe? Read on to learn more.

What's the Appeal?
Many of juicing's benefits are more anecdotal than scientifically based, but proponents of juicing are enthusiastic about it. Many claim that juicing vegetables and fruits allows you to absorb the nutrients easier than eating them since less digestive work is needed. Proponents also claim that following a juice-only diet can help your body detox, which may lead to more energy, clearer skin, and fewer digestive and other health issues. With high-profile juicing fans like Nicole Richie, Salma Hayek, and Gwyneth Paltrow and filmed testimonials like Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead - a documentary about a man's 60-day all-juice diet and his subsequent healthy transformation - the popularity of going on an all-juice diet has only grown.

Does It Work?
The lack of peer-reviewed studies on the effects of juicing has led to conflicting information about whether it's a do or don't. Most scientists, however, agree that going on a juice fast is unnecessary for ridding your body of toxins. Our liver and kidneys are already effective at eliminating any unneeded waste, so following a liquid-based diet won't help any more than normal.

Find out more about going on a juice fast after the break.

Tested! The GOOP Detox

Fit Community — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 00:30:44 PDT

FitSugar reader amusebouche tried the GOOP detox and Clean Program and shared her experience in the Get Fit For 2011 community group.

I've never been one for detoxes, cleanses, or fasts. As everyone says - including FitSugar! - your body is naturally wired to detoxify itself. But in the new year, I'd been feeling like nothing but an old lady: sluggish, tired, ridden with problems from nighttime allergies to a hard time focusing. I work in the food industry, and between tradeshows and heavy meals, I felt nauseated whenever I even smelled rich food. My digestive system hated me.

I was inspired by Michele's experience with the Remove program. I was inspired by how she'd felt, but didn't have a few hundred dollars to spare. I came across an old edition of GOOP, Gwyneth Paltrow's newsletter, that talked about a 7-day detox sans coffee, sugar, alcohol, gluten, dairy, soy, fatty nuts, red meat, shellfish, and nightshade vegetables. Before I knew it, I'd committed to myself to trying it out.

To see what amusebouche thought of the detox,

6 Foods That Ruin Skin (and 4 That Can Save It)

Miriam Lacey — Mon, 02 May 2011 03:23:30 PDT

Celebrity nutritionist Kimberly Snyder, who works with Drew Barrymore and Olivia Wilde, among others, just wrote a book called The Beauty Detox Solution. In it, she advocates a holistic approach to beauty that focuses on diet and wellness rather than simply skin care. So if you're curious about what foods Snyder says can wreck your skin, and which ones can help it, just keep reading.

You Asked: Whole Food Body Cleanse - Healthy or Harmful?

FitSugar — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 11:20:13 PDT

Dear Fit,
It's the beginning of June, and already I've been overdoing it with eating crap. Between all the BBQs, Summer parties, and sitting at outdoor cafes, I've been downing so much meat, alcohol, fat, and sugar. I feel so disgusting, not to mention, my clothes don't fit as well. Since an abundance of fresh produce is in season, I was thinking of doing a week-long whole foods cleanse. I wouldn't do one of those juice cleanses, since I've heard they're not healthy, but I'd avoid all dairy, meat, alcohol, caffeine, oil, white sugar, added salt, processed foods, and enriched flour, and only eat fruits, veggies, and whole grains. Is this a good idea?
-Desperate to Detox

Celebs like Gwyneth Paltrow and Salma Hayek make cleanses appear fashionable and a healthy way to lose weight, so many noncelebs are thinking of detoxing and dropping pounds the same way. You're right that juice cleanses are not good for the body or as life changing as they claim to be. Doctors agree that the body's liver and kidneys do a fine job of cleansing the body on its own, so they see no need in doing a detoxing juice cleanse. As for weight loss, you may drop a jeans size or two, but it's muscle loss, not fat loss.

You're wondering if a whole foods cleanse it healthy and beneficial to the body, so to find out read more.

Learn to Love Watercress

FitSugar — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 12:00:00 PDT

Although watercress is farmed all year round its true season is Spring. The spicy yet odd taste of watercress is something people either love or hate. It is easy to love if you're an Anglophile - I totally associate cress with those lovely crustless tea sandwiches.

This pungent green is high in both vitamins C and A with a touch of calcium too. Considered an anti-cancer food, watercress is low in calories, only four per cup of raw greens.

Watercress is also considered a detox food since it helps energize cleansing enzymes in the liver. Toss this green into salads or put it on sandwiches. I personally love it with egg salad. Watercress makes a nice Spring soup when cooked and pureed with potatoes and broth. At a loss for how to fit this superfood into your diet. My culinary pal YumSugar has many recipes featuring watercress. How do you like to eat watercress? Share the details below.

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