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By Tash Hughes of Word Constructions

The liver is a vital organ that helps clear away toxins and impurities from our bodies.

The Liver Cleansing Diet is one way of helping the liver filter out impurities from our blood. This diet, written by Dr Sandra Cabot, has been around for about 8 years and has been reported as beneficial by many people who have tried it.

Although some people notice a weight loss during the diet, it isn’t a weight loss program and doesn’t restrict calorie intakes. It is a healthy eating program, and many of the habits gained during the 8 week diet can be maintained afterwards as part of a healthy lifestyle.

Diet outline

The liver cleansing diet takes 8 weeks to complete in full and establishes a better metabolic balance. It helps people with liver problems as well as those just wanting to feel healthier.

Some of the main factors of the diet include:

*Dairy free

*Drinking a daily liver tonic

*Reducing sugar intake

*Reducing red meats

*Drinking two litres of water a day

Preparation

The liver cleansing diet isn’t easy for many westerners used to a lot of processed and fast food options. In fact, many such people will look at the diet and decide it’s too hard to contemplate unless they are forced into it.

If the diet appears too hard for you, perhaps try some simple changes in your diet for a few weeks first to ease yourself into it. These changes will have their own benefits and might just make the whole diet seem achievable.

*Make one day a week vegetarian. It really isn’t that hard to go without meat for just one day a week – try a napoli pasta sauce, nachos, a salad roll, fried rice or a vegetable curry.

*Reduce the sweet drinks you have – even swapping one glass of water for a glass of cordial or soft drink will help you reduce the sugar in your diet. Likewise, having 1 or 1.5 teaspoons of sugar in your coffee is less than 2 teaspoons and it will add up over days and weeks.

*Increase the amount of raw veggies you eat by having a salad instead of cooked veggies, grating a carrot as an edible garnish or use vegetable sticks as snacks with or without dips.

*Buy pure fruit jams as a replacement for those with added sugar and preservatives.

*Slow down your eating so you can enjoy the tastes and notice when you are full so you are less inclined to overeat.

*Try some brown rice instead of white – you may be surprised to find it has much more flavour as well as more nutrients and fibre.

*Use skim versions of dairy products to reduce the fat content, but choose those without added sugars.

*Instead of puddings and cakes for desert, try stewed or canned fruit – without sugar or syrup. For a bit more interest, sprinkle over some honey and coconut and bake it for a short time.

*Stop using butter and margarine on toast and bread, etc. If you’re having a sandwich, you will often find the filling is enough by itself anyway. As alternatives, consider using tomato paste, pesto, squashed avocado, tahini, humus, chutney or honey.

*Instead of salad dressings from a bottle, use vinegar, lemon juice and herbs.

*Avoid take away food that has been sitting in a shop – choose food that is cooked fresh. For instance, watching a hamburger being cooked is safer than a pasta or curry dish sitting in a bain marie.

*Snack on nuts and seeds mid afternoon to keep your energy levels up without indulging in a chocolate bar or cake.

Tash Hughes is a Microbiologist and the owner of Word Constructions. She is available to solve all your business writing problems! From letters to policies, newsletters to web content, Word Constructions writes all business documents to your style and satisfaction.