Gwyneth Paltrow’s Detox Diet
Gwyneth Paltrow started off 2009 by starting a post-holiday cleanse diet, for which she shares instructions, complete with menus and recipes, on her website GOOP.com.
“I need to lose a few pounds of holiday excess,” Gwyneth wrote to subscribers. “Anyone else? I like to do fasts and detoxes a couple of times during the year, the most hardcore one being the Master Cleanse I did last spring. It was not what you would characterize as pretty. Or easy. It did work, however.”
Paltrow is doing an easier cleanse this time around. “As I do not wish to subsist on lemon water in the middle of winter, I asked my doctor, a detox diet specialist, for the guidelines he uses to achieve a good detox.”
The cleanse menu includes items such as smoothies and oatmeal for breakfast, chicken teriyaki and steamed salmon for dinner, and plenty of fruit. Fans of gluten, dairy, processed foods, shellfish, condiments, and sugar will be hard pressed to find their favorite foods on this plan though. Day One starts off with lemon water and herbal tea, then it’s on to a Blueberry Almond Smoothie for breakfast and Carrot Salad with Ginger Dressing for lunch. Don’t like carrots? Well eat up anyway because a snack of pumpkin and sunflower seeds is all you’ll get to hold you over until a dinner of Broccoli and Arugula soup.
“I created this menu plan for a seven-day elimination diet. The shakes and juices are meant to be liquid meals that help decrease the amount of work your digestive system has to do. I will be suffering along with you to kick start my year a bit lighter. Good luck to us all!”
Paltrow uses the book Clean, by Dr. Alejandro Junger, to share some basic principles of detoxification. Dr. Junger, whose book will be published in May is her “Detox Specialist”. Here’s what he has to say about getting started on a detox diet……………
- Do deep breathing or gentle yoga.
- Take a couple of spoonfuls of extra virgin olive oil at night to help stimulate your liver to eliminate bile and keep its circulation flowing. If your bowel movements get sluggish, you can accelerate things by drinking half a cup of castor oil or using a mild herbal laxative. Bowel elimination is paramount for correct detoxification.
- The skin gets rid of many toxins so it is important to sweat, either by exercising or taking a sauna.
- Finally, make sure you eat whole organic foods, which have the best chance of having all the nutrients needed for liver and general detoxification.
The academy award winner even gives some advice on bowel movements on the site: “If your bowel movements get sluggish, you can accelerate things by drinking half a cup of castor oil or using a mild herbal laxative. Bowel elimination is paramount for correct detoxification.”
Other celebrities that use detoxification diets as a way to jump start weight loss are Victoria Beckham and Oprah Winfrey.
Celeb Diet Doctor Weigh in..
I’ve discussed the dangers of the Master Cleanse and despite claims to the contrary the Master Cleanse will cause a build up of toxins. If you want to “detox” your body it’s really quite simple; eat more unprocessed fruits and veggies. The most potent detoxifying foods you can eat are cruciferous veggies such as broccoli, arugula, cabbage, bok choy, radish, etc. That peppery taste you find in these veggies are the good stuff, namely the organosulfur compounds that help rev up your liver. Other foods that also contain these beneficial compounds include oninons and garlic. These compounds help create the most important antioxidant in your body, glutathione. It is this super antioxidant that is responsible for the major liver de-toxification duties. So remember the best way to detox and cleanse is to eat more veggies and fruits. Save your bowels and use the cayenne pepper and lemon juice for your next recipe.
Via DrMarc