Detox Salad
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While I am not a huge fan of detox diets, this salad can be added to your meals and contains vegetables and herbs that aid in detoxing the body. This salad can be used as a side dish and add some protein, maybe some avocado slices, etc., and take it to work for lunch the next day.
Most detox diets and supplements cannot tell you what they are detoxing from your body. Many detox supplements contain a lot of added fiber and herbs to help encourage bowel movements, which is not necessarily bad if you have one or fewer BM daily (if not fasting or on a reduced caloric diet). But read the label and avoid anything with the herb senna, as this is a powerful, potent herb that can cause GI pain and diarrhea. It should only be used in extreme constipation issues, but it is touted as a weight loss remedy. It is not. If used in this manner, it can be dangerous as your body will start to depend on it to have a BM.
This salad will help you detoxify harsh chemicals that you are recently exposed to, such as car exhaust, gasoline, and secondhand smoke. Some things that we are all exposed to unavoidably so.
This salad also contains compounds that help the body excrete known carcinogens.
Ingredients
- 1 small head of broccoli
- ½ head cauliflower
- 3 carrots chopped
- ½ a bunch of parsley
- ½ a bunch of cilantro
- 1 large handful of broccoli sprouts (to make your own, quick and easy, read this post: http://trufoodsnutrition.com/sprouts/
- 1/8 cup raw sunflower seeds
- 1/8 cup raw pumpkin seeds
- 2 T. nutritional yeast
- Ratio: 3 T. EVOO and 1 T. lemon juice
- s/p to taste
Directions
- Place the broccoli florets into a food processor and process them into small pieces. Remove and place in a large bowl.
- Next, add in the cauliflower and process until very small pieces, and then add to bowl with broccoli.
- Next, add in the carrots to the food processor and then add to the bowl with broccoli and cauliflower.
- Chop up the parsley and cilantro and add to the bowl. Add in the yeast and the sprouts.
- In a separate bowl, blend the EVOO and lemon juice. Add s/p to taste. Pour over the broccoli blend and mix in. Depending on how much broccoli blend you have and your taste preference, you may need to increase the amount of the dressing.
- Note: you can adjust this recipe to your taste. Next time try basil and garlic or sliced almonds. If you want a dressing that has more flavor, you may want to use the dressing from the Brussel Sprout Slaw Recipe http://trufoodsnutrition.com/brussel-sprout-slaw-salad/
Cilantro: this herb is great for cleansing. It contains compounds called flavonoids. These antioxidants bind to heavy metals and aid their removal from the body via urine. These compounds can also help fight inflammation caused by toxic overload. Overall, cilantro is a wonderful herb to add to your diet on a regular basis-it is good for weight loss, diabetes, blood pressure, and cholesterol, to name a few.
Cauliflower and broccoli: these foods contain organosulfur compounds, essentially a fancy way of saying they contain sulfur. Sulfur-rich foods can reduce inflammation and bind to and aid in the excretion of heavy metals. They also can protect the liver from toxins. I bet you can’t say that about your fast-food burger! The compound broccoli, cauliflower, and other cruciferous vegetables contain, such as kale, cabbage, and Brussels sprouts, called glucoraphanin. When this compound is chewed or swallowed, it then produces sulforaphane. Sulforaphane then activates enzymes that take the pollutants and flush them out in your urine. These vegetables are also known to fight cancer. Sulforaphane improves the liver’s ability to detoxify carcinogens. Broccoli has been found to kill stem cells that make cancer immortal!
Broccoli Sprouts: In an RCT 12-week study with 291 Chinese adults with high levels of air pollution, they found that consuming a broccoli sprout drink daily versus a placebo drink of pineapple and lime juice increased their rate of excretion of benzene by 61%. Benzene is a known carcinogen that comes predominantly from car and truck exhaust, emissions from coal and oil combustion, gas stations, and from smoking. The study also found that those drinking the broccoli sprout drink also excreted acrolein by 23%, sourced from smoking and secondhand smoke, and also comes from burning fuel such as gas and oil. Acrolein is toxic to humans, and inhalation may result in upper respiratory irritation and congestion.
Sources
https://www.greenmedinfo.com/blog/mighty-broccoli-sprouts-rapidly-detox-pollutants
www.stepintomygreenoworld.com
This looks amazing! I’m trying to meal prep this year in order to be well prepared when hunger strikes. I’m also committing to eating more salads; it looks like this one can be kept for several days? I hope so! I’d rather make a big batch all at once. Thanks for sharing.
This looks amazing! I’m trying to meal prep this year in order to be well prepared when hunger strikes. I’m also committing to eating more salads; it looks like this one can be kept for several days? I hope so! I’d rather make a big batch all at once. Thanks for sharing.
Yes you can make a large batch as it will stay fresh for several days but not much longer than that. I use it as a side dish, add some to my green leafy salads and also throw some protein into this recipe so there are many ways to make good use of it over the course of several days. Enjoy and great job on committing to eating more salads!
Yes you can make a large batch as it will stay fresh for several days but not much longer than that. I use it as a side dish, add some to my green leafy salads and also throw some protein into this recipe so there are many ways to make good use of it over the course of several days. Enjoy and great job on committing to eating more salads!
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[…] detox salad creates a good side plate or use as a bottom to your one play […]