The Liver Cleansing Diet (1996/2003/2008) has sold over 2 million copies. It is a 3-stage 8-week detox diet that is dairy-free, mostly vegetarian, minimally processed, high fiber, and low fat, and it includes a lot of raw vegetable and fruit including juices.
This is an outline of the food recommendations in the book ? for the full benefits of the plan, see?The Liver Cleansing Diet book and The Liver Cleansing Diet kindle.
The theory behind The Liver Cleansing Diet
This book argues that the key to solving issues such as excessive weight and sluggish metabolism and other conditions is the liver, which is the supreme organism of metabolism. The correction of a poor liver state is always a vital step in an individual?s healing program. The Liver Cleansing Diet (LCD) works to overcome chronic medical conditions with a diet that reduces the toxic load on the liver and improves liver function.
Health benefits claimed in The Liver Cleansing Diet
The diet in this book claims to reduce the risks for: acid reflux / GERD, allergies, Alzheimer?s disease, arthritis, auto immune diseases (Hashimoto?s thyroiditis, inflammatory bowel disease, lupus), bad breath, bloating, high blood pressure, high blood sugar, excessive body heat, brain fog, candida, high cholesterol, chronic fatigue, constipation, depression, diabetes, eczema, fatigue, food addiction, headaches/migraines, hives, hormonal imbalances, hypoglycemia, overburdened immune system, indigestion, infertility, irritable bowel syndrome IBS, low libido, liver diseases (cirrhosis, fatty liver, gall bladder disease, hepatitis, hepatitis B, hepatitis C, liver cysts, liver pain and congestion,), poor memory, overweight/obesity, rosacea, sluggish metabolism, skin rashes
As always, this is not intended to be a replacement for professional medical diagnosis or treatment for a medical condition.
The diet includes an 8-week menu plan. If your weight loss is too slow or comes to a plateau, you should eat smaller meals and less carbohydrate and do regular exercise. After you?ve finished the 8-week plan, you should follow the ?twelve general principles for a healthy liver.?
The first two weeks of the 8-week plan are a gentle introduction, followed by 4 more demanding weeks with more vegetarian meals (if you get headaches or feel tired, drink extra water or raw vegetable and herbal juices to flush out toxins). The final 2 weeks are less demanding than the middle four but more than the first two.
This diet was not designed with pregnant women in mind.
The book isn?t entirely prescriptive in terms of foods to eat and avoid, instead it includes menu plans and recipes to follow at each stage of the diet. Portion sizes are included, so although this says it?s not a calorie counting book there?s portion control, mainly for carbohydrates. Here?s a summary based on these suggested menus as well as the rest of the book.
Foods to eat in The Liver Cleansing Diet
Always, eat:
- Fruit and veg (preferably organic)
- Raw vegetable juice, soon after waking. Drink a fresh juice at least 4 times a week while on the Liver Cleansing Diet. If you freeze juice immediately after making it and drink it after it thaws, the healing antioxidants and enzymes will not be damaged
- Seasonal fruits and dried fruit
- Vegetables of all types, preferably raw, especially:
- Vegetables containing phytochemicals ? carrots, pumpkins, bell peppers, beets
- Vegetables high in sulfur ? onions, leeks, red radish, kale, horseradish, garlic, cabbage, brussels sprouts, broccoli, cauliflower
- Dark green colored vegetables and grasses such as alfalfa, barley leaf, wheat grass
- About 40% of your diet ? raw vegetables and fruit, in particular dark green leafy vegetables, orange- and red-colored fruit and vegetables
- Mushrooms
- Herbs
- Grains
- Unsweetened cereals
- Whole wheat, buckwheat, sour dough, rye, stone ground, rice, corn, herb and olive, walnut, gluten free or other ?high quality? bread from the health food store. Gluten free breads can be best if you have bloating and allergies. If you have irritable bowel syndrome use stone ground breads which have a fine texture and are free of little grainy bits. Vary the types of bread you eat to reduce allergies
- Whole grain pasta and spaghetti, made from whole wheat, spelt, kamut, or buckwheat
- Whole wheat or gluten-free flour
- Brown rice or wild rice
- Protein
- Legumes (beans, peas, lentils), including soy products such as tofu, soy bean burgers, soymilk yogurt. Include sprouted legumes
- Seeds and nuts including coconut cream. Include sprouted seeds. Nuts should only be eaten fresh ? buy nuts in sealed bags with a use-by date or nuts still in their shells
- Grains in combination with the above
- Seafood. Canned fish is healthy
- Unflavored organic cow?s milk yogurt containing acidophilus and bifidus is listed as acceptable for the 8-week program in one part of this book
- Fats
- Omega-6 essential fatty acids including cold pressed sesame, safflower, cotton, and sunflower seeds and oil; corn and corn oil; soybeans; raw nuts; legumes; leafy greens
- Omega-3 essential fatty acids including fresh fish from cold, deep oceans; rainbow trout; bass; linseed oil; shrimp; oysters; leafy greens; soy beans; walnuts; wheat germ; wheat sprouts; fresh sea vegetables
- Cold-pressed virgin olive oil
- Cold-pressed sesame oil
- Unsweetened soy, almond, coconut, or rice milk
- Condiments
- Dry mustard powder
- Soy sauce
- Vinegar ? apple cider, balsamic, or white wine
- Honey
- Brown rice syrup
- Stevia
- Vanilla essence
- Spices
- Baking soda
- Sweets
- If you want something sweet, use fresh raw fruits, sun-dried fruits, stevia or xylitol
- Good quality dark chocolate or carob
- Fruit-based fruit sorbet without sugar (limit this, as it contains a lot of natural sugars)
- Light breakfast. If you love breakfast or expend a lot of energy, more hearty breakfasts are included in the meal plan. If you have liver disease, or feel that your metabolism is very sluggish / you want to lose weight at a faster pace, limit yourself to raw fruits and raw juices for breakfast. If you have low blood sugar in the mid-morning, add some protein at breakfast.
- Always have a raw vegetable salad with your main course at dinner to improve digestion
- Drink at least 10-12 glasses of filtered water daily. Don?t drink large amounts of fluid with meals.
- Chew your food slowly and thoroughly
- If you don?t have enough stomach acid, sip a small glass of water containing 1-2 teaspoons of apple cider vinegar during every meal.
The first two weeks, eat:
- Protein sources: free-range or organic chicken (skinless) and eggs
The middle four weeks, eat:
- Protein sources: egg white
The last two weeks, eat:
- Protein sources: free-range or organic chicken (skinless) and eggs
Other recommendations of foods to eat for lifetime diet
?Always? foods above, plus:
- Nice wines and spirits in moderation
- Chicken and eggs, preferably organic / free range
- Fresh, lean red meat, preferably organic (no more than 4 times weekly)
- Cheeses
- It?s not clear whether you?re allowed dairy apart from cheese for your lifetime diet, but the book advises that a lot of medical conditions result from milk and gluten consumption so this implies that it should perhaps be limited
- Obtain your dietary protein from diverse sources, and not just from animal products (such as meat, dairy and eggs)
- Processed and refined foods
- Processed and sugary foods ?French fries, chips, pretzels, cookies, cakes, donuts, candies, processed jellies and jams high in sugar, soft drinks, white bread
- Deep fried foods? ? especially if you have gallbladder disease
- Fast food and takeout food
- White flour, white rice
- Sugar, especially refined sugars
- Preserved meat such as Italian sausage, ham, smoked meats, sausages, frankfurters, corned beef, bacon, pizza meats
- Smoked foods including fish
Foods to avoid or limit with The Liver Cleansing Diet
Always, avoid:
- Bad fats
- Omega-6 non-essential fatty acid (arachidonic acid) ? fatty red meats, some dairy products (not explained), preserved meats, deep fried food, processed foods and hydrogenated oil
- Processed fats or damaged fats ? margarines, hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated oils / trans-fatty acids, shortening, oils used for deep frying and/or repeatedly reheated, and rancid oils
- Stimulants
- Tea ? restrict to 2-3 cups a day
- Coffee ? restrict to 1 cup a day. If you use decaffeinated coffee make sure chemicals haven?t been used to remove the caffeine
- Alcohol ? preferably don?t drink, but if you do don?t drink more than 3-4 glasses of alcohol per week
- MSG, artificial, artificial sweeteners, colorings, and preservatives
- Food containing undercooked eggs
- Foods you may be allergic to
- If you have problems with gluten (such as intestinal irritation and irritable bowel syndrome), avoid foods containing gluten
- Don?t eat if you?re not hungry
- Don?t eat if you feel stressed or anxious
- Never reheat food more than once
- You can?t be perfect, but do your best to follow this diet
If you have cirrhosis of the liver, poor liver function, or liver failure, minimize consumption of red meat, pork and poultry
All 8 weeks of the 8-week plan
- Dairy products (milk, butter, cheese, cream, flavored yogurt, ice cream, full cream-chocolate)
- Meat, and meat products including gelatin
- If you want to speed up your weight loss, reduce the amount of oil found in some of the recipes or eliminate it
- Do not have more than two courses in any one meal, as poor or excessive food combining is hard work for the liver
- Only have raw fruit for dessert for lunch and dinner, or skip it altogether
- Eat a maximum of three main meals daily and small snacks in between, preferably not more than 2-3 snacks daily
The first two weeks
- Protein sources: meat, non-free-range chicken
The middle four weeks
- Protein sources: meat, chicken of any kind, and egg yolk
The last two weeks
- Protein sources: meat, non-free-range chicken
Other recommendations of foods to avoid/limit for lifetime diet
?Always? foods above, plus:
- Excessive wines and spirits
- Fatty red meat
For people with irritable bowel syndrome, the LCD may need to be modified as sufferers are unable to tolerate small unground seeds, nuts, and grains. These people should pass seeds, nuts, and grains through a grinder and grate harder salad vegetables such as carrots and beets. They should also avoid or reduce products containing gluten.
For more information on the recommendations and recipes and meal plans, see?The Liver Cleansing Diet book and The Liver Cleansing Diet kindle.
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