Continuing Your Cleanse
This section is a reminder of the habits you will continue to practice through the next four weeks. You will find all of these reminders in the original Two-Week Gut Cleanse, but I figured it would be much more convenient to have them here for quick reference. Please read through them, as I also added some additional tips and recommendations.
REMOVE THE INFLAMMATORY FOODS
Gluten, Dairy, Sugar and Alcohol (and any others that you know your body doesn't do well with)
Some foods are inherently inflammatory, and therefore need to be removed from the diet in order to "clear the muddy waters" and more easily identify further health conditions or symptoms that may not be related to these foods. Indeed, many signs and symptoms can be alleviated by the elimination of these foods. Which is why we start here. Fear not! You can reincorporate them one at a time at the end of the cleanse, if desired.
Wheat, barley, rye, muesli, spelt, couscous, kamut, bulgar wheat, durum, semolina, triticale, eikhorn, graham, and all other foods containing gluten. Oats are naturally gluten-free but are often manufactured in a gluten containing facility. so be sure to buy oats that are labeled "gluten-free". Choose gluten-free grains like brown rice, quinoa, buckwheat, sorghum, tapioca, millet, amaranth, teff, and arrowroot.
Gluten:
Includes all cow, goat, and sheep dairy products like cheese, milk, cream, half and half, and even fermented milk products like yogurt, sour cream and kefir. While fermented products are encouraged during the program, it's the casein and lactose in dairy products that commonly compromise digestive function.
Dairy:
This includes refined white sugar and all other sweeteners. These are commonly found in baked goods, sodas, candy and even dieting food products. Refined sugar has no nutritional value, wreaks havoc on the gut lining, cause diarrhea, and feed the pathogenic organisms that live in the gut. Sweeteners that are allowed during the cleanse include, small amounts (1 tbsp per day total) of Stevia, maple syrup, date sugar, coconut sugar or nectar, and honey. Please avoid ALL other sweeteners by reading the labels.
Sugar & artificial sweeteners:
All beer, wine, spirits, and liquor are not allowed during the cleanse. These substances are foreign to the body and are ultimately metabolized as sugar by the body. Not only do you have the same side effects as sugar consumption listed above, but alcohol slows the regeneration of healthy cells that line the GI tract. This dramatically increases your risk of leaky gut and autoimmune diseases or dysfunctions.
Alcohol:
It has been my professional experience with patients/clients that caffeine can play the role of antagonist in any sound nutritional and lifestyle program. It often weakens the functionality of many organs in the GI tract and exacerbates many common symptoms throughout the entire body. If you did not remove caffeine during the Two-Week Gut Cleanse, I highly suggest you try during the next four weeks. Remember, slowly lower the use of caffeine instead of eliminating it completely. You’ll have much less withdrawal symptoms by reducing your intake slowly.
Caffeine:
Other food considerations
This program is centered around the "basic elimination" of the highest inflammatory foods. If you have a heavily compromised digestive system, consider expanding your elimination to other common inflammatory foods like corn, soy, eggs, peanuts, and shellfish. If you need additional support, consider visiting my website to book a Premier Health Analysis. We can tailor an action plan according to your unique needs and symptoms. Check it out HERE!
Remember, this cleanse acts as the first of many steps towards optimal health. It is not designed to cure ailments or treat disease. Rather, it's designed to set you on the right path for digestive health by ridding the body of the inflammation induced by common food sensitivities or allergies. Further health investigation is encouraged!
Your Body: The Ultimate Mediator
This cleanse is designed to empower you to learn more about your body and what it needs from food. It's also designed to help you identify what foods your body does not respond well to! How do you know? Sometimes the easiest answer is to slow down and observe your symptoms, trust your intuition and track your biofeedback for answers. Please feel free to use this program as a guide and make adjustments according to what you know about your body. If you have food sensitivities not listed above, honor your body and keep them out of your diet!
Track and Assess
As I mentioned in my welcome letter, I think it’s incredibly important to TRACK, ASSESS and then RECOMMEND. I do not like giving recommendations when I don’t have the full understanding of your health. As a Functional Health Practitioner, it’s important to dig deeper and understand your health history, antecedents, triggering events, mediators and symptoms. Unlike western medicine, we do not simply treat the symptoms or diagnosis. We get down to the root causes and begin to put the puzzle pieces together. With that being said, I encourage you to be your own investigator and advocate. I have included a few tips for you to help you start to identify patterns and triggers. In my practice, I have client forms for this. However, a simple journal will work just fine for what you need at home.
Track your food/drinks: I would encourage you to track the time you consume a meal/drink, how much you ate and even how long it took you to eat (remember, the slower the better).
Track your mood: This includes how you feel mentally, emotionally, physically. Examples include: 9 am headache, 2 pm bloated, 3 pm moody and brain fog, 9 pm knees sore etc.
Track your poop: Use the Bristol Stool Chart (you can easily look this up online) to track what “type” of poop you eliminate and the time of day.
I encourage you to track for 3-7 days to help you begin to learn how your food/drink consumption relates to symptoms throughout your body. If you feel you are reacting poorly to a type of food/drink, remove it from your diet and see if the symptoms subside over time. Remember, foods can have long term effects within the body, so be patient.
PRACTICE POOPING PATIENCE: When it’s time to eliminate, don’t rush it! It’s important to recognize that healthy elimination comes when you are in a rest and digest state. This means, that pooping doesn’t happen when you are stressed and in a hurry. This practice is particularly important for those that struggle with estrogen dominance. Women (and men too) can suffer from estrogen dominance without even knowing it! This typically occurs when estrogen becomes abundant within the body and is unable to be eliminated through healthy excretion. It often gets reabsorbed into the blood stream. So, be patient and get yourself a Squatty Potty if you needs a little extra help!
Your Food Superheroes
These are foods that are not only generally gut-friendly but can actually speed up the gut healing process. While there are many foods allowed during the cleanse, incorporating more servings of these superhero foods is highly recommended. They not only are packed with vital nutrients, but they nourish the beneficial bacteria in your gut by providing a healthy dose of fiber.
Food superheroes include, artichokes, bone broth, cabbage, coconut (including the flesh, water, milk, butter, and oil), onions and garlic, proteins like meat, poultry, seafood etc. (preferably choose pasture-raised), pumpkin, turmeric, curcumin, leafy greens, broccoli sprouts, fresh herbs, beets, radishes, berries (frozen ok), avocado, flax, maca.
If you haven’t started to incorporate fermented foods, now is the time to give them a try (sauerkraut, coconut yogurt, kimchi, fermented pickles, kombucha, water kefir, etc). Fermented foods are rich in gut friendly bacteria that inhabit your colon. Each strain of bacteria performs a different job within the gut, and each of these jobs are important! They create short-chain fatty acids, synthesize vitamins, eliminate toxins within the body and much more. Without sufficient gut friendly bacteria, the unfriendly bacteria will dominate! This causes all kinds of issues within the body, not just digestive. Keep in mind that some people may struggle with fermented foods. This may be for a multitude of reasons, including gut dysbiosis or underlying infection/ailment. If this is you, I would suggest working closely with a healthcare practitioner to get the root cause of the discomfort.
Pro tip: Start low and slow with fermented foods and fiber. Increasing both of these foods is incredibly important for long term gut health. However, if you go from zero to sixty with either of them, it can cause digestive discomfort, like gas and bloating. So, start small and increase over time to allow the body to acclimate and adjust.