It’s no secret that your body is being exposed to a variety of toxins every single day. From foods to the air you breathe in, toxins are everywhere. While you can’t avoid them completely, you can certainly make conscious choices to help eliminate many of them. Keeping your body happy, healthy, and as toxin-free as possible is essential to being the best version of you. So how can you support your body’s natural cleansing system that is hard at work, protecting your cells from damaging toxins? Let’s take a look at some valuable tips you can start with today to help you begin the detox process.

Natural Cleansing Abilities

Your body has the incredible ability to reduce toxins, cleanse, and protect itself. This doesn’t give you a free pass to wreak havoc on your body and expect it to take care of the damage though. You still need to do your part to help your natural cleansing systems run as efficiently as possible. Without your efforts, your body cannot effectively do its job to help you be and look as healthy as possible. And I’m not talking about adding a random juice cleanse here and there and expecting them to do the work for you. Typical juice cleanses are very high in sugar and lack protein and  healthy fats your body needs. Instead, I’m talking about a healthy, conscious, regular cleansing effort, as well as daily support, that resets and restores your body.

Daily Cleanse = Lifestyle Change

When you're willing to devote yourself to a cleansing lifestyle change, your body will love you and reward you for it. By making this commitment, you’ll be helping it protect itself from cell damage and shed unwanted pounds, all while boosting its natural detox abilities. Sounds pretty good, right? Just look at some of the incredible benefits:

• Protection from hormone-related diseases, such as breast cancer
• Protection from memory loss
• Reduced pain and inflammation
• Reduced bouts of fatigue
• Reduced fine lines and wrinkles

Creating Change

While you can’t avoid every toxin, you CAN be cautious, educated, and proactive about limiting your body’s exposure to them. What better place to start than with what you’re eating and drinking? Your daily diet habits may be what is holding you back from having a well-tuned natural detox factory inside you.

The Necessity of Filtered Water

If water isn’t already a huge part of your daily routine, it’s time to make that change right now. Water helps flush out the toxins in your body and can also help you shed some unwanted weight by keeping you feeling full. And if you haven’t already invested in a quality water filter, you’ll want to add this to your list of changes as well. It’s important to remember that toxins still have the ability to sneak through our regulated filtration systems. Even these low doses of toxins can build up over time and be harmful to your body. So start practicing using filtered water when brewing your coffee, making tea, or cooking your meals. It’s always better to be proactive. Health risks from toxin build-up can include:

• Memory loss
• Prenatal growth and development issues
• Increased risk for various diseases, including:
• Cancer
• Heart Disease
• Impaired brain function
• Infertility

So while you may be patting yourself on the back for getting in your full two liters of recommended water a day, you may be taking in a few little surprises you were unaware of. Wondering which toxins you could possibly be drinking? Take a look at a handful of them: 

• Lead
• Copper
• Aluminum
• Cadmium
  
• Pesticides
• Chlorine
• Acrylamide
• Bisphenol A (BPA)

Not exactly what you imagine to be in your refreshing glass of water, is it?

Detox with Food Choices

Choosing your food wisely will reward you in the long run. Eating foods that are processed won’t deliver the healthy, detox benefits your body needs. Try sticking to a daily diet that is rich in whole foods instead of reaching for a quick processed snack or meal that won’t deliver the nutritional value your body needs. If you’re depriving yourself of these necessary vitamins and nutrients, your body can’t cleanse itself efficiently.

When you make unhealthy food choices, you’re cramming your body with:

• Trans fats
• Artificial flavoring
• Artificial coloring
• Heavily refined oils
• Refined grains
• Refined sugars
• Artificial

 Sweeteners

• Preservatives

And what can all these toxins deliver?

• Inflammation
• Weight gain
• Fine lines and wrinkles
• High blood sugar
• Dull skin tone
• Increased insulin levels
• Increased risk for heart disease and type 2 diabetes

Doesn’t paint a pretty picture, does it? So why burden your body with choices that are keeping you from being your best self? Why not fill your body with whole foods that work with your natural detox systems to keep you feeling your best? Try creating a diet full of:

• Vegetables
• Fruits
• Pasture-raised eggs
• Poultry
• Meat

Foods to Pass On

There are many other items you can and should do without. For instance, did you know that whole grains aren’t as good for you as you may think? While you’ve been conditioned to think you need whole grains in your diet, you are adding a ton of carbohydrates that are only causing harm to your system. Your spiked blood sugar levels tell your body to produce more insulin, while carbs also block anti-aging nutrients you would otherwise be getting from various foods.

Grains also cause damage to your intestinal lining, leading to the possibility of leaky gut and toxins in your bloodstream. Most grains are also full of gluten and harmful to many. Gluten can lead to the onset of autoimmune disorders, arthritis, joint problems, and issues with the digestive system. 

Going Organic

Whole foods provide the antioxidants your body needs to prevent damage to your cells by toxins. And choosing organic options is a big bonus! You'll be reducing your exposure to the harmful effects of pesticides. Did you know that while the body can, in fact, metabolize and excrete some pesticides, it can also store it in your fat? Pesticides have been linked to various health issues involving infertility, gut, brain function, respiratory system, hormones, and your skin.  Organic is starting to sound like it's worth the extra expense, isn't it? And with favorites such as apples, grapes, and strawberries having the highest levels of pesticides, it may be worth looking into making that change.

So which foods are among the lower end of the pesticide concentration level list? Try gravitating more towards avocados, onions, pineapple, broccoli, mushrooms, and cabbage.

You can also try one of my favorite go-to detox foods. Incorporate one or two a day to really help get your cleansing systems to optimal performance:

• Bone Broth: Loaded with collagen, bone broth is always my number one go-to. Collagen is full of glycine. Glycine is your body’s superpower. As a powerful detoxifier, it is responsible for cleansing your cells, strengthening your immune system, and fighting inflammation. Easy to see why bone broth rich in collagen would be my number one choice, right?
• Seaweed: Alginate, found in seaweed, is known to absorb the toxins within your digestive tract. It is also packed full of minerals that help rid your body of toxins.
• Curcumin: Found in turmeric, curcumin is a known anti-inflammatory and antioxidant. It has been credited with supporting weight loss, reducing your risk of certain cancers, and helping improve memory in patients with Alzheimer's.
• Apples: Did you know that apples help rid your body of heavy metals? Even more reason to have an apple a day!
• Cilantro: Also known as the leaves of the coriander plant, cilantro can help reduce your body’s absorption of lead. The coriander seeds offer the benefit of boosting your body’s natural detox abilities. Pretty powerful!
• Kale, Cabbage, and Brussels Sprouts: Just to name a few, these veggies work best when eaten raw and are known to help detox your body by forming molecules that fight off cancer.

Happy, Healthy Gut

I often talk about a happy gut and this is a perfect example of its importance. When your gut is inflamed and the intestinal lining is weakened, you’re at risk of toxins passing or leaking through to your bloodstream. Luckily, bone broth is packed with collagen and nutrients perfect for healing a compromised gut. And a happy gut helps support your natural cleansing systems at work. By creating a daily bone broth diet full of rich collagen, you’re arming your body with the tools it needs to heal and protect. When your gut is happy, your body can be effectively working to detox and burn fat. 

Healthy Inspiration

You know I’m all about sharing my favorite foods and recipes to help get you started in the right direction. There’s just nothing quite like the amazing powers of bone broth recipes, rich in collagen, to help your body detox, heal, and slow the signs of aging.

Golden Bone Broth

No matter what season it is, I love soup. It’s filling, nutritious, and full of the benefits I know my body needs. And the best part? You guessed it — bone broth loaded with collagen! It happens to be full of glycine; an amino acid which helps your liver cleanse your body of toxins. 

But this particular favorite of mine also has the added benefits of turmeric; a powerful anti-inflammatory with a variety of health benefits and healing properties for the whole body. Paired together, you get a yummy bowl of health benefits. Add in a few of your favorite detox-worthy vegetables and you’ve got the makings of a soup that can heal, cleanse, strengthen, and firm.

Here’s what you’ll need to prepare 1 serving of soup:

• 8 ounces of Bone Broth or my Collagen Broth To Go
• 1/4 to 1/3 cup of coconut milk
• 1/2 tsp ground turmeric powder or 1 1/2 tsp fresh ground turmeric
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder or 1 clove of garlic

*If you’ve chosen to make your bone broth using the Collagen To Go, add in your favorite veggies

Directions:

Add all of your ingredients to a small pot and heat on medium until the bone broth reaches a slight rolling boil. Cool and enjoy!

The Celebrity Challenge

Are you in need of just a bit more motivation to take the leap into a daily cleansing lifestyle? How about a 21-Day Detox challenge that will have you looking and feeling better on the inside and out? I’m talking about a jumpstart that helps celebs feel and stay healthy, glowing, energetic, and fit. With my Bone Broth Diet Cookbook to guide you through this amazing detox, you’ll learn how the celebs keep the weight off and reap the benefits that collagen-rich bone broth recipes have to offer. And my original bone broth is so easy to make. Once you’ve prepared all your ingredients, you can simply set it and forget it in your crockpot for six to twelve hours.

Ingredients:

• 2 unpeeled carrots
• 2 stalks of celery, chopped
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 3 ½ pounds of grass-fed beef bones or 2 pounds of raw chicken bones
• 2 teaspoons of kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar

Be sure to add enough water to your crockpot to cover all your ingredients about an inch. You’ll want to skim your broth occasionally, then pour it through a very fine strainer once it is finished. Add additional seasoning to your desired taste and enjoy! What’s even better is being able to freeze any extra broth for up to three months. Perfect for batch cooking.

Follow these simple directions and you’ll be sipping tasty collagen goodness in no time. 

Making these changes will be a rewarding accomplishment with life-long benefits. Switching your food choices to detox-friendly selections and filling your body with a superfood such as collagen will help restore the nutrients your cells need. While restoring elasticity, a healthy glow, and bringing healing throughout your body, you’ll be on your way to a healthier lifestyle. Let’s get started!