Kaleah’s Health Blog

I recently went on a short four day juice fast in which the first two days were quite painful due to an excruciating headache.  This is one of the symptoms of detoxification.

My husband who had never fasted before was fine.  He had no specific detox symptoms and yet had a lot more to detoxify than I did.

Ironically I find the cleaner I keep my body internally, the more sensitive I am to the foods and chemicals that don’t agree with me.  The culprit this time, I believe, was the Caffeine!

Since my eating disorder in the early 80’s, I have been quite health oriented.  I have done numerous fasting, cleansing, raw food diets and vegetarian eating to keep my body strong, slim, young and healthy. Although I have done well in kicking my addictions to foods that don’t support my health, I still find myself having Coffee phases. 

I love the smell and the taste of really good strong coffee, freshly ground.  I get excited whenever I see a Starbucks sign.  I love to hang out at coffee houses for hours working on my laptop and smelling the wonderful aroma of freshly ground coffee beans.  Although there are much healthier alternatives to coffee now and then I just want to have a cup, and I do.

Well, recently I got into the HABIT.  I was drinking a cup or two of coffee every morning and I was loving it!  However after the first week or so of my new addiction I was drinking the coffee more because I had to then because I wanted to. If I didn’t continue dosing myself regularly with caffeine I would notice the onset of the caffeine withdrawal in the form of a headache. 

I stopped drinking coffee a day or so before my planned fast which was a big mistake.  I should have stopped weeks before fasting.  My husband, who drinks a mocha a day or more, sailed through the fast without issue, and I suffered the horrendous caffeine withdrawals. 

With the help of a good acupuncturist and Chiropractor I was able to get over the headaches and day three and four of my fast were much better.  I made a commitment to myself that if I have coffee at all, it will be decaf.  Otherwise I will be drinking my traditional Yerba Mate’ Tea which is mildly stimulating.

Coffee, both regular and Decaf is very dehydrating.  Studies have shown you must drink two glasses of water for every one cup of coffee just to break even.  In addition you still need to drink the standard 6-8 glasses of water a day.

By replacing your coffee habit with a coffee alternative such as herbal tea or grain beverage you will be doing yourself a big favor in the long run.  Instead of putting something in your body every morning that depletes you in some way, it is much better to put something in that serves your body.

As you grow older and age, your hydration levels will be a big factor in how you both look and feel.  Many symptoms of aging are said to be due to dehydration of the body and the brain. 

Just making the simple choice to cut out the coffee can make an overall impact on your health and wellness. 

If you are a coffee addict and want to break the addiction then I suggest you do it slowly.  Cut your coffee intake in half the first week and in half again the second week until you are down to just a half of cup a day.  At this point you can begin replacing your coffee fix with something more beneficial.

To Your Health!

As we approach “2007” it is an excellent time to ask ourselves, what can we do to start our New Year off in a whole new way.

We are a product of our habits that have been formed year after year.  We get lazy and comfortable with a particular lifestyle.  We develop addictions to certain foods and ways of eating.  We also develop patterns of behavior that don’t support us in becoming the person we aspire to be.

My husband and I decided we would fast our way into the New Year.  He has never fasted before so I have initiated a 3-4 day juice fast and cleanse.  What a great way to purge our bodies of the over accumulation of toxins from the holidays and previous year.

We started our fast with a Native American sweat lodge where we purged a ton of toxins through an intense full body sweat. 

The next morning we began with a blend of fresh squeezed orange and grapefruit juice.  We stocked our fridge with fresh organic spinach, kale, chard, celery, carrots and coconuts.  We have citrus juice in the morning and green vegetable juices in the afternoon and evening.  The coconut water is also excellent for fasting as it is packed with nutrients.  We ran down to our local health food store and picked up a box of “CleanseSmart”, advanced Cleanse I and II by “Renew Life” which is an herbal blend designed to assist the body in cleansing and detoxify the colon, liver and other organs of elimination. 

Many people have a great fear of fasting because they are afraid of going without food.  However a juice fast is a safe and gentle way to cleanse and detoxify the body as well as break addictions to certain foods and eating habits. 

When you fast using juices, a combination of citrus, for cleansing, and green juices for high quality nutrition guarantees you will not go hungry.   In fact you will likely be getting better nutrition than you have in a long time.  Juicing is a source of high quality, whole food nutrition that goes right to your bloodstream.  It keeps your blood sugar up and if you have blood sugar issues, you can simply have some more juice when your blood sugar drops.  If your blood sugar has a tendency to go high you will want to dilute your juices with water, especially the citrus.

If you have never fasted before but would like to experience the awesome physical, mental and spiritual benefits, I would suggest you begin with a 3-4 day juice fast.  Be sure to pick up a colon cleansing aid and drink lots of water.  Herb teas are fine too.

You will experience hunger pangs and may have symptoms of detoxification such as headaches, body aches, skin eruptions, and even bad breath.  Be willing to endure the detoxification process, as they normally go away after the first few days.  So do the hunger pangs.  If you are feeling really good on day four and want to continue, just keep up the same routine until you are hungry again.  Then break the fast with fresh fruit and green salads, preferably for a couple more days.  You will then be ready to begin your new diet of healthier whole foods with far more ease than you would have if you hadn’t fasted.

Fasting is not easy!  It takes determination and strength to persevere.  However if you have little or no will power, then you are an excellent candidate for a short-term fast to help transition to a healthier over all diet.

The benefits to fasting are many!  That is a whole other article.  I will just say that once you have successfully completed a fast you will feel, lighter, healthier, and younger.  It is a process of rejuvenation that is difficult to come by any other way.

Be gentle with yourself, rest, relax, take walks, breath the fresh air and let this be a time of self-nurturing.  Once you have gone through your first fast you will see why so many people do this and why it is beneficial to do every season.  It is like taking out the garbage.  It needs to be done every so often or it starts to stink and get backed up. 

Maintaining your body is the most important thing you will ever do.  Take it seriously and get used to doing the important things that will restore your health and vibrancy.  Believe me, it is well worth the effort.

Kaleah LaRoche
Health Consultant