The Clean Eating Healthy Detox Diet Restore Your Health with Food in Eight Weeks

by Kelli Shepherd www.fooduciary.com

“It is not the disease that is important, but the person who has the disease, and each person is a product of his nutrition.”

This guide is for anyone who wants to feel healthy, whether you currently have any illness or not.

Table of Contents

My Story: How I Know This Works . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Introduction to the Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Benefits What it Is How it Works What You Will Need Rules of Engagement

Phase One: Weeks One and Two . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

What to Eat Tips Great Things to Eat in This Phase My Experience

Phase Two: Weeks Three and Four . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

What to Eat

Tips Great Things to Eat in This Phase My Experience

Phase Three: Weeks Five and Six . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

What to Eat Great Things to Eat in This Phase Tips My Experience

Phase Four: Weeks Seven and Eight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

What to Eat Great Things to Eat in This Phase Tips My Experience

What Now? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Eating for Life

The Clean Eating Healthy Detox Diet

- 5 -

“Let food be thy medicine, and medicine be thy food.” - Hippocrates © 2011 fooduciary.com

My Story – How I Know This Works My name is Kelli. In August 2009 (at the age of 30) I set out to reclaim the good health I knew my body was capable of but had gotten very far away from. I was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) when I was six-years old. I've spent time in and out of remissions. Five years ago my RA symptoms started up again, and after a year they progressed into a full-fledged flare. I began needing help more and more often with routine self-care, progressing from needing help opening jars to eventually needing help getting dressed /undressed. The chronic pain felt tortuous, unending, and downright depressing. I had a great primary care doctor that I believe honestly cared about my health and well-being. He did the very best he knew how in helping me alleviate my symptoms. Unfortunately, however, like all traditional doctors he was essentially educated by the prescription drug companies, so my treatment consisted of adding one prescription medication after another after another to keep trying to manage all my symptoms. In all this I didn't realize that most of the new symptoms that kept cropping up were actually side-effects of a previously prescribed medication.

The RA responded well to a steroid called Prednisone, so it was apparent that I was struggling with inflammation. This medication is not a long-term solution, however, so when it failed to put the RA flare down permanently, I went to see a specialist. My rheumatologist did a quick examination of my joints and gave me the choice between two medications: a constant low-dose chemotherapy treatment or an injection of a newer immunosuppressant drug I would give myself twice a week. According to this doctor, these were my only choices, and I had to act fast before any permanent joint damage was done. Those pockets of swelling on my wrists were not looking like friends. I went with the injectible drug and it worked well for a few months. Then the symptoms began reappearing and becoming worse and worse. My doctor had started me at the maximum dose with the injection, so he added the chemotherapy drug, and the same thing happened. I had a few months of relief, then the reappearance of symptoms. You probably know where this is heading: yep, increase the dosage. But I began slowly losing weight and hair, the RA symptoms didn't stay at bay for very long periods of time, and I just felt awful. On top of it all, I was never all that convinced that this doctor cared about my situation like my primary doctor did. It was never pleasant going to his office. The final straw came during a regular appointment with this doctor. He started off as usual by asking me how I was doing

The Clean Eating Healthy Detox Diet

- 6 -

“He who has health has hope; and he who has hope has everything.” - Arabian Proverb © 2011 fooduciary.com

(after looking at his papers to remember my name). I told him that in general I was ok, but I'd had a really bad day the day before because of something I'd eaten the night before that. Despite how relatively little I knew of the connection between food and health, this seemed obvious enough to me because I had eaten a 4th of July dinner of stuff I rarely ate: red meat, pork, and dairy (combined with extra sugar and refined wheat flour). The next day I never made it out of bed. The cause and effect seemed clear. I was not anticipating my doctor’s reaction. He looked up at me and told me flat out that what I eat has nothing to do with my RA and joint pain. He prescribed an even higher dose of the chemo drug. I was stunned, disappointed and frustrated. It was clear I wasn’t working with someone who would help me. I didn't increase my dose. And I never went back. As they say, pain is a powerful motivator. I was ready to try another approach, but I didn't know of any. I began the search for a doctor who would at least acknowledge some connection between food and health. After some investigating, I found the perfect doctor – an MD who practices functional medicine and specializes in the impact of nutrition on health – especially chronic illnesses. This doctor had me undergo this detox diet - the one I'm sharing with you – as the first order of business. This is standard for his patients, but he could tell that in my case I especially needed to

get my digestive system balanced. The first question he asked me was whether I'd ever been on antibiotics for any extended period of time or very often. I’ve never had a doctor ask me that before. I have had every doctor who’s ever looked inside my ears make some kind of exclamation, and one even asked me if I hear ok. So I told him that as a very young child I'd had tubes in and out of my ears several times, with months, if not years (in total) of antibiotic use. I would have never associated the antibiotic use with my onset of RA or my ongoing struggles with it. But it made sense to me that killing off all the good bacteria in my intestines would lead to problems. One big problem is intestinal permeability (“leaky gut”), which means foods don’t get completely digested or absorbed and “leak” through the gut lining. This sets off the immune system which thinks the undigested foods are foreign invaders, creating inflammation that can migrate to anywhere in the body. This would explain why I had always been really skinny and struggled to put on weight, why I had Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), and why I had an inflammatory disease. Still, my husband Brad and I were skeptical as we prepared for the diet (yes, he did it with me). Brad couldn't imagine how this diet could help me when I already ate more healthfully and closer to what this diet prescribed than anyone else we knew.

The Clean Eating Healthy Detox Diet

- 7 -

“Every human being is the author of his own health or disease.” - Sivananda © 2011 fooduciary.com

Imagine our surprise when, five days into this 8-week diet, I had a total turnaround, became free of arthritic symptoms and pain, and started tossing prescription and over-the-counter medications into the trash can one after another. The doctor was right. Finally! :) Even more surprisingly, Brad had some positive, but completely unexpected results. He found that cutting out dairy actually solved his only two health complaints he's ever had in his whole life. These were annoyances that even several doctors and a couple of nasal surgeries hadn't been able to cure. His congestion cleared up, he stopped snoring, and he had no more stomach or digestive discomfort. Seeing our results, a friend of mine asked what we were doing differently. When we told her, she adjusted her family to follow the maintenance part of this diet. Cutting out dairy lead to a dramatic improvement of her son's asthma, which allowed him to use his prescription medication only very rarely instead of on a regular basis. My friend was becoming worried that this medication was having side-effects very similar to Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) behaviors in her son, so being able to cut the medication way back was very helpful. As I share this information with others I continue to see the same results. Beyond what I've experienced with my own body and seen with my own eyes, I've read enough medical studies (the CPA in me loves the details) to understand just how

undeniable the connection is between the food you eat and how you feel. This diet is a powerful tool to help anyone make a course correction and put you on a path toward a lifetime of great health.

The Clean Eating Healthy Detox Diet

- 8 -

“At home I serve the kind of food I know the story behind.” - Michael Pollan © 2011 fooduciary.com

Introduction to the 8 Week Plan

Benefits Following this plan will help you:

▫ Eliminate toxins and the “bad guys” (yeast and harmful bacteria) from your body

▫ Overcome addiction to and cravings for refined and other harmful foods

▫ Restore “gut health,” which is critical to overall health ▫ Identify your own specific food allergies ▫ Teach you to listen and respond to your body ▫ Restore your body's ability to heal itself

About the Plan

What it is I want to be really clear about what this guide is about and what it is not about. It is not about “going on a diet.” I will be using the word “diet” in this guide as little as possible because of its traditional meaning.

Most often the term “diet” is used to describe a restrictive way of eating for a temporary period of time in order to obtain a goal – usually losing weight. After the “diet,” people return to the way they used to eat that got them to the point of needing to “go on a diet” in the first place. That approach has never really made sense to me, which is ok because that is not at all what this guide is about. This guide is about gaining health, not losing weight (if weight loss would promote your health and well-being, it will very likely be an outcome for you of following this plan, but it is not a focus of it at all). This guide is about going on a journey for eight weeks and beyond. There is a plan for this journey, and this plan has to do with diet (as in what you eat – not how much; quality of calories, not quantities). You will very likely eat differently during the eight week period than you ever have before, with an outcome of adopting healthy eating as a lifestyle, not a “diet.” You will get the most out of this journey by making permanent changes in your dietary habits.

How it Works This journey helps restore health by helping to eliminate toxins, reduce oxidation (what antioxidants do), eliminate foods causing allergies, reduce inflammation, and eliminate intestinal permeability (or “leaky gut”). In short, it greatly reduces many

The Clean Eating Healthy Detox Diet

- 9 -

“If more of us valued food…above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world.” - J.R.R. Tolkien © 2011 fooduciary.com

burdens on your body and frees it up to heal and function properly.

What You Will Need Determination: I'll be honest with you – this journey is not an easy one. Depending on where you're starting from, it may be even harder. However, I do know that if you throw all of your effort into following this guide, you will be much healthier and feel better than you do now. I can promise you will get out of it what you put into it. Supplements: There are a few things you’ll want to have on hand that will make this journey most effective. ▫You will need some good probiotics (non-dairy – I'm not talking about yogurt here). I have used a capsule form that has 14 strains of good bacteria, with 12 billion live cells in each capsule. These ones have to be refrigerated. ▫You will need a meal replacement drink like Metagenics brand products – I use their Ultrainflammx 360. This will do several good things for you, including providing something to “eat,” providing fiber to help the probiotics flourish, and providing basic vitamins and minerals. ▫You will also need to have a good protein powder in addition to your meal replacement drink (you can drink it on its own or add a scoop to your meal replacement drink). Mount Capra Goat's

Whey is a good option, as is Sun Warrior Raw Vegan Protein powder. I've used both. Getting a good supply of protein is critical during this journey. Protein will help reduce your appetite, among other things. Preparation: It is critical that you adequately prepare for successfully following this plan. ▫Get support, especially from family, friends, and/or those you live with. ▫Read through each phase entirely and carefully before embarking (look before you leap). ▫Make sure you rid your house of things you will not be eating and stock up on things you will be eating. (Also be prepared to go to the grocery store much more often than you may be used to, and initially spending a bit of time exploring options.) ▫Purchase your supply of probiotics and other supplements. ▫You are now a food Sherpa – take plenty of the foods you can eat with you everywhere you go. ▫Don't plan on eating out much if at all during this time, and navigate social eating events carefully. Time: You will need to spend more time than you probably ever have before planning and preparing appropriate and helpful meals and snacks during this diet. Make sure you give yourself

The Clean Eating Healthy Detox Diet

- 10 -

“Every patient carries her or his own doctor inside.” - Albert Schweitzer © 2011 fooduciary.com

enough time to do this. Just like anything in life, you will get better and faster as you get more comfortable with what you're doing.

General Rules for Your Entire Journey DO shovel vegetables (eat as many vegetables as possible at all times). I'll give you tips on how to work them in to things you're already eating. DO make sure you get enough protein. If you are vegan, you will need to go HEAVY on the nuts, beans, and nut butters, and if you are vegetarian you will likely be eating a lot of eggs (in addition to the beans and nuts). Also make sure you use you protein powder daily. DO chew all food very slowly and completely. DO slow down to eat. Eating slowly gives you the best chance to be able to hear your body tell you when you're full before it's too late (for example, how many times have you wolfed something down because you're hungry or it's just plain yummy, only to realize about 20 minutes after you're done that you shouldn't have eaten that much?). Do NOT worry about your weight. The only things you're trying to lose on this journey are toxins, harmful organisms, and addictions to unhealthy foods. What we're really focusing on is what you'll gain: good health.

Do NOT go hungry. Eat as often as you need to. The goal is to try to eat breakfast like a king (largest meal), lunch like a queen (medium sized meal), and dinner like a pauper (small meal). However, I'll explain later in this guide how that system just did not work for my body, and how I was able to determine how often and how much to eat in a way that worked for me. The most important point here is do NOT go hungry! Do NOT consume any of the following during this journey: red meat, pork, or dairy; soda; any kind of corn syrup (especially high fructose) and any other sweetener created with the help of science; hydrogenated (trans) fats; anything refined or processed such as sugars, flours, etc. DO be prepared (it's worth repeating). Alright, time to get o the nitty gritty. This diet is broken up into four phases, each being two weeks long. It'll be more restrictive at the beginning and then slowly add in more food choices. Let's get started shall we?

The Clean Eating Healthy Detox Diet

- 11 -

“Health is not simply the absence of sickness.” - Hannah Green © 2011 fooduciary.com

Phase 1: Weeks 1 and 2

What you eat in this phase: Vegetables: LOTS of vegetables. Focus on broccoli, brussel sprouts, cauliflower, cabbage, collard greens, chard, kale, turnips and water cress, and any and all other leafy greens. Avocados and tomatoes count as vegetables in this plan. No potatoes except sweet potatoes and yams. Nuts: All seeds and nuts (peanuts are legumes, not nuts). Meats: Focus on fish (canned tuna is ok, salmon and sardines are great), and you can also have chicken, turkey, and eggs. Drinks: Filtered water, vegetable juice (including V8), green tea, and unsweetened almond milk (or other nut milk). Supplements: Probiotics: take twice a day – once in the morning and once at night. Ideally, take them at least 2 hours after you last ate and ½ hour before your next meal. Feed your probiotics with fiber, so ½ hour after taking them have your Ultrainflammx, slippery elm, or something else with a lot of fiber. NOTE: Phase one sets out what you are eating, and each phase builds and adds food on to that base. So you will always be eating and can eat the foods listed above throughout the eight weeks and beyond.

Phase One Tips: Try getting as much of your food as organic and fresh as possible. Remember, we're trying to eliminate chemicals and toxins. If you are using nut milks, be sure you get the unsweetened varieties (and in this phase of the diet do not drink soy, hemp, or rice milk as they are made from legumes or grains). Chew almonds as many times as possible for appetite suppression. Try to get raw nuts – unsalted and unroasted. Be sure to refrigerate them as they can go rancid quickly (rancid or roasted nuts mean their oil is oxidized, which means it will use antioxidants your body would be better off using for, say, keeping cancer cells from spreading). It is ok to add the juice from a lemon or lime to your water and food, and I recommend using them often as since they add great flavor. Bragg’s raw apple cider vinegar is also great. Salad dressings – make your own, or use Bragg's brand. Be careful to avoid Omega 6 oils as much as possible – safflower, sunflower, sesame, and corn contain some of the highest amounts of Omega 6 oils. Salads and salad items (raw veggies) at any restaurant are likely bathed in some kind of preservative and are probably not organic. Be aware of that and try to limit as much as possible –

The Clean Eating Healthy Detox Diet

- 12 -

“There are two great medicines: Diet and Self-control.” - Max Bircher © 2011 fooduciary.com

it's best to make your own fresh, organic salad. Watch out for dairy. It rivals corn for being in everything we eat. It seems like many people think they don't really consume much dairy if they don't drink milk, but trust me – you are likely consuming a lot of dairy without being aware of it. It includes yogurt, butter (if you eat out at all, they are cooking your food with butter [or some oil you really don't want to ingest] – your veggies with butter, your fish with butter, etc). It's hard to completely cut out, so be on the watch for this sneak! Watch out for seasonings and sauces. Try to use store-bought varieties as little as possible (make your own sauces, and with seasonings use single spices, not combination mixes). Read the ingredient lists. I read the ingredient list on my garlic salt only to find out it contained hydrogenated oil (trans fat). I'm not kidding. I was worried I'd find high fructose corn syrup in there, like many sauces and seasonings have. I have no idea why garlic powder needs hydrogenated oils, but it reinforced my habit of reading every label. If you're eating fish and seafood, choose wild-caught over farmed. There's a lot of reasons why wild-caught fish are healthier for you, but just take salmon as an example. Salmon meat is orange, right? Salmon in the wild gets that orange color from consuming seaweed that contain a powerful antioxidant called astaxanthin.

Farmed salmon don't eat any seaweed. In fact, you don't want to know what most farmed fish eat, but for our example here farmed salmon don't get orange coloring from their diet. So why is it orange at the meat counter in your grocery store? Artificial coloring. Farmed salmon will always be colored orange to look like wild-caught salmon. I know – I was horrified when I found that out. I'm really sensitive to chemicals used to preserve and color foods, so I avoid farmed fish, especially salmon, at all costs. Hold off on tomatoes, eggplants, peppers, and other nightshade vegetables for at least the first week if you have RA or any kind of joint pain, then add them back in the second week to see if your body has any adverse reaction. I know many people with RA feel worse when they eat these foods, but they had no negative impact for me. I eat tomatoes like they're going out of style and they haven't affected my joints that I’m aware of. This is not an easy plan to follow, and this first phase is by far the most difficult. Hang in there. Focus on what you CAN eat and being creative with how appealing you can make it rather than focusing on what you can't eat. If you find yourself panicking or really not feeling well, eat a piece of fruit.

The Clean Eating Healthy Detox Diet

- 13 -

“If you can eat anything you want to, what’s the fun in eating anything you want to?” - Tom Hanks © 2011 fooduciary.com

Great Things to Eat in this Phase:

Snacks All nuts: walnuts, pecans, almonds, brazil nuts, hazlenuts, macadamia nuts, cashews (considered nuts at least for this plan), etc. Nuts are great because they provide a lot of protein and they are very portable. Keep them in the fridge or freezer until you're ready to eat them, as raw nuts go rancid fairly quickly. Don't be afraid of fat here – go nuts! Seeds (chia, flax, pumpkin, etc). Seeds provide good energy and fiber. Celery sticks with almond butter (or another nut butter – no peanut butter!). Please buy organic celery and cut it into sticks yourself. I know you'll probably be spending way more time on food prep than you're used to, but I promise you don't want the chemicals in your body that are keeping those pre-cut ones they sell at the grocery store so pristine for so long. Sardines. That's right – these are my best friends on this diet, or off for that matter. They are easily transported and eaten anywhere (we've eaten these in the car and on a bus while traveling, in a mountain meadow while hiking, and even in an airport food court). I'm guessing you're thinking that sardines are gross. I'll be honest – I was so scared to try them. I wrote a post on Fooduciary about what I think are the best sardines and ones

that aren't scary. Boiled Eggs. These are a great standby. Easily transported (keep refrigerated) and eaten. In fact, I'm going to have one right now. I'm in phase one of this diet as I'm typing this, and I just ate lunch but I'm still hungry. Eggs have a lot of protein and that helps satisfy your appetite.

Breakfast Omelet with Sweet Potato Hash Browns

Just like it sounds – a few eggs and tons of veggies (onions, green onions, peppers, etc.) For the hash browns, wrap the sweet potatos in tin foil and bake for 10 minutes. Cube them, then pan fry with a small amount of olive oil until they brown. Sprinkle with cinnamon, nutmeg and salt for a fun flavor.

Green and Red Shake (oh yes – without any fruit!)

Lunch Modified Costa Rica Lasagna Don’t add in beans, rice, or cornmeal. Indian Curry Stew

The Clean Eating Healthy Detox Diet

- 14 -

“Leave your drugs in the chemist’s pot if you can cure the patient with food.” - Hippocrates © 2011 fooduciary.com

Dinner Tuna and Tomato Soup

This one is a standby for us. Empty a can of quality tuna (or salmon or sardines) into a bowl, then poor on top of it a can of V8. Homemade tomato soup would be even better.

Super Salad

How many veggies can you toss into a salad? Add some toasted pumpkin seeds or almond slices. Season with Bragg’s apple cider vinegar.

Dessert (that's right – you're gonna need this!) Chia Tapioca Pudding Just hold off on the agave and berries. Sorry!

My Experience in Phase One:

Hanging In There Following this plan is one of the more difficult things I've done, but it has had the single most rewarding impact on my physical health than anything else to date.

So I understand this can be difficult, and this first phase is by far the most difficult. So hang in there - it only gets better from here. You may find yourself tracking the time since starting this diet the way many parents track the time since their child's birth. For the first several weeks the child is “x” days old. Then the child becomes “x” weeks old. Then the child becomes “x” months old. Finally the child becomes “x” years old like everybody else. During the first phase I was counting days. At any time of the day or night I could tell you exactly what day I was on. That started to fade in the second phase, and by the third phase I was definitely counting just weeks. In the fourth phase I'd have to look at a calendar to remind myself when I was going to be “done.” It takes a lot of work to get yourself to feel full in phase one, but it is worth the effort. You do want to eat as many vegetables as possible, but make sure you get plenty of protein and sweet potatoes (if you need to) to help you get full. I found I had to eat a lot more eggs than I ever would normally, and I made sure I had sweet potatoes in almost every meal – along with a lot of fish. That seems to do the trick for me, and I don't know anyone who gets hungry as often and eats as frequently as I do. As I mentioned, I'm in phase one of the diet as I am typing this.

The Clean Eating Healthy Detox Diet

- 15 -

“Good food is wise medicine.” - Alison Levitt M.D. © 2011 fooduciary.com

I just woke up from a nap to find my husband (who is doing this diet with me again for the second time) eating plate after plate of cabbage. His awesome attempt to shovel more veggies (and I think he may be getting a little sick of nuts . . .). Time to make kimchi! I did get REALLY panicky at the end of Day 4 my first time through. You will inevitably realize over and over and over again throughout the days (mostly just in phase one) what you cannot eat on this diet, as you think of something that sounds good to eat or start to go for something out of habit and then realize it's not on the menu. That happened to me at the end of Day 4 and I just kept thinking of what I couldn't eat and I was so sick of the things I could eat (“I can't cram down any more vegetables!!”) that I really started spiraling down in a panic. On a sheet of instructions from my doctor it said that to help a reaction (detox reaction), “calm down and eat a piece of fruit.” So I did – I ate two prunes. That was the only time and the only way in which I broke this diet at all, but I felt fine about it. I wasn't disappointed with myself because I knew I was honestly doing my very best.

Detoxification Reaction For me phase one started off with a detoxification reaction. This is very common, because the “bad guys” in your gut are dying off (the stuff that was living off refined carbs and especially sugars), and your body has to eliminate them. During

the first week, especially days two through four, I had the flu-like symptoms of fever and body aches. I had night sweats. I frequently had to go to the bathroom. You may experience similar symptoms as well as nausea, vomiting, shakiness, weakness, confusion, brain fog, and itchy skin, rashes, or hives. These symptoms shouldn't last beyond this diet, and they should decrease significantly if not go away altogether after the first phase.

Loss of Energy By the second day I was really starting to feel a lack of energy. I believe it's just from the change in the type of foods I was eating – in phase one, you're eating relatively very few carbohydrates, so your body has less energy. A detoxification reaction can also create a loss of energy. For me the feeling that I had no energy peaked at about Day 5 or 6, and I felt more energy after that. My first time through the diet I decided to hold off on my regular more intense exercise for the first two weeks (light exercise like walking and stretching is highly encouraged) because I felt such a lack of energy. This second time through I'm still working out almost every day, but lighter than my usual routine. Listen to your body. It was an odd experience for me to feel so little energy just as I was feeling such a huge relief from joint pain and stiffness. I was simply too exhausted to radiate the glowing smile and bright eyes that would have been more expressive of how great I

The Clean Eating Healthy Detox Diet

- 16 -

“As for butter versus margarine, I trust cows more than chemists.” - Joan Gussow © 2011 fooduciary.com

was feeling physically and how thrilled I was at the change. But don't worry, that certainly came.

The Turnaround On the plus side, my arthritic stiffness and pain began to dissipate very quickly over those same four days. Neither my husband nor I could believe how quickly and how dramatically I improved. This was very helpful positive reinforcement for continuing our efforts with the diet. However, I kept my skepticism: day five and six would see three separate storms roll in and out of the valley where I lived. Barometric pressure changes are a shoe-in for my joint pain (three storms = six pressure changes), so I thought that if I could weather (no pun intended) the storms with the continued absence of pain, the diet really must be working and it was not a fluke. The storms came and went, and days five and six passed with hardly noticeable pain. I was walking and getting around just fine. Within that first week about ten prescription and over-the-counter medications I had been taking on a daily basis made it to the trash (with many to follow). It was a miracle.

The Clean Eating Healthy Detox Diet

- 17 -

“The human body heals itself & nutrition provides the resources to accomplish the task.” - Roger Williams © 2011 fooduciary.com

Phase 2: Weeks 3 and 4

All foods from Phase 1 are still allowed. What you add in this phase: Fruits: All fruits. Focus on grapefruit, green apples, and berries of all kinds (less sugar).

Phase Two Tips: Eat whole fruits as much as possible. Though fruits naturally have a form of simple sugars called fructose, if you eat the whole fruit (I'm not talking about peels and cores here, people) the fiber from the flesh of the fruit tempers the impact of this sugar in your body and on your blood sugar levels. Fruit juices don't have this fiber so their sugars have much more of a negative impact on your health overall. If you do have fruit juice, make sure it's organic and dilute it with water (either 1/3 water to 2/3 juice or ½ and ½). Your taste buds will have re-set pretty well by now, so don't be surprised if you prefer it diluted. Choose a good fruit juice: make your own, or if you purchase juice make sure it's straight up juice with no added sugars. Some good brands are Knudsen, Odwalla, Bolthouse, Naked, and POM, but ALWAYS check labels – no matter what the product is.

If it has a label, it has to be checked. Watch out for added sugars, colors, and preservatives.

Great Things to Eat in this Phase:

Snacks Apple slices with almond butter Any piece of fruit

Breakfast Green Shake This is easily my most common breakfast, on or off the diet. For a single serving, in your blender cup add two leaves of kale, one stalk of celery, half a zuchinni or cucumber, half a green apple, and about a half-inch slice of ginger root. (Only for personal preference I like to add a pinch of sea salt and a few dashes of cinnamon and nutmeg.) Add enough water to make it blendable and to a consistency of your liking, maybe some ice cubes to make it colder, blend it up, and walla, killer breakfast.

The Clean Eating Healthy Detox Diet

- 18 -

“Whatsoever was the father of a meal, an ill diet was the mother.” - George Herbert © 2011 fooduciary.com

Make these a few days in a row and you’ll see why we love our Blendtec blender so much.

Lunch Fish with Mango Salsa

Dinner Apple Stuffed Acorn Squash

Dessert Add berries to your Chia Tapioca Pudding Fried Bananas

We’re keeping it simple but delicious with this one. Slice the bananas thinly lengthwise. In a skillet, heat two tablespoons of coconut oil. Add bananas, sprinkle with cinnamon. Cook for about 3 to 4 minutes (until they start to become a deep yellow or brown and become more translucent), flip over, sprinkle cinnamon, and brown the other side.

Grilled Pineapple

My Experience in Phase Two:

Hanging In There I've hardly anticipated anything in my life as much as getting to Day 15: the beginning of Phase Two and the Adding of the Fruits. It ranks right up there with how excited I was to go on my honeymoon to Italy. Who knew anyone could get that excited about fruit? What a treat! I was surprised to find out just how much my taste buds had changed. The fruit tasted so sweet to me, and when I tried to drink orange juice that I had diluted by 1/3 with water, I was shocked to find it was still too sweet and I had to water it down quite a bit more.

Detoxification Reaction At the beginning of phase two I experienced another similar detoxification reaction just like I did during the first week of phase one. I had the same symptoms, but this time I actually had them longer. They lasted about 10-11 days – almost the entire phase.

Loss of Energy Happily, I picked up a little energy in this phase (I know – it

The Clean Eating Healthy Detox Diet

- 19 -

“The first wealth is health.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson © 2011 fooduciary.com

seems like it can't get any lower than it does in phase one). Fruits and their natural carbohydrates came to the rescue just in time.

The Results Oddly, I found that I my body doesn't particularly like cantaloupe, even thought my taste buds do. I've always loved cantaloupe, but when I started eating it again in phase two I noticed a slight allergic-type reaction and a slight irritation with my joints. Because I was adding in a lot of fruits at once (looking back, it would have been better to add them in individually, one per day), I did a little detective work to make sure I knew what the problem was. I thought it was the cantaloupe, so I stopped having it at all for a few days, during which I didn't experience any more of the allergic-type symptoms, then I had some again. I had the same results, so I said a very sad good-bye to my orange melon friend and I avoid it to this day. I continued to experience a remission of my arthritic symptoms, and I continued to be astonished at how well I was feeling. The only thing that seemed to get worse was my depression and anxiety symptoms. I have struggled with those symptoms and taken medication for them for many years. By the end of the first week of phase one those symptoms seemed to become aggravated and they continued throughout phase two as well.

The Clean Eating Healthy Detox Diet

- 20 -

“Life is not living, but living in health.” - Martial © 2011 fooduciary.com

Phase 3: Weeks 5 and 6

In addition to what you've already been eating, here's what you add in this phase: Legumes: All legumes, which include beans, lentils, peanuts, peas, soybeans/edamame, and soy milk if you like.

Phase Three Tips: Try some lentils. Neither Brad nor I had ever intentionally tried lentils before this diet, and we found that we really liked them. And they're really healthy for you. Add peanuts in separately to help identify whether any peanut allergy exists. Watch out for Genetically Modified (GMO) foods. Some very common GMO crops are soybeans, corn, oats, wheat, and sugar beets. If you are eating any of these foods or anything with these foods in them, you can bet they're GMO unless it is organic or stated otherwise.

Great Things to Eat in this Phase:

Snacks Edamame Add peanuts to the mix of all those nuts you're eating these days! Hummus

Breakfast Southwest Omelet

Lunch My Favorite Salad

Take your super salad and man it up with beans of your choice.

The Clean Eating Healthy Detox Diet

- 21 -

“He who takes medicine and neglects diet wastes the skill of the physician.” - Chinese Proverb © 2011 fooduciary.com

Dinner Sweet Potato and Lentil Curry Casserole

Dessert Chocolate-dipped Strawberry Shake

My Experience in Phase Three:

Hanging In There By this phase things were getting a little easier for me. At least the blind panic of phase one was gone, and I felt like I was starting to get the hang of this diet. Everything's back in except grains, and even though that's a big one, it's nice to be able to eat everything else.

Detoxification Reaction I didn't experience any detoxification reactions during this phase.

Loss of Energy I continued to pick up a little energy in this phase as well, though I was still definitely noticing the continued absence of grains.

The Results My depression and anxiety symptoms continued to be somewhat aggravated during this phase. On the other hand, my arthritic symptoms continued to be non-existent. The miracle continued, and I relished in each pain-free day and enjoyed new activities.

The Clean Eating Healthy Detox Diet

- 22 -

“I saw few die of hunger; of eating, a hundred thousand.” - Benjamin Franklin © 2011 fooduciary.com

Phase 4: Weeks 7 and 8

What you add in this phase: Whole Grains: This is very important: add in one whole grain every three days, eating it at least a couple times a day. Examples of whole grains are brown rice, corn, whole wheat, rye, buckwheat, and oats. You can also add potatoes in here (I recommend yukons). Tips: Grain allergies are common. Be sure to give yourself a couple days after adding in one grain so you can see how your body responds. As with any food you add back in, stop eating it immediately if you feel any adverse reactions. Continue to watch out for GMO’s (corn, oats).

Great Things to Eat in this Phase: Ok, still no sugar or sweeteners in this phase, but it is game on

for everything else! You will still likely need to prepare most of

your own meals to avoid the sweeteners and other hazardous

chemicals, but here’s some ideas (in case you haven’t already

been obsessing about what you could eat in this phase since Day

2):

• Make your own whole-wheat pizza or bread when you add

wheat

• Get some clean corn tortillas (watch out for sodium

benzoate or other scary preservative) and make the

Sweet Potato Black Bean Enchiladas from Fooduciary’s

web site

• Cook up some yummy steel-cut oats and sprinkle with

ground flax, chia seeds, pumpkins seeds, sliced almonds,

and cinnamon and nutmeg (and of course some

unsweetened, dairy-free milk)

You get the idea. Have fun!

My Experience in Phase Four:

Hanging in There

Congratulations on making it to the final phase! Ok, I know it’s

super tough to do this (being so close to the finish line), but

make sure you space out adding your grains three days apart.

This is really important!

Foods can affect our bodies for three days, and it may take that

long to have a reaction. After all this hard work you’ve done,

you don’t want to be wondering whether you’re reacting to oats

or corn. So take your time.

The Clean Eating Healthy Detox Diet

- 23 -

“To eat is a necessity, but to eat intelligently is an art.” - La Rochefoucauld © 2011 fooduciary.com

I was already pretty sure I am sensitive to gluten, so I added

wheat last. I basically added the grains I thought I wouldn’t

have a problem with first, then I saved the ones I thought might

be troublesome for the end.

Yep, gluten definitely bothers me. Though I already suspected

that, it was helpful to have a “clear” body to be able to feel

what happens when I eat it. Helps me make eating choices going

forward.

Detoxification Reaction

I’m not really having anymore “die-off” detoxification reactions

by this point. I’m watching for adverse reaction to any of the

grains when I add them to see if I might have an allergy /

intolerance / sensitivity.

If you’re still having any detoxification reactions at this point,

they should ease up and disappear during this phase.

Loss of Energy

You really should be getting your energy completely back in this

phase. It may be gradual, or it may kick in similar to when you

added the fruits. In any case, you will hopefully feel more

energy than you did before starting this diet (I’ve known people

to feel much more energy in phase one than they did pre-diet)!

The Results

This is what you get at the end: a cleaned-up gut and a cleaned-

up diet (your taste buds are re-set and the no-good things for

you like sugars will taste more powerful so you will naturally eat

less, while good things for you like veggies will taste better and

you’re now used to eating them). Hopefully you’ve lost

everything you wanted to: headaches, excess weight, irritable

bowels, aches, pains, congestion, asthma, and any other

conditions or symptoms you previously felt resigned to or

hopeless about changing.

That's it! You did it! Time to do some celebrating. What do we eat to do that?

The Clean Eating Healthy Detox Diet

- 24 -

“We never repent of having eaten too little.” - Thomas Jefferson © 2011 fooduciary.com

What Now? Alright, you've made it! You've successfully completed the eight weeks of the Eating Clean Healthy Detox Diet. Hopefully you are enjoying new found health and well-being. If for some reason you still feel some nagging ailments, try removing nuts, soy, eggs, and fish from your diet for at least two weeks and see how you feel. After all your hard work and all the great health you've recovered, you want to be sure you don't lose it again. Make the healthy eating changes you made for this diet a permanent part of the way you eat. There's no sense in going right back to the processed foods and refined grains that got us in trouble in the first place.

Eating for Life Always strive to eat heaps of vegetables every day, trying to make them the biggest player on your dinner plate. As a general rule, it it's refined or heavily processed, has trans-fats, or artificial additives and preservatives, stay away. As you move forward, do your best to limit dairy and gluten (wheat). Both are very inflammatory and take a lot of work to digest. My husband and I never added either dairy or gluten back in to our regular diet habits, but we continue to have fun exploring other flavors and textures that take their place. For animal

protein, fish is the best way to go. We'll always have plenty of salmon in the fridge with smaller amounts of bison and turkey to mix in as well. Most importantly, relax. We're aiming for a way of eating that is sustainable for life. Now that you’ve cleaned out the system and given it a break, your body is much more ready to handle the detoxification and healing processes that it was designed to do; however, don’t overload it so you end up right back where you were before starting this journey. I think if the majority of the time you are eating clean, healthy foods, it's alright if you go out for dinner with your friends and eat something you wouldn't normally. That being said, Brad and I have learned that there are just some things we're not willing to eat because of how they make us feel. To celebrate eating so well the entire time we were on a cruise vacation, we decided on the last day that we'd each indulge in eating one thing we normally wouldn't eat. It was entertaining watching Brad trying to eat his choice: a hot dog. He only got two bites in before he felt it hit his stomach in an oh-not-so-good way. The rest of that hot dog got fed to the fishes as Brad made me promise him I would never let him try to eat a hot dog ever again. (I had a serving of crème brulee and loved it...though I did pay for it with a bit of joint pain.) Brad and I now both know that low-quality, cheap, processed foods (whether at the grocery store or served up at a restaurant) just don't taste good to us anymore and always result in our not feeling well afterward. So we shop at stores

The Clean Eating Healthy Detox Diet

- 25 -

“Give me liberty or… Oooo… a jelly donut!” - Homer Simpson © 2011 fooduciary.com

that sell real food and eat at restaurants that actually cook rather than just reheat what came out of a can (you know who you are, Chili's and Olive Garden). Do we eat desserts? Of course we do! We don't go crazy with them by any means, but it's just so much fun to find cool recipes that use healthy ingredients, bake them up, and be amazed at how good they are. Some of our most favorite are recipes you'll find on Fooduciary, like chocolate brownies, banana bread, and pumpkin pie. And we continue to learn that desserts made with cheaper ingredients – refined sugars and flours – just never taste as good. As you go about life, it's impossible to avoid toxins that aren't good for your body and can throw things off. Any time you feel like your health isn't as great as you'd like it to be, go ahead and repeat this diet to hit the reset button again. Doing it once a year simply as system maintenance (which is what we're doing right now), is also a good idea. I hope through this experience that you've learned that – in the majority of cases – you can control how you feel. You have the power to determine what goes on with your body and what aging can look like for you. And for me, there's nothing better than knowing that I'm in charge of my RA, not the other way around. And as promised, for making it through this guide you’ll receive 10% off any order you place at Fooduciary’s organic food store. Just use the coupon code ‘detox’ during checkout. The great feature about that code is that you can use it as many times as

you’d like. If you like buying in bulk, our store and that code can save you a bunch of money. The power is now in your hands. Stay motivated and informed by reading my posts at Fooduciary.com. You can subscribe to my RSS feed by clicking here. You can also stay in touch with me at our Facebook page: www.facebook.com/fooduciary. Please stay in touch and let me know how you’re doing. I’d love to hear about your journey and your results.

I am not a doctor! Even though a statement made about health or medicine may be accurate, it may not apply to you or your symptoms. The medical information provided in this guide is of a general nature and cannot substitute for the advice of a medical professional. See Fooduciary’s full medical disclosure here.

The Clean Eating Healthy Detox Diet

“The doctor of the future will give no medicine, but will interest his patients in the care of the human frame, in a proper diet, and in the cause and prevention of disease.” - Thomas Edison