10 Best Detox Foods To Fix Your Sluggish System

Did you splurge a little too much this Thanksgiving? Don’t worry, Michele Foley tells Fitsugar.com the 10 best detox foods to get your sluggish system back to normal in no time! 

This Thanksgiving I went a little overboard and am now feeling the urge to eat clean. Since most detox diets are usually calorie-deprivation diets in disguise, I steer clear of them, but I still think that there are natural ways to get your body back on track. Exercise, cutting out alcohol and refined sugars, and eating a healthy diet does wonders. A little extra help doesn't hurt either.

Here are ten healthy foods with natural cleansing properties. Include them in your next meal and get rid of that extra junk left over from the big feast.

Watercress
Think beyond delicate tea sandwiches and throw some peppery watercress into your next salad. It keeps free radicals away from your cells, helps energize cleansing enzymes in the liver, and is a natural diuretic.

Lemon Water
Lemons are a great source of vitamin C, which is known to help the body detox and burn fat. Dr. Frank Lipman recommends drinking water with lemon every morning as a way to alkalize the body and help with digestion.

Dark Leafy Greens
There's a ton of ways to get leafy greens into your diet — eat them raw, throw them into a broth, add them to juices, or sauté them with a touch of olive oil. Leafy greens boost chlorophyll levels in the digestive tract, which helps the body get rid of environmental toxins like smog and herbicides.

Fresh Fruit
The one thing I am eating a lot of right now is fruit; full of vitamins, antioxidants, fiber, and just about any other good thing you can name. After filling your body up with butter and booze over the holidays, I can't think of a better way to make amends than with a big ol' fruit bowl.

Cabbage
Not only is cabbage eaten in many cultures for luck and prosperity around the New Year, it's also known for its liver cleansing properties. Mix cabbage, apples, and caraway for a crisp treat for your palate and your liver.

Artichokes
Numerous studies show that atrichokes promote healthy liver and gallbladder function. They're also loaded with cynarin, which helps increase bile production, prevents indigestion, and stimulates healthy digestion. If you're looking for a natural detox food, artichokes are a major winner.

Beets
When I was having issues with my gallbladder, my doctor told me to load up on beets. Fiber in beets help increase the production of antioxidant enzymes in the liver, which help the liver and gallbladder eliminate bile and other toxic substances from the body.

Ginger and Garlic
Ginger and garlic are good friends to the liver because they help it get rid of free radicals that are built up in the body. Make yourself a healthy stir-fry and don't be shy to season it with these two liver-loving foods.

Green Tea
You definitely want to be drinking a lot of liquids right now, and green tea is a great choice. It's high in catechins — a flavonoid — which speeds up liver activity and increases the production of detoxification enzymes.

Whole Grains
Choosing whole grains over refined grains should be a part of any diet — detox or not. Besides being full of nutrients and antioxidants, they're incredibly high in insoluble fiber, which helps keep you regular. If you're trying to flush the body of toxins, the last thing you need is to be bloated or constipated.