This is my entry to the second week of the medicinal cooking collective challenge. This week we are focusing on the "Wood" Element, which is good for the liver and the gallbladder. According to Chinese medicine, you should consume "green" food to help improve the liver and gallbladder.
Our liver is responsible for flushing toxins out of the body. It is working hard everyday to keep us balanced. The liver is like a processing center. One of the responsibilities of our liver is to neutralize anything harmful that enters it. We encounter all kinds of toxins in our daily lives from pesticides, pharmaceutical drugs, heavy metals, viruses, chlorine, and even plastic. Our liver must work hard to convert all the unsafe toxins we encounter into something that the body can eliminate. The liver stores toxins if it can not effectively eliminate them. After a while, our liver can get clogged and become stagnant.
When your liver is sluggish, it does a poor job of flushing toxins out of your system. The liver's sluggish performance can lead to the lowering of your stomach's hydrochloric acid and create toxicity in your intestinal tract. This in turn can result in some food not being fully digested and lead to it putrefying in the intestinal tract. So to address liver health, we also must address gut health.
Knowledge is Power When It Comes to Healing
I am a big believer in plant powers. I believe in the healing powers of raw fruits & vegetables. Kale helps to gently cleanse the liver. Spinach is incredible for the liver and gallbladder. However, the superstar here is celery.
After reading the book Medical Medium: Secrets Behind Chronic and Mystery Illness and How to Finally Heal. I learned that
Celery is one of the most powerful anti-inflammatory foods, because it starves unproductive bacteria, yeast, mold, fungus, and viruses that are present in the body and flushes their toxins and debris out of the intestinal tract and liver.
Celery juice is most powerful when you drink it solo. While it’s great to consume other green juices or vegetables juices and add in items like spinach, kale, parsley, cilantro, or apples, drink those mixed juices at a different time than your straight celery juice. These blends function differently than what I’m recommending as your greatest tool for recovering your health: pure celery juice taken on an empty stomach. If you drink your celery juice first thing in the morning, it will also strengthen your digestion of foods you eat for the rest of the day.
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My cat Tiger likes to watch me drink celery juice every morning
16 oz of Pure Celery Juice on an Empty Stomach, First Thing in the Morning
My husband used to have terrible digestive issues. The majority of fresh vegetables and fruits would bother his stomach, usually resulting in serious bloating and cramps. He literally couldn't eat one leaf of basil without getting a bad case of acid reflux. A bite of sweet melon would give him almost instant pain in the tummy. He was forced to eliminate so many important, good for you foods because they caused him so much discomfort. Since it seemed there was no natural way to relieve his symptoms, eliminating the problem foods was really the only answer. That is until I told him about the power of pure celery juice and how it helps rebuild hydrochloric acid in the gut.
The first step in addressing virtually any gut health issue is to rebuild your stomach's supply of hydrochloric acid and strengthen your digestive system.
First thing we changed in our daily routine was to stop drinking coffee in the morning. Let me add to that, we stopped drinking coffee entirely. It was immediately replaced with 16 oz of freshly juiced, pure celery juice on an empty stomach. Sure, after years of programing our bodies to be ready for that rocket blast of caffeine, it was not the easiest thing to just stop. However, the promise of eating real food without the discomfort of a gassy stomach, made the elimination of coffee easier. And now, as soon as we wake, our bodies are being reprogrammed. But this time, it's with nutrients that will help build and replace the parts of us that have been misused and unfortunately abused. And celery juice does give quite the boost of energy to get you ready for your day.
My husband can now eat 10-20 fresh basil leaves with his salads or sandwiches with no gas or acid reflux. I remember watching him eat one spoonful of watermelon in the past and bloating up within a few minutes. He can now eat any kind of organic melon with rarely a problematic interaction occurring. I can honestly say it is the most dramatic change I have ever seen in what one could not eat to what one can. He wasn't even able to eat a banana before, now eats 2-3 a day.
16 oz of pure celery juice on an empty stomach first thing in the morning is one of the most profound ways of restoring digestive health and cleanse the liver. Pure celery juice is one of the greatest healing tonics of all time.
Do not be derailed by the simplicity of pure celery juice. This works because celery contains unique sodium compositions and these mineral salts are bonded with many bioactive trace minerals and nutrients. And overtime, the mineral salts, minerals, and nutrients have the ability to completely restore your stomach's hydrochloric acid.
Here is How to Do It
- Wash one bunch of organic celery in the morning before you consume anything while your stomach is still empty. (Anything else in your stomach will disrupt the effect of celery juice)
- Juice the organic celery.
- Drink the fresh celery juice immediately before it can oxidize.
(Wait 15 minutes before you eat or drink anything else)
I know my submission is a bit unusual. To me, the best medicine are plants in their purest form. We have been doing this every morning for the last nine months and have personally experienced the amazing healing power of pure celery juice. I hope you will consider giving it a try.
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