Even if you try to follow a healthy diet and lifestyle, every day, toxins and waste materials accumulate in your cells, compromising your health. Fortunately, help is at hand. Detox and Revitalize will show you how to purify your body from these harmful substances. It is a complete guide to fasting, cleansing, and nutrition that will allow you to detox from daily air, food, and water pollutants; regain your natural vitality; and restore mental clarity and balance. 

Susana Belen is a certified lymphologist and a massage and colon therapist. Ms. Belen founded and directs the We Care Holistic Health Spa in Palm Springs, California, to promote her message of holistic health

Introduction

Part I—Cleansing, Revitalization, and Nutrition
1. Why Detox and Revitalize Your Body?
2. Five Principles of Balanced Health
3. The Seven Most Important Steps for Rejuvenation and Well-Being
4. Colon Detoxification
5. Fasting
6. Maintenance Program
7. Enzymes, Your Fountain of Health
8. Easy Changes for a Healthier Life

Part II—Food Preparation and Recipes
9. Get Organized!
10. Grains, Cereals, and Legumes
11. Healthful Drinks and Smoothies
12. Dressings
13. Salads
14. Soups
15. Main Dishes
16. Healthful Sweets
17. Herbs
18. Home Remedies

Recipe Index
Resource List

Why This Book?

Over the past two decades, I have had extensive exposure to many aspects of the health field and, in recent years, have often been asked to compile a summary guide for a detoxification and revitalization program.

The intention of this concise book is to present basic principles of good eating and self-health care, providing a comprehensive survey helpful to the newcomer and of interest also to those with good previous nutritional background.

This handbook summarizes years of dedicated study of the work of many holistic health educators and practitioners. I am very grateful to have had the opportunity to benefit from their work. My own varied background in the health field—as a Hatha Yoga instructor, certified lymphologist, holistic practitioner, massage and colon therapist, and director and founder of WeCare Holistic Health Center—has enabled me to include a number of tips and techniques not ordinarily found in nutritional sources.

The program described here will seldom conflict with any other therapy or treatment; however, if you are under a doctor’s care, it is best to discuss this program and seek his or her counsel and support. Our program is not intended to supplant qualified health care. Not everyone needs this program, and we are not recommending it as a panacea. But there are many who will benefit from it.

Note: If you suffer from a bleeding bowel or any severe bowel disturbance, it is imperative that your doctor supervise your participation in this program.

My Story

About 20 years ago I experienced some major challenges in my life. I was getting a divorce after many years of marriage and my situation was extremely precarious. I had four children to care for, no family members in this country, no profession, and almost no knowledge of the English language. I went into a panic. My emotional tension was so severe that my bowels stopped moving and I became very constipated. In my search for help, I was fortunate to find a local chiropractor who taught me how to cleanse with juices and gave me a colonic every day. Under his care I made an amazing recovery. By the end of only the second week, I had become a totally different person. Instead of weeping and yelling uncontrollably, I found myself able to speak and listen calmly to my friends and family.

The transformation in my personality was so drastic that I thought to myself, “Fasting is magical—I need to find out more about this.” Led by my curiosity, I began reading any books on the subject I could get my hands on and taking classes and workshops. Gradually I developed the knowledge and skill to become a vegetarian, a yoga instructor, a massage and colon therapist, a certified lymphologist, and a transformational breath instructor.

The more I learned, the more excited I became about putting all this new knowledge into practice in my life. My enthusiasm inspired my friends to know more about a healthier way of life, and they began to organize talks for me to give in their homes to groups of five to ten people. Within a short time, I began to receive letters from the participants thanking me for their improved sense of health and well-being, and expressing appreciation for all they had learned. Many of these people encouraged me to open a place where I could teach them more. One day when I was reading these letters, I decided that opening a health center was truly the way for me to make my best contribution to mankind. At such a center, I could focus on sharing my small knowledge on how to live life without aches and pains, and without medications and drugs such as antidepressants.

The information contained in this book comes from my heart with the desire to help you become happier and healthier through detoxing and revitalizing practices. I present here what I believe and what I practice every day of my life. I pray that this information will help you achieve the same results I have experienced.

–Susana Belen