Author: Gary Jackson

Alcohol Detox Diet: Foods to Help Detox from Alcohol Detoxification

It’s important to note that in some cases, alcohol withdrawal can be dangerous or even life-threatening. That’s why it’s crucial you speak to a healthcare professional before significantly reducing your alcohol consumption. Recovering from a drug addiction requires a strong body and mind. For both to work together, a healthy, well-planned diet will give a former substance user the tools – both mental and physical – needed to repair his or her body and willpower.

Aside from water, it can be beneficial to add hydrating foods into the mix. Fruits like watermelon, strawberries, cantaloupe, peaches, and oranges are all incredibly hydrating. Vegetables like cucumber, lettuce, zucchini, celery, and tomatoes also have high water content. You may have a strong urge to eat sweets because they set off dopamine, the same chemical messenger triggered by some drugs.

Nourish With Vitamins and Minerals

This includes screening for nutritional deficiencies and providing tailored dietary recommendations to prevent adverse outcomes. One of the best ways you can help your gut restore its healthy bacteria is to consume probiotics. Yogurt is one of the most popular sources of probiotics, but other options include fermented foods like kimchi and pickled vegetables, fermented drinks like kombucha, sourdough bread, and tempeh. High-iron foods include shellfish, spinach, organ meat (like liver), legumes, pumpkin seeds, quinoa, turkey, broccoli, tofu, and red meat. It’s important to note that it’s best to avoid excessively sweet drinks like soda, teas, or juices sweetened with added sugars.

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Whole grains also help to promote healthy gut bacteria, which supports liver and kidney health, the body’s two most important detox organs. At The Recovery Village Columbus, we care about helping you feel your best during recovery, ultimately succeeding in your recovery journey. Contact a Recovery Advocate today to learn how we can help you achieve lasting freedom from alcohol addiction. Data on the associations between substance use and body weight were taken from a 2014 study on the body mass index (BMI) of several hundred heroin, morphine, or amphetamine users. Necessary nutrients and examples of dietary sources were provided by a published review of nutrients that are involved in cognitive function.

Whole Grains and High-Fiber Foods

If you find yourself craving sugar during the withdrawal phase, it’s best to seek out healthy, natural alternatives like fruit. Fruit provides your body with other nutrients that are usually absent in foods that are heavy in refined sugars. This is something to be aware of when you pick out alcohol alternatives to drink.

How Nutrients Affect the Body

“Detoxification and Substance Abuse Treat…improvement protocol.” 2015. All of these symptoms can worsen if you are not getting enough water. Water is important for hydration, and you can easily lose too much water through vomiting and diarrhea. Too little could eventually cause serious learning and memory problems, a condition called Wernicke-Korsakoff’s syndrome. Eat beans, peas, lentils, pork, brown rice, and fortified foods like breakfast cereal.

1. Understanding the relationship between nutrition and addiction recovery means understanding the roles nutrients play in the body.
2. Although refined grains like white bread also offer carbohydrates for energy, they are not as healthy an option compared with whole-grain alternatives.
3. While these symptoms will subside with time, introducing certain foods and avoiding others can help alleviate symptoms in the meantime.
4. Chronic alcohol consumption leads to significant nutritional deficiencies, particularly of B vitamins, which are crucial for maintaining a healthy nervous system and preventing anemia.
5. Generally, people who consume more fish report lower levels of depression, though experts have contested the exact fish oil or dietary factor that’s responsible.

Your brain is seeking dopamine, the chemical that makes us feel pleasure. Many things besides alcohol release dopamine in the brain, such as listening to a favorite song, getting a massage or exercising. American Addiction Centers (AAC) is committed to delivering original, truthful, accurate, unbiased, and medically current information.

Experimenting within the bounds of healthy foods is one of the best ways to fuel your recovery. If you’ve ever found yourself licking the salt off your fingers after you finish a bag of potato chips, you know how satisfying salt can be. But food high in sodium can lead to a variety of health problems, including weight gain, high cholesterol, and blood pressure. And that’s not to mention their tendency to make us feel depressed or sluggish after eating them.

Some of the most common withdrawal symptoms include anxiety, nausea, insomnia, and shakes. Other symptoms, like seizures and hallucinations, can be more severe and even life-threatening. That’s why it’s vital for your safety that you consult a medical professional before you stop drinking. A well-balanced diet is important to build up your vitamin and nutrient stores and keep you healthy during the recovery process. A healthy, balanced diet includes plenty of fruits and vegetables, lean sources of protein like fish and poultry, whole grains, nuts, beans and low-fat dairy. Fish, nuts and vegetable oils can also support health by adding important fatty acids into the diet.