Juice Fasting Q & A

Dear Sproutman: I am not clear on how to use the pineapple and grapefruit. —Rhona
Pineapple is juiced by itself. You can buy it whole with the skin or cored (without the skin if your market offers that).
Grapefruit is juiced using a citrus juicer (easiest method). It can be juiced alone or as the main ingredient in my “liver cleanse” recipe.

Dear Sproutman: The psyllium and the flax should not be together right? But should they be taken each day? Is the order of consumption important? —Kristine
It’s either psyllium seed powder or ground flaxseed meal. Both serve the same purpose. Flaxseed is more popular and widely available. Psyllium is more potent. It takes less of it to form a thick mucilage. Add these to coconut water or prune juice or another bottled juice of your choice. Don’t mix these with fresh squeezed fruit or vegetable juice. It would be a waste of good nutrition. And take them once or twice per day. 16-32 ounces total. Time of day for taking these drinks is optional. It’s a matter of personal preference. And if you need a day off, that’s okay too.

Dear Sproutman: What about teas such as Smooth Move (Traditional  Medicinals) and Get Regular (Yogi) to keep the system going? —Joy
All these teas are great. Including the ones that are designed for cleansing the liver and even for fasting. They are all good but no special teas are required. Choose teas according to your taste and preference.

Dear Sproutman: I am feeling like I am fighting a bladder infection or something. I’ve been taking something from the health food store homeopathics. Will I be able to do the fast or the milder modified version like the green smoothie cleanse that you are doing in February? Or would the cleanse help me get rid of the problem? —Carolyn
A juice cleanse is actually really good timing for a bladder infection. Flushing your urinary tract with distilled or reverse osmosis water—or any water if you can’t manage that—will lower the bacteria population. Once the counts are reduced, it is much easier to fight. Cranberry juice, preferably unsweetened and also lots of vitamin C from juices such as grapefruit and lemon, or from supplements is ideal. Cranberry contains a tannin that stops bacteria from adhering to the bladder walls. Thus, they can’t build up as much. And since we are emphasizing probiotics (the good bacteria that fight the bad guys) in this cleanse, that is yet another plus for you to consider. Please don’t resort to commonly recommended antibiotics like amoxicillin. They can be part of the problem. They kill off the friendly bacteria that are keeping the e-coli populations down. E-coli is harmless in your intestines but bad when it makes its way into the vaginal area and from there into the bladder. We don’t know that that is the cause here, but it is a very common pathway for causing bladder infections.