"Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead:" That's how documentary filmmaker and health advocate Joe Cross felt when he began filming that ground-breaking film (for details on "Fat, Sick & Nearly Dead," click here). And Joe was determined to turn around his life by drinking only fresh fruit and vegetable juices for 60 days. Now, from that starting point when he was 100 pounds overweight, forced to take numerous prescription drugs and in pain from an autoimmune disease, Joe has lost the weight, succeeded in losing his need for medications and has regained his enthusiasm for healthy lifestyles. To help spread the word, Dr. Mehmet Oz invited Joe to his May 2 talk show to reveal the three-day weekend juice cleanse that he developed.
You'll be sipping juice for breakfast, mid-morning, lunch, mid-afternoon and pre-dinner. For three days, plan on drinking only juice and eating one meal a day that consists of fruits and vegetables. Dr. Oz emphasizes that although juicing for short periods of time can benefit your body, longer periods of juice cleanses should be done only with the supervision of a physician. And other doctors agree on the potential benefits, such as Dr. Joel Fuhrman, author of "Super Immunity: The Essential Nutrition Guide for Boosting Your Body's Defenses to Live Longer, Stronger, and Disease Free" (click for details). Dr. Fuhrman feels that juicing can be used to jump-start weight loss, retrain your taste buds to savor the pleasures of fruits and vegetables and even help those with hypertension or autoimmune diseases. (Learn more about juice cleanses by clicking here to get "Juice Fasting and Detoxification: Use the Healing Power of Fresh Juice to Feel Young and Look Great" and "The Juicing Bible.")
If you decide to try the three-day cleanse, Joe recommends flushing your body and improving your diet for two days before you start. Drink hot water with lemon and ginger in the morning, and eliminate caffeine, sugar, red meat, dairy and processed foods. Your focus: Fruit, vegetables and lean protein. In addition, sip a cup of herb tea at night. During your cleanse, drink five juices daily, with one meal that consists of only fruits and vegetables. Learn more about short-term juice cleanses by clicking here to get "The 3-Day Cleanse: Drink Fresh Juice, Eat Real Food, and Get Back into Your Skinny Jeans."
