3-Step Program Pledges To End Chronic Pain

STUDIO CITY (CBSLA.com) — Vicky Vlachonis, pain expert and author of "The Body Doesn't Lie" visited the KCAL9 studios Thursday to share tips and recipes that can reduce pain when it comes to food and our body.

In the book, Vicky shows readers how to locate the source of our pain, understand its origin and manifestation in the body, and then let it go for good, using a holistic approach that includes easy-to-implement approaches to diet, exercise, and emotional well-being.

Liver Flush Smoothie

Mix in a blender:
Juice of 1 grapefruit
Juice of 1 lemon
½ cup olive oil
1 clove garlic
2 to 3 slices ginger

Every ingredient in the Liver Flush Smoothie has its own anti-inflammatory power:

• Grapefruit has lycopene, an antioxidant that can tamp down inflammation.
• Lemon has numerous anti-inflammatory actions
• Extra-virgin olive oil contains a recently discovered antioxidant called oleocanthal, which has anti-inflammatory properties similar to ibuprofen.
• Garlic contains sulfur compounds that help the liver with detoxifying.
• Ginger, a potent anti-inflammatory and blood thinner, protects the liver by preventing cholesterol absorption.

Drink the Liver Flush Smoothie first thing in the morning, right after your Morning Glory warm water with lemon. Follow with another large glass of water. Then finish the rest of the Morning Glory ritual. Follow that (during these Liver Flush days) with a cup of hot water or hot liver-cleansing tea. During the day, continue to drink as many cups of such tea as desired:

• Fennel tea
• Nettle tea
• Peppermint-leaf tea
• Anise tea
• Green tea or jasmine tea

You may add lemon to these, but try to avoid honey until after the cleanse.

The Liver Flush will help rid your body not just of food toxins but of emotional toxins as well. Often before people start the Positive Feedback program, they feel a tremendous amount of unresolved anger; as a result, they feel hot and sweaty, and they shout all the time. The Liver Flush will help you focus, forgive, and let go of anger.

The 3-day Liver Flush

The aim of the Liver Flush is to cleanse the body and allow the immune system to heal. The cleanse, or detoxification, is an age-old process that's a part of many cultural and religious traditions. The premise is simple: When we stop eating for a significant period of time, the body has time to heal itself naturally. The amount and type of foods in the standard American diet overwhelm the body's resources and put us in a state of constant digestive processing. We're born with powerful self-healing capabilities, but for many us, the body literally doesn't have the time or energy to do the necessary healing work. With this liver cleanse, we provide the body the time and nutrients to flush out all the toxins and restore natural balance.

This is a fail-safe and important regulatory process. When my patients are in pain and showing some of the symptoms of toxic overload (such as extra weight gain, puffy eyes, irritability, blotchy skin), I advise them to just drink water and have no food for the remainder of the day. The next day, they inevitably feel much better. No medication necessary! The Liver Flush is designed as a more livable way to get that important cleansing done over a three-day period.

Before we turn to specifics of each meal during the Liver Flush, let's talk about water. The word "flush" implies water—and rightly so. You'll want to drink eight to ten glasses of water over the course of the day.

Sweet Potato Mash
SERVES 4

3 cups sweet potatoes
1 handful cilantro, finely chopped
2 teaspoons fresh grated ginger
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 sprig coriander (optional)
Preheat the oven to 400˚F. Place the sweet potatoes on a baking tray and bake for 1 hour. Remove the potatoes and set aside for 15 minutes to cool. Split potatoes in half with a knife and scoop out the flesh into a mixing bowl with the cilantro, ginger, and olive oil. Mix well until the consistency of the mash is to the desired smoothness. Serve with a drizzle of olive oil and a sprig of coriander (if desired).

Pumpkin (or Sweet Potato) Soup
SERVES 4

4 cups pumpkin, peeled, seeded, and chopped (or 3 small sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped)
1 cup red pepper, seeded and chopped
1 cup zucchini, chopped
1 cup yellow onions, chopped
½ cup celery with stem, chopped
6 to 7 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
½ cup toasted pumpkin seeds
1 cup crumbled goat cheese (or hard cheese)
2 teaspoons fresh grated ginger

Place the chopped pumpkin (or sweet potato), zucchini, onions and celery in a large soup pot and add the vegetable stock until at least half the vegetables are covered. Bring the broth to a boil then let simmer over low heat for 30 minutes. Turn off the heat and let the soup cool to room temperature before pureeing vegetable and broth in a blender. Add 2 to 3 tablespoons of olive oil to the pureed mixture and return the soup to the pot and let simmer for 15 minutes before serving in individual soup bowls. Top each serving with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and the pumpkin seeds, crumbled cheese, and ginger.