Juicing, Fasting, and Detoxing for Life

May 5, 2008
After a string of books promoting single-diet cures, “Juice Lady” Calbom (Sleep Away the Pounds
) offers a whole-life program for regaining health in an unhealthy world, along with tips and schedules that make the plan manageable for even the busiest people. Beginning with a questionnaire to determine the toxicity of one's environment, Calbom emphasizes the need for periodic flushes of the body's systems via fasts and cleanses, then maintenance by drinking lots of vegetable juice and smoothies while trying to avoid certain kinds of plastic or the stress and anxiety addressed in a separate chapter on mental and emotional cleansing. A nutritionist, Calbom has a knack for accessible explanations of anatomical science and offers sound recommendations on diet and exercise alongside rhapsodies about the effects of detoxing and juice fasting. Those who are serious about following the full program will appreciate her patience in explaining its components, while casual dieters will cheer the multitude of symptom checklists and the guide to various foods' nutrient content as well as the variety of cleanses she outlines and accompanies with raw vegetable juice, smoothie and salad recipes.