Two months ago, I provided two options for liquid cleansing. One option involved fresh juicing and soup broth. The other was the Lemonade Cleanse adapted from the late Stanley Burroughs. For those of you who have experienced one or both of those liquid cleanses, you are now ready to consider a type of liquid cleanse that more deeply brings reversal of diseases: the water-only cleanse. This cleanse is also known as “water fasting,” because you don’t consume any calories—just water for at least 3 to 14 days, or longer.

For those who are experienced in liquid cleansing—the effects of water fasting are even more profound! Let me give you some tips on water fasting. It is done just as the other two versions of liquid cleansing explained previously. For example, water fasting must also be preceded by two days of “pre-cleanse” foods to prepare your body. And it must also be followed by two or more “post-cleanse” foods to ease into solids again. The only difference is that the only liquid you consume in water fasting is water.

This may sound as if you are starving yourself—but in reality, the opposite is true. Water fasting allows your body to release unwanted stored chemicals, quiets your immune system if inflamed, and normalizes your metabolism. Actually, water fasting is quite common in the animal kingdom. Animals know to fast instinctively when sick, and wild animals instinctively know which herbs to seek out for their cure.

In general, Americans carry around excess energy stores in their body fat and organs. And when you allow for a congested metabolic state to develop from eating unhealthy foods and being exposed over time to chemicals and pollutants, you become much like the Los Angeles freeways during rush hour. Your blood flow, cell membrane receptor function, and even your brain chemistry s-l-o-w-s down like a massive citywide traffic jam. By water fasting, you essentially remove 90 percent of the cars creating the traffic jam so nutrients can freely flow again.

The cells of nearly every tissue of your body undergo a molecular change when you liquid cleanse. You’ll release unneeded material that has accumulated in your system over months—even years. These unneeded molecules that you’ll wash away are from chemical food additives, cosmetics, deodorants, and their metabolites. These molecules act on the body much like microbial invaders during an infection. In an infection, your immune system recognizes the invaders and mounts an immune response resulting in diarrhea, vomiting, sweating, fever, cough, congestion and other methods to fight off the invading organism and restore your health. But with a dietary cleanse, the waste molecules introduced over the years are released from various tissue cells, with far less severe symptoms than in an acute attack of the flu.

The late Dr. Herbert Shelton (1928-1981) is credited for spreading the news about the success of water fasting in reversing disease. Dr. Shelton is reported to have overseen over 25,000 patients who fasted from three to more than 60 days. According to Dr. Shelton, “the sick get well, the well get better, and all gain the priceless knowledge needed to stay well.”

Thanks to Dr. Shelton, today water fasting is known in the medical community to be safe and effective. From reversing anxiety, depression and neurosis… to lowering high blood pressure and many illnesses in between, water fasting has had astonishing results. One Japanese clinic achieved an 87 percent success rate in treating psychosomatic disease through water fasting, as reported in a 1979 issue of the journal Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics.

For lowering blood pressure, water fasting provides dramatic results. In a 2001 study published in the Journal of Manipulative Physiological Therapy, researchers measured blood pressure in 174 patients who drank only water for an average of 10.5 days… followed by a seven-day re-introduction of food using a vegan diet. The most impressive results occurred among those with systolic blood pressure greater than 180 mg Hg (normal is below 140) and with diastolic blood pressure greater than 110 mg Hg (normal is below 90). On average, among this group there was an amazing reduction of blood pressure by 60 mm Hg systolic and 17 mm Hg diastolic, after seven days of eating the vegan diet. And all who entered the study on blood pressure medication, successfully discontinued use with no adverse effects!

Here’s what water fasting will do for your body:

• Fasting causes rapid weight loss with little or no hunger. After the third fast day, going without food becomes quite easy.
• Fasting causes detoxification, breaking down fat reserves and mobilizing stored toxins to be eliminated.
• Fasting allows the digestive system to rest.
• Fasting begins to dramatically resolve inflammatory processes, including painful arthritic conditions.
• Fasting quiets down allergic reactions, such as asthma and hay fever.
• Fasting dries up abnormal fluid accumulations such as leg edema.
• Fasting lowers high blood pressure as mentioned earlier.
• Fasting makes it easy to overcome bad habits and addictions.
• Fasting clears the skin. Sometimes skin eruptions will worsen during the fast and then the skin clears after several days of fasting.
• Fasting wakes up your taste buds and interest in wholesome natural foods.
• Fasting prepares you for a lifestyle of consuming whole foods.
• Fasting shrinks the stomach and prepares you to consume the normal amount of food that will nourish you rather than having to eat large amounts of food to feel nourished.

It is true that with cleansing you may experience loose stools; sweating; increased urination; mild weakness or even a fruity breath. All these are normal signs of cleansing. Above all, drink plenty of fluids with minerals to stay well-hydrated during a liquid cleanse! Mineral replacement during a water cleanse can be done by purchasing a packet of mineral replacement powder from your local health food store to mix in water twice daily.

I have enjoyed hearing from patients who experience increased energy levels, decreased joint pain, clearer skin, and no more headaches! Water fasting works to treat allergies, stop weight-gain, improve blood pressure, reduce depression or anxiety, and increase enthusiasm for life. By means of this natural cleansing process, you push out the unhealthy toxins… and begin to enjoy true health!