What are the vegetables and fruits that can detoxify and cleanse the stomach?

The essence of what we often call “gastric cleansing and detoxification” is to promote intestinal peristalsis, discharge accumulated food residues, and maintain the balance of intestinal microecology. Vegetables and fruits with relatively common daily effects are mainly berries with seeds, high-fiber stems and leafy vegetables, and pome fruits with natural pectin. Don’t believe those exaggerated claims that they can remove “blood toxins” and “intestinal toxins”. They are all gimmicks to collect IQ taxes.

A while ago, I was working on a project and ate takeaways that were heavy in oil and salt for half a month. My belly was so bloated that I couldn't button up my jeans. I tried drinking a famous laxative tea and couldn't straighten my waist. Later, my friend who is a nutritionist told me not to mess around. I ate 2 kiwis with seeds every morning as a snack. At dinner, I replaced half of the white rice with asparagus blanched for 2 minutes and half an apple with the skin. Within a week, I returned to normal bowel movements, and my belly, which had been bulging for a long time, also deflated.

But don’t just copy other people’s experience. There are a lot of controversies on the Internet about this type of fruits and vegetables. Some people say that bananas are a laxative, and some people say that eating them makes them more congested. In fact, they are not suitable for the applicable scenarios: fully ripe bananas with dark spots on the skin are indeed rich in soluble fiber, which can help soften feces. However, unripe green bananas have a very high tannic acid content, which will constrict the intestines and make it harder to defecate the more you eat them.； Some people say that red dragon fruit has a stronger laxative effect than anything else. However, if a friend with a weak spleen and stomach eats half of it on an empty stomach, there is a high probability that he will suffer from diarrhea and light red loose stools. This is not "detoxification", but the cool fruit stimulates the normal reaction of the intestines and easily damages the mucous membrane.

To put it bluntly, these fruits and vegetables can work because the dietary fiber inside them acts as a "small intestinal brush": soluble pectin and oligosaccharides are like soft sponges, which can absorb excess oil and metabolic waste in the intestines, and can also feed the probiotics in the intestines and help maintain the stability of the flora.； Insoluble crude fiber is like a small broom, which can increase the volume of stool and stimulate natural intestinal peristalsis. There is no need to rely on external forces such as drugs or enzymes to urge intestinal motility, and there will naturally be no dependence.

I once had a colleague who ate only lettuce and dragon fruit for three consecutive days in order to quickly cleanse the intestines and lose weight. As a result, he was so hungry that he felt dizzy and became constipated. This is because the intestines do not have enough fat and carbohydrate to provide power, and fiber alone cannot push the residue. On the premise of eating normally, it is enough to add 1-2 kinds of these fruits and vegetables every day. For example, add an extra portion of raw celery segments when ordering takeout at noon, eat a small bowl of blueberries after dinner, or even throw in a few chopped broccoli when making porridge in the morning. Moisturizing the food will silently reduce the burden on the intestines, which is more reliable than any sudden bowel cleansing.

Oh, by the way, if you have irritable bowel syndrome or chronic gastrointestinal problems, don’t blindly follow the trend of eating high-fiber fruits and vegetables. It’s best to ask your doctor for advice first, otherwise it will easily aggravate abdominal pain and bloating.