5 Diet Tips That Will Help with Addiction Recovery

Recovering from substance abuse takes a lot more time than developing the habit. When ingested during substance abuse, toxins seriously harm the brain as they interfere with the brain’s normal functioning. In addition to destroying the lever, they also weaken other internal organs. Therefore, restoring their normal health and vitality is a time-taking process.

Why is a healthy diet important for recovery?

Diet can play an important role in rejuvenating these organs and bringing them back to normal functioning. It can restore the stable state of homeostasis to increase life and remove cravings and other adverse impacts of stopping the use of the drug. Healthy eating can help you regain your balance and speed up your journey towards the complete restoration of your health.

The use of drugs can alter many vital functions in the body; for instance, it can hamper its ability to process vitamins and minerals. It also implies that many essential nutrients such as potassium and niacin pass through the body without assimilating. Other drugs increase the blood sugar levels in your body, causing other medical illnesses such as developing stage-two diabetes or even going into a diabetic coma.

Owning to the importance of food and nutrition in drug recovery, many top-notch treatment centers like Delphi Health Group have dedicated nutritional programs and diet plans to help the drug user in the recovery process. These centers are working to ensure the victim receives individualized care and the right help and guidance to help heal their body. These nutritional therapy programs are administered in combination with other treatments to provide a holistic action plan. Patients going there frequently receive tips to improve their eating habits. If you know someone recovering from substance abuse, below are some diet tips to help them recover from addiction.

1. Keep your body adequately hydrated

Substance abuse can cause an imbalance in you by which you might not feel like drinking anything. Therefore, dehydration is one of the health problems one can develop during substance abuse. Without proper water levels in the body, vital systems struggle to support proper functioning. Dehydration may cause you to have dry lips and mouth, dizziness, infrequent urination, and the likes. More devastating symptoms occur due to low electrolytes delivery and lowered blood volume, causing a lack of oxygen, seizures, and renal failures.

It is only possible to cure acute dehydration impacts with ample fluid intake during the recovery phase. Make sure to drink a lot of water, even if you don’t feel like it. You must know that your body needs this water to recover, and going without it can only delay the recovery process.

2. Add the nutrients that your body lack

Drug addiction may cause you to consume fats and sugars-rich foods in unhealthy amounts. Make sure your diet plan for addiction recovery includes foods that replenish your body with essential nutrients it is lacking.

Certain nutrients impact or strengthen certain bodily functions and organs more than others. Also, some organs are affected more by substance abuse, so add foods that heal these organs. If you are not sure, you can undergo a blood panel procedure with your doctor and see what nutrients are lacking in your blood. By following a nutritional roadmap, you will meet your newly set dietary goals.

3. Increase niacin to improve nervous system

Niacin is important nutrition that prevents diarrhea, mental confusion, and skin irritation. Alcohol is the main reason that significantly reduces the level of niacin in the body. However, other mind-altering substances can interfere to reduce its supply in the body. Proper levels of niacin in the body can improve cardiovascular health, fight liver disease caused due to alcohol consumption, improve the functioning of the nervous system, provide more antioxidants to fight off free radicals, and improve metabolism, to name a few. Since niacin does not store in the body for extended periods, you must regularly consume food such as fish, beef, chicken that contain niacin.

4. Potassium for proper transmission of signals to nerves

Another nutrient food that can help you recover is potassium and foods containing it. Banana is one of the readily available foods containing abundant potassium. Potassium regulates the transmission of signals to nerves and the level of fluids. Other potassium-rich foods include cooked spinach, cucumbers, and broccoli.

5. Include thiamin to improve heart health

Thiamine strengthens your heart, improves muscle function, and regulates blood sugar levels. Unlike other nutrients, you cannot detect thiamine levels through a blood test; therefore, the only way is to look at the symptoms. Reducing thiamine levels results in poor memory, improper sleep, and muscle cramps. You can replenish your body with thiamine by including whole drained food sources such as bread, oatmeal, etc.

Conclusion

The recovery process from substance abuse is gradual, but one can speed it up by including the right food in their diet. These foods provide essential nutrients to the body, strengthening its functions and healing the organs. Apart from a healthy diet, someone recovering from addiction must include plenty of water to keep the body hydrated. In addition, a hydrated body is more fortified to fight the negative impacts of drug abuse and toxins in the body.