Raw carrot salad for improving your digestion, detox, and hormones

What if I told you that you can take a big step towards improving your gut and hormone health by using nothing more than a simple and inexpensive raw carrot salad?

And what if I said this simple recipe has the ability to fight H pylori and Candida, remove toxins from your gut, whilst helping to mop up excess and unwanted hormones – especially oestrogen – to help balance your hormones?

Introducing the amazing raw carrot salad

I always eat 1-2 raw carrot salads per day.

I’ll give you the recipe and method for using this excellent little recipe below.

It’s pretty simple and involves grating (or shredding) a medium sized carrot, then mixing it with apple cider vinegar, a pinch of salt and either some coconut or olive oil.

First, let me explain the benefits of using this recipe.

Benefits of a regularly eating a raw carrot salad

Raw carrot salad benefit #1

Many years ago I learned from Doug Kaufmann, author of The Fungus Link, that raw carrot has anti-fungal properties and can be used to fight Candida and other types of yeast and fungi that often overgrow in the gut.

I already knew that various fatty acids in coconut oil – lauric acid and caprylic acid, for example – have anti-microbial properties.

Lauric acid, for example, is known for its ability to fight H pylori.

Caprylic acid is great for knocking out yeasts, fungi and parasites.

Olive oil contains polyphenols, and I discuss these substances in The H Pylori Diet as they have the ability to inhibit H pylori.

The raw carrot salad contains raw carrot and either or both of coconut oil and olive oil, so it’s a great little recipe for busting up bad bugs in your gut.

Raw carrot salad benefit #2

Raw carrots are a great source of fibre.

Fibre traps bacteria – especially the bad guys – and escorts them out of your digestive system when you poop.

Fibre also traps toxins that are produced not only by the bad bugs, but also your good ones.

These toxins have long names like endotoxin and lipopolysaccharides but don’t worry, we’ll just use a three letter abbreviation, which is LPS.

LPS is produced by some bacteria and it can be highly toxic.

It can cause inflammation in your digestive system, and leak through into your blood where it can begin to trigger allergies, inflammation, pain and other symptoms elsewhere in your body.

LPS can interfere with energy production and nerve function leading to a vast array of symptoms that may range from fibromyalgia to depression to a dodgy memory.

A carrot salad can fight the bacteria that make LPS, while at the same time binding to the toxins before they have a chance to cause problems.

Raw carrot salad benefit #3

As you’re aware, fibre is important for keeping your bowel moving.

Optimising elimination (bowel movements) is absolutely critical if you want to get rid of bad bugs, have a healthy digestive system, and have a healthy detoxification system.

A raw carrot salad or two per day provides plenty of fibre to help your bowel move freely.

Raw carrot salad benefit #4

When you make your raw carrot salad you can, if you like, add some apple cider vinegar.

Apple cider vinegar can be super-helpful.

Back in about 2002, I learned from Doug Kaufmann’s book that apple cider vinegar has anti-fungal properties and is great for fighting Candida.

Another possible benefit of using apple cider vinegar is that it’s quite acidic.

As such, it can boost your ability to digest protein if you have one or more teaspoons with meals.

Some people find that their heartburn, bloating and other digestive symptoms improve when they use a little apple cider vinegar with meals.

Raw carrot salad benefit #5

As well as providing benefit to your digestive system, eating a raw carrot salad each day can assist in the maintenance of a healthy hormonal balance.

We frequently see in our clients “abnormal” hormone balance where oestrogen (spelled “estrogen” in some countries) levels are too high relative to other hormones like progesterone in women and testosterone in men.

“Oestrogen dominance” is a condition that can lead to many problems:

• Premenstrual syndrome (PMS)
• Menopausal problems
• Fatigue
• Mood imbalances
• Sleep problems
• Bloating
• Water retention
• Weight gain (in men and women)
• Breast growth in men (“man boobs”)
• Cancers, including breast and prostate

I won’t go into detail about how oestrogen dominance develops in this article, but loosely speaking it’s a combination of:

• Stress
• Environmental toxins like plastics and pesticides
• Hormone replacement therapy (HRT)
• Chemical contraceptives such as the pill
• Over consumption of oestrogen boosting foods like polyunsaturated oils and soy
• Alcohol consumption
• Liver problems that prevent the proper detoxification of oestrogen
• Constipation

According to Ray Peat, PhD, from whom I learned about the raw carrot salad, carrot fibres are adept at trapping oestrogens in the gut so they’re successfully eliminated.

He found that women who ate a raw carrot each day consistently had healthier oestrogen profiles than those who didn’t, and also lost weight!

Raw carrot salad – the ingredients

For a single carrot salad that feeds one person, you will need:

• One medium sized carrot, peeled
• 1/8 – 1/4 tsp salt (I use Morton’s Pickling Salt as it’s pure)
• Organic apple cider vinegar (anywhere between 1-4 teaspoons)
• 1-2tsp coconut oil, or more if you choose (heat slightly in a pan for easier mixing)
• 1-2tsp olive oil, or more if you choose

You can adapt the quantities for your individual taste.

You don’t necessarily have to use both coconut and olive oils – one or the other is fine.

Be aware that too much apple cider vinegar can cause burning and irritation in some people’s stomach, so start with small amounts and see how you get on.

Incidentally, adding a small amount of salt is excellent for helping with blood sugar regulation. I recommend you add

Raw carrot salad – the method

Preparing your raw carrot salad couldn’t be simpler:

• Peel your carrot
• Grate or shred it
• Mix in your salt, apple cider vinegar and oil

Voila!

That’s all there is to it.

How to use your raw carrot salad

The raw carrot salad can be used as a snack, or as part of a main meal.

I personally feel it works best as a standalone snack.

I like to eat it first thing in a morning before breakfast, and as a mid morning snack.

How NOT to use a raw carrot salad

I don’t tend to eat the raw carrot salad in the afternoon.

I don’t recommend eating more than two per day because you can overload on beta carotene.

Whilst beta carotene is an important nutrient, some people have a hard time converting beta carotene into vitamin A.

In fact, a study done more than fifteen years ago showed that about 50% of us can’t actually convert beta carotene into vitamin A properly.

Yellowing of the skin and nails can happen if you eat too much beta carotene, and I’ve seen this happen in people who took too many beta carotene supplements.

A couple of carrots per day won’t cause these problems, but don’t overdo it.

A final “Pro Tip” regarding your raw carrot salad

If you’re in a rush, you can just eat a raw carrot.

The oils, salt and apple cider vinegar in the carrot salad help but you can get away with just eating a raw carrot if your schedule won’t allow you to prepare the whole shebang!

What to expect from your raw carrot salad

The carrot salad recipe is fantastic, but it’s not a miracle cure.

If you have selection of unpleasant digestive or hormonal symptoms eating a carrot salad each day will help, but it’s not going to provide the magic bullet cure so many people are looking for.

For the carrot salad to work best, you’re going to need to alter your diet and remove irritating and toxic foods.

Much of the time, just following the guidelines I present in the H pylori diet does the trick.

In some cases – especially if you’ve felt unwell for a while – you’re also going to need to figure out which “bad bugs” you have in your gut and how to properly rid yourself of them.

The carrot salad will help fight bad bugs, but on its own it can’t dispose of all of them.

It can be really helpful to run a home stool test to figure out which bad bugs you have – perhaps there’s an irritating critter in there that the carrot salad is powerless to combat, and maybe, just maybe, the stool test is the answer you’re looking for.

Now it’s Your Turn!

Let us know how you get on with your raw carrot salads, and do inform us if you feel better as a result of this simple recipe!

As always, all comments are welcome!