The never-too-late nutrition plan: you can rebuild yourself—no matter how badly you've trashed your body

Men's Fitness, Jan, 2002 by Myatt Murphy

Remember when you spent your weekend nights drinking to oblivion and your summer days burning your body to a crisp in pursuit of a tan? Remember when you could chain-smoke and still play three hours of b-ball? When eating as many hamburgers as possible was considered sport among your friends?

Sure, it was fun to be the local legend at every bar, beach and all-you-can-eat joint within a 15-mile radius of home, but the time comes when you need to rein in your debauchery so you can live long enough to brag about it. Fortunately, your years of youthful hedonism haven't inevitably doomed you to a lifetime of portly regret.

"The good news is that your body adapts to almost every form of stress you put it through, including the toxins most of us put in it over the years," says Susan Kleiner, Ph.D., R.D., nutrition consultant and author of Power Eating. "With enough time and the right amount of rest, your body can reverse almost all of the temporary damage you've done to it."

Once your rebellious days are over, changing your nutritional routine can help your body undo some of the carnage that's already been done to it, and can take some of the pressure off your beaten-down immune system. If you find yourself in one or more of the following profiles, read on to learn how to quit your bad habits cold and start a few new good ones.

THE BEER DRINKER

The Bad News

* "Passing massive amounts of liquid through your body flushes away stored vitamins and nutrients essential for stimulating your body's natural defense systems," says Allan Magaziner, D.O., author of The Complete Idiot's Guide to Living Longer and Healthier. "You may also be depleted of essential minerals critical to muscle contraction, relaxation and growth, including calcium, magnesium, potassium and phosphorus."

* Long-term bottle abuse also impairs your ability to effectively use whatever vitamins you do have in your system, including calcium, leaving your skin blotchy and dry.

* "Another problem with alcohol is that it is a tremendous source of calories, which means people who drink heavily do so instead of eating the same number of calories, leaving most serious alcoholics vitamin-depleted," says Wilkie Wilson, Ph.D., co-author of Buzzed and professor of pharmacology at Duke University Medical Center. Part of the memory damage associated with severe alcoholism is actually a thiamine deficiency, which is why alcoholics are immediately treated with the vitamin if they're hospitalized.

How to fix yourself

* Make sure to choose a multivitamin that includes all the B vitamins. "This reminds the immune system to do its job while giving it the necessary nutrients to do so," says Magaziner.

* Eat nutrient-dense foods rich in vitamins A, C, protein and zinc (all of which revive skin and hair follicles), such as chicken, turkey, citrus fruits, peppers, carrots, squash, broccoli and kale. Also, drinking plenty of water throughout the day will restore your good looks within a few months.

* Taking an antioxidant-rich supplement may counteract the cell damage to the liver and brain caused by free radicals, but that theory remains speculative. "There is active research that shows antioxidants may help minimize this type of damage, but they may not necessarily reverse it," says Wilson.

* For the most part, the liver damage caused by moderate alcohol use is reversible after you quit drinking. Most damage to the brain also tends to reverse itself, unless you have been drinking heavily for a long period of time.

THE SMOKER

The Bad News

* You've read enough warning labels and seen enough Truth.com commercials to know that smoking is a fast pass to lung cancer, heart disease and emphysema.

* Smoking also decreases your lung capacity, while it increases the movement of bile salts from the intestine into the stomach, making your digestive juices more harmful.

How to fix yourself

* Once you stop, the effects of smoking on your digestive system, lungs and heart will eventually diminish over time. However, you should start eating at least six servings of fruits and vegetables a day. Studies have shown that men who regularly eat both can cut their risk of lung cancer by 50 percent.

* Giving up smoking can also mean gaining a few extra pounds as compensation. To avoid this, "break up your daily caloric intake into six or seven smaller meals, compared to three or four larger ones, to help curb binges while keeping your glucose levels even throughout the day," says Kleiner. Small, frequent meals also require less acid for digestion, which will help ease any problems until your digestive system returns to normal functioning.

* Make sure to include foods that are high in complex carbohydrates (such as rice, breads and pasta), which can tie up excess stomach acids and give your stomach a well-deserved break.

* Starting an exercise program is the single most beneficial thing an ex-smoker can do. Why? Regular exercise can produce biochemical changes similar to those caused by nicotine, including enhanced mental sharpness and a greater sense of calm. Exercise generates catecholamines, chemicals that help increase mental alertness, as well as endorphins, which help decrease feelings of anxiety and depression. Burning more calories also keeps your metabolism in high gear, helping to stave off any excess weight that can be brought on by quitting smoking.