A: Detoxification is here to stay, and is an important component of maintaining good health.
In fact, detoxification is key to health. Many problems with detoxification are some of the main causes of illness. Throughout history almost every culture has relied on the natural cleansing power of herbs and other botanicals to remove toxins from the body and restore vibrant health and energy. Ancient text describes laxative herbs, diuretics, sweat inducing herbs, and blood cleansers to expel toxins and waste.
What does detox do?
Terminology matters, internal cleansing usually refers to the colon while detoxification refers to cleaning the liver, kidneys, blood and lymph.
Detoxification should not be confused with weight loss, they are not the same. Weight loss is for losing excess fat and reducing weight. Detoxification is aimed at cleansing the organs of elimination.
The digestive system is the main system in the body that must be working well for you to be healthy. If the digestive system is compromised, it cannot detoxify the body and it cannot feed all of the other systems the vitamin and minerals that they need. This results in a build up of toxins and lack of nutrition.
The liver is the body's primary detoxification organ. Our liver is an average of 4 pounds, and manufactures over 13,000 chemicals, manages over 2,000 enzymes, filters 100gallons of blood daily, and produces 1 quart of bile each day. That's Amazing!
Today's environment is toxic.
So just by living on planet earth most of us become toxic in some way through environmental exposure, foods that contain colorings, flavorings, sweeteners, antibiotics, pesticides, herbicides, xenoestrogens in plastics, and heavy metals, and exposure to household items. Over time the organs of elimination become overworked and inefficient causing toxins to accumulate and increase in tissues. When this happens, this can interfere with the optimal functioning of our organ systems, hormone balance and detoxification rate which leads to lowered immune function and disease.
Detoxification is a natural everyday process of the body. It includes breathing, sweating, filtration, & elimination.
It is not recommended that a person new to natural medicine and therapies begin their journey with a detox. When done too aggressively, the process can lead to headaches, fatigue, constipation, flu-like symptoms, & muscle aches.
Listed below are ten daily suggestions to follow that will help your system detoxify gently on it own.
- Drink plenty of clean water, at least eight to ten glasses of filtered water a day.
- Keep your bowels moving, at least once or twice a day. And if you can't get going, then you need some help and this can include taking two tablespoons of ground flax seeds, taking acidophilus and extra magnesium capsules in the form of magnesium citrate. If you have any chronic diseases or problems you have to be careful about taking supplements, you should work with your doctor.
- You should also eat organic produce and animal products to eliminate the toxins in our food.
- You should eat eight to ten servings of colorful fruits and vegetables and specifically include, every day, the family of the cruciferous vegetables, broccoli, collards, kale, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, as well as the garlic family, garlic and onions, which help increase sulfur in the body and help detoxification. See Dr. Purcell's fantastic you tube episode on cooking Kale chips. Ummmmgood.
- Avoid stimulants, sedatives and drugs, such as caffeine, nicotine, and try to reduce alcohol intake.
- Exercise five days a week with focus on conditioning of your cardiovascular system, strengthening exercises and stretching exercises.
- Get rid of evil white, which is white flour and white sugar.
- Sweat profusely at least three times a week, using a sauna, steam or a detox bath.
- Relax deeply every day, to get your nervous system in a state of calm, rest and relaxation.
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