We are constantly filling our system with toxins. Bad habits like smoking and drinking clog our systems with poisons like alcohol and nicotine. Our modern lives heavy in processed foods clog our systems with much more refined sugar than we need. Our coffee cravings bring in the caffeine. Our bodies weren’t meant to hold all the junk we feed it with, hence the congestion and need to detox.
That’s not all, pollutants in the water and in our environment enter our system. Heavy metals like mercury, chemicals from our cleaners and pesticides poison us slowly. Our bodies have to work overtime to clean up the gunk. As the toxins build up, we experience diseases of excess. Clogged tissue and suffocated cells lead to more colds, allergies and chronic diseases that could have been prevented with the elimination of toxins. Symptoms of toxicity include headaches, joint pain, fatigue and digestive problems. If these bother you, it might be time for a detox.
You are what you eat. Did you realize how true that adage is?
If you want to detox, the first thing you should do is watch your diet. Start with your gastrointestinal system. That comprises of your mouth, teeth, esophagus, stomach, small intestine and colon. Especially your colon. Do you know how much dried gunk gets stuck to the walls of the colon over the years? A good detox would include color cleansing as well as repopulation of your colon with good bacteria. In other words, get your bowels moving and eat yoghurt. Constipation is more common than we realize. The best way to deal with that is to include more fiber in your diet. Load up on fruit, vegetables and whole grain. Go for whole grain bread instead of white bread. Eat brown rice instead of white. Cut down on your sugar as sugar makes the gunk stick to your colon, making it harder to expel the waste. Cut down on soft drinks as well as alcohol and coffee.
Your liver is a major detoxification organ as it renders the poisons that enter your body harmless. It is often congested from overwork. The liver changes toxic substances into harmless matter that your blood would carry to your kidneys, or through the bile into the intestines. Your entire body helps in the detox process as waste leaves your body through the sweat, your skin being your largest detoxification organ. Water is required in all these processes so drink at least eight to ten large glasses of water daily.
When your body is loaded with toxins, it shows. Congested skin would probably break out in acne or boils or eczema. A person whose system is clogged with toxins is likely to be overweight and sluggish as well. Body fat stores the toxins, hence if you lose weight, you lose the fat and the toxins trapped in it. Detox programs include fasting, juice cleansing or at least a healthy diet and exercise.
One thing you must be careful about when you detox is that the detoxification process releases the toxins into your system, hence the withdrawal symptoms. I’m not talking only about drugs, I’m talking about the whole toxin overload thing, so when you detox, go slow. Especially if you use herbs or pills to help you detox. Drink plenty of water to flush out the toxins.
