While I am an absolute firm believer that proper nutritional supplementation can help us in so many ways it’s important to understand that they’re called supplements for a reason, they are meant to supplement your daily lifestyle and hopefully you’ve read some information here and have started incorporating some healthy and detox practices in your life. The right supplements can absolutely have a positive impact on your body by helping it’s natural systems. But let’s take a closer look at these systems your body uses on its own, on an everyday basis, on a constant second to second basis, that help us cleanse and detox.
The body’s natural detox systems are generally classified in five systems:
1) Digestive
2) Urinary
3) Respiratory
4) Dermal
5) Lymphatic
Many detox products, diets and plans emphasis the digestive system. In speaking to a client recently he asked why so much emphasis was put on the digestive system, he wanted to know what was impacted by your digestive system. It’s a simple answer, everything! It’s the digestive system that processes food so our bodies can absorb the water, minerals and nutrients and then eliminates the waste. It starts in the mouth then proceeds to the esophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine (which is commonly called the colon) and the finally the anus and includes your liver, gallbladder and pancreas in the process. If you were to unfold and lay flat your gastrointestinal tract it would have a surface area that’s roughly two hundred times the surface area of your skin. Fun fact isn’t it. Two hundred times! That is a whole lot of surface area that can absorb and eliminate toxins.
Most, in fact ninety percent of the nutrients are absorbed from the small intestine. The left over materials are then sent to the colon. This is where your body is going to absorb the rest of the good stuff and begin forming the waste that you’re going to hopefully eliminate rapidly and regularly. So, if this is where your body absorbs all of the nutrients it’s going to use to fuel the rest of your body and that eliminates a large portion of the toxins you’ve ingested you want to make sure that this system is kept healthy and running as smoothly as possible.
Many of us have a unhealthy eating habits that directly impacts our digestive health. We eat too much but not enough nutrient rich foods. We’re missing out on nutrients, fiber, and enzymes that are crucial for digestive health. We’re ingesting antibiotics, drugs, refined foods, processed foods, unhealthy fats and many of us are dehydrated and stressed out which absolutely impacts our health.
Let’s take a look at some things we can do to help us out. Start by drinking more water- and no I didn’t say a sports drink, coffee or soda, I said water! At the very least eight cups a day but not all at the same time. If you’ve been falling short during the day don’t try to chug down a few glasses all at once, most of that won’t be absorbed by your body. Also, don’t drink to much water with a meal. Sounds strange right? But if you drink too much fluid while you eat you’re going to dilute the stomach acids that help break down your food and this can lead to a whole host of problems.
Try to stay away from the bad foods we’ve talked about and hit the veggie area of your grocery store, buy organic fruits and veggies and eat as many of those raw as you can. This way you won’t destroy many of the enzymes and nutrients. You’ll also benefit from the fiber found in the veggies. SoCal Cleanse is developing a product that will combine most of these making it an easy addition. Take a probiotic supplement and an enzyme supplement to help digest your other foods and keep your healthy bacteria alive and well! Remember to chew your food well to help your digestive system out down the line.
Last but not least, something I am a huge supporter of- exercise! You’ll get all of the systems moving and grooving, you’ll burn fat, increase skeletal muscle, and it will help you relax by taking away stress. Many detox plans and diets will just glaze over fitness and exercise but I can’t stress the importance of it and you will continue to see exercise tips and information here. Remember how important anything you put into your body truly is and the multiple impacts it can have.
