Detoxification Made Simple

Detoxification is a complicated subject but I hope to make it a little easier to understand in this short article.

Today the body is inundated with toxins from the exhaust we breathe, perfumes, makeup, and deodorants we put on our skin, and the chemicals and artificial ingredients we consume.    In addition, the food we eat has fewer nutrients because of depleted soils and the high consumption of over processed foods.  (Studies show over 70% of the American diet is processed food).  In addition conventional produce is 70% less nutritious than organic produce and many want to save money by not buying organic produce. Organic produce can be a bit more expensive but you are really getting your moneys worth when you consider you get 70% more nutrition from organic foods.

Your liver is the main organ of detoxification, but the kidneys, intestines, skin and other organs all help the body detox.  Everything you eat, breath, and put on your skin, goes to every organ and cell.  The liver is the main organ that breaks down toxins and processes them to get send out of the body.  Toxins and chemicals need to be removed from the body to prevent them from damaging your cells. But the body only has what we give it in the form of whole foods and nutrients.  It can only do its job if it gets enough of the proper nutrients from the food we eat.

Let’s think of the liver, as a big detoxification factory with hundreds of Ferris wheels.  Toxins from the blood stream take a turn on the Ferris wheel, and by the time they are let off, they are deactivated so they can be sent out of the body through the stool or urine.  But there are only so many ‘Ferris wheels’, and they have a limited amount of ‘seats’.  So if the body is overwhelmed with toxins, like most bodies are today, the line of toxins gets longer.  The toxins will only stand in line for so long and eventually go back out into the blood stream.  Your body does not want toxins in your blood stream doing damage and creating havoc, so it has an ingenious way of storing them if it can’t detoxify them.  It stores these extra toxins in your fat cells.  (Toxins are also stored in bone and hair where they do the least damage.)  But as the toxins build and get more concentrated, the body needs to dilute them and adds more fluid and water to decrease the concentration of toxins in the fat cells.  So often, more toxins equal bigger fat cells and unexplained weight gain.

There are two phases of detoxification:

In Phase I the toxins need to be broken down.  You could say as an analogy that  they are bagged up so they are ready to be taken to the curb. More physiologically correct, toxins are broken down and made water soluble so the body can get rid of them.

Phase II is where the ‘bagged’, water soluble toxins (garbage) is ‘taken to the curb’ and sent out of the body.   If phase II is not completed, these water soluble toxins are more lethal than before because they can dissolve in water.  And since our bodies are at least 60% water, they can now go just about anywhere they want!   That is why it is so important to do a complete detox that supports both phases, as well as one that supports the whole body and all the organs.  Not just a liver or colon cleanse.

Vegetables like organic kale, brussels sprouts, cabbage, broccoli, as well as Chlorophyll, 100% grass fed meats, (especially liver) organic green leafy vegetables, garlic, organic egg yolk, and organic blueberries have more concentrated phytonutrients and can make the Ferris wheel in our above example, go faster.  But many don’t consume these foods daily if at all, and our bodies can’t keep up with all the toxins we are exposed to.  Since most of us can’t eat enough cruciferous, green, and high nutrient produce, it is more realistic to find a high quality whole food supplement so you have all the nutrients the body needs.  Please see my article on synthetic vitamins here:   http://www.jillcolemanrn.com/deciphering-health-information/vitamins-what-you-dont-know-could-hurt-you/

So if the body can’t fully detoxify itself,  it gets over loaded with toxins which lead to illness and disease.

Some symptoms of being toxic are;

Headaches, fatigue, digestion problems, edema, (like when your socks make a dent in your legs at the end of the day), skin problems, frequent infections, poor memory, watery or itchy eyes, stuffy nose, and more.

The solution is a good detoxification at least once a year!      Here are some tips to help your body while doing a detoxification that you can apply every day of the year!

  1. Eliminate processed/packaged foods.  99% of them have ingredients that harm the body like hydrogenated oils, high fructose syrups, MSG, and many other chemicals.  These ingredients are not food.  They are just more toxins the body has to get rid of.  If you don’t want a plate of hydrogenated oils for breakfast, why would you buy it in a package?
  2. Eat twice as many fresh green vegetables as fruit, (organic is always better).
  3. Use natural perfumes like essential oils and chemical free make up, cleaners and deodorants, (like vinegar and baking soda).
  4. Drink plenty of filtered water, (not distilled), To equal half your body weight in ounces of water.  For example of you weight 150 lbs, that is 75 ounces of water or about 8-9 cups a day.
  5. Do 20 minutes of exercise, even if it is just walking, at least 3 times a week.
  6. Eat a variety of nutritious foods every day.  Try to avoid eating the same thing every day for a long period of time.  Our body likes variety!
  7. Do something you enjoy every day

The company I use,  Standard Process,  has a great Detox program. Your  practitioner can guide you as you go through the detox.  A good detox is at least 21 days long and full of high nutrient produce, good quality proteins and healthy fats like real butter, coconut oil and flax seed oil.  There should be no processed sugar or packaged food of any kind.  Assure you get lots of phytonutrients and high quality, organic wholefood supplements along with a healthy, low carb diet, to help your body get rid of the toxins completely.

Please see my article on sugar here:  http://www.jillcolemanrn.com/sugar-not-as-sweet-as-we-may-think/

Weight loss is a wonderful side effect of proper detoxification because the body can now get the toxins out of the fat cells and shrink them.  In addition, it takes 3-4 weeks to establish a new habit, and your taste buds replace themselves every four weeks, so they will also be more accustomed to the taste of healthy food with a 3 week detox.

At Health and Body Restoration, we have a wonderful supervised 21 day detox program.  The more you stick with the program, the more you will see how good it feels to get all those toxins out, and reclaim your health!.     On the detox program, you eat real food along with whole food supplements and nutritious shakes, so you are never hungry.   Nutritious, tasty recipes can be provided so you can truly enjoy getting healthy.

Email us for a free consultation, and get rid of those toxins that could be making you fat or sick!

JillRN50@gmail.com

About Jill RN

I have been a registered nurse for over 20 years working in the Trauma stepdown of LAUSC county hospital to the Heart Transplant unit at UCLA, Post partum and travel nurse. I realized that there was very little room for holistic medicine in the traditional medical field and started researching natural cures to address the whole person: Body mind and spirit. I enjoy working with people who are motivated to change their lifestyle to a more healthy and balanced one. I offer stress reduction therapies as well as unprocessed stress can also reek havoc on our body and being, True health is not complex but it takes a commitment and willingness to change old habits and create a more positive environment so the body can heal and repair. It is not an over night process, but certainty well worth the effort to achieve a lifestyle of health and wellbeing.
This entry was posted in Conflicting information made simple. Bookmark the permalink.