Detoxing and Cleansing
Detox protocols that are done to remove toxins and enhance immune function can actually cause more physical stress than if you did nothing. Detoxifying and cleansing are NOT one size fits all. At the same time, once you have started doing protocols that start this process it is advisable that you become really educated on the subject so you can get the results you are looking for in your quest for optimal and improved health. This is where being insightful or intuitive about how you respond as an individual is important. Approaching a protocol that has been deemed generally useful and productive may be more stressful to you if you don’t have a proper nutritional foundation and are not aware of the pace that will be most productive and thorough for you.
We are all at different places with our health. Some are wondering why they are not getting the benefits of good health since they are doing so many healthy things. The fatigue or lack of energy has not improved as hoped. Either waking up tired or having that dip at 3p.m. has not resolved. Still experiencing painful PMS and menopausal symptoms and it is a struggle to get through each day only to find you are not refreshed by a good night’s sleep. While we think of hormonal issues as a female malady, male hormones are also influenced by toxins. This becomes apparent when libido weakens and male menopause sets in. You may still be craving sugars, alcohol or certain foods and whether you can successfully avoid the rash of colds and bugs going around, you are not satisfied with your current state of health. It seems the detox cleanses or the bottle of detox pills or drops just didn’t make any real difference that lasted. Both the cost and the expectation were wasted. The point is that without a good nutritional foundation to start with, you are asking your body to handle a lot of stress without any support. Bringing up toxins too fast in a system that is not strong enough to handle the internal war that can occur can leave you weaker and in a more stressed state then when you started. This is a little of the horse before the cart philosophy as some think you cannot even begin to get healthy without doing a major detox. Truthfully the path of least resistance is always the best.
Exactly what are toxins? Where do they come from and where are they in the body?
Toxins can come from undigested food that putrefies because it has not been properly released. Understanding basic digestion principles can reduce or limit this. They also come from ingesting foods with chemicals that the body does not recognize as nutrition or fuel. They have no valid use and get stored in the fat. This is a protective or defensive mechanism the body implements as it tries to keep the chemicals out of circulation. So in a way this is the body working for you. We also absorb toxins from the environment through breathing and through the skin. The lungs are meant to take in oxygen which then gets into the blood and the cells. If you can smell a chemical, such as a cleaning product or the artificial scent in a candle, chances are it is being ingested into your system through that exposure. Second hand cigarette smoke, exhaust fumes from traffic and chemical waste burning out of the factory are well-known examples of how we take in toxins through the lungs. The skin is considered the largest organ of elimination. Where we normally sweat out toxins through the pores it is also possible to absorb from health and beauty products. Other examples are how the body can absorb chlorine from going into a swimming pool and the chemical residue left from medication. While studies suggest there is an acceptable part per million from exposure to each chemical, collectively exposure to what can be 30 different sources produces unacceptable levels when you do the math. That is most definitely part of the toxic overload that stresses our health.
Where IV chelation, which is extremely costly and not as effective, of toxins addresses the toxic overload in the bloodstream, most toxins are stored in your fat cells, in the colon and digestive track and any mucous lining and cartilage. That includes many of the organs and joints. When these toxins are trapped in your fat cells, they are contained to a point. Their existence can still compromise your immune function. The more toxins in your body that the immune system has to deal with, the less availability it has when it is on patrol, to fight and suppress microbes that could include bacteria, fungus, parasite, virus and cancer cells. Cancer cells before they grow are merely an improperly formed cell. The job of the immune system is to destroy them. When your immune system is weakened or overworked from fighting toxins that don’t belong there in as high a number as most of us experience, it does not have the capacity to do its basic work at destroying these irregular cells or suppressing those microbes from getting the upper hand. When you begin a detox program, you pull these toxins out of your fat cells and into your bloodstream. By definition this can also occur during weight loss as the toxins can be released as the excess fat is burned up. Once they enter your bloodstream, they can travel through your body to your vital organs and wreak havoc on your health. These toxins can invade your joints and tissues triggering pain and inflammation. There are other reasons for inflamed and painful joints, such as ingesting foods that are irritating and cause an inflammatory reaction in the body. Again, identifying and removing these culprit foods while you identify the healing beneficial foods will give you a good nutritional foundation. Once that is done you will be prepared to take on the job of detoxing your system. Imagine that you have been told your inflammation is from toxins and it is really more basic than that. There is a proper order in which you can systematically build up your system and slowly cleanse and detox through your foods without detox reactions or further stressing your system with extreme detox protocols.
Most toxic chemicals are fat-soluble. That means they dissolve only in fatty or oily solutions, not in water. In fact, there are about 200 times more toxins stored in your fat cells than in your blood. It is for this reason that it can be important during certain cleansing protocols that fat be consumed to help remove them from your body. While doing chemical and heavy metal chelation, being aware of this fact can make the difference between feeling so awful that you abort the process verses having a successful detox and are able to function properly. Chemotherapy, used in cancer treatment, and Interferon, used in Hep C treatment, is also examples of this. Knowing when to ingest the correct fats so you can minimize the side effects during these treatments is important. The chemicals from these drugs, once the body has used them as intended, can then be escorted out once they have done their job. This is yet another scenario where a proper nutritional protocol can help with a more successful outcome, not only during a treatment, but in a less drained and fatigued state after the treatments. Where there are some considerations, one has to make plans so things are as ideal as possible and you don’t feel like the rug has been pulled out from under.
Certain toxins, if they can cross the blood brain barrier and invade your brain, can cause headaches, memory loss, and may contribute to dementia and Alzheimer’s which are a form of deterioration and brain aging. They can cause interruptions in your heart, where they can cause blood pressure problems as well as the possibilities for bacterial infections in the heart.
Chemicals and heavy metals are also responsible for an imbalance in your endocrine system. This would cause an imbalance in the hormones producing more estrogen, responsible for adrenal fatigue, which is very common and rampant as well as all of the thyroid problems that are a big diagnosis amidst the population. The pancreas being part of the endocrine system can have problems with blood sugar. Either low blood sugar known as hypoglycemia or diabetes can be influenced as well. Whether it is from the circulation problems common in blood sugar issues it can also be the interference of the toxins in general that can have a big effect on vision as well. When the endocrine system is not functioning properly you cannot just address one of those organs and expect the others to work properly. Since the master gland and the filter in all of this, which is the liver is overloaded that will inhibit the endocrine system from working properly. Once you go through a process of eliminating the chemicals while you address the overload in the liver, things will start to slowly come back on line. This usually has to be done in layers and frequently a yeast overgrowth has to be addressed along the way, which also occurs in layers as it is not uncommon that the chemicals and heavy metals that can be brought up out of hibernation will come with fungus attached. Where they were originally in a semi dormant state and did not produce overt symptoms previously, they now have to be treated like the tiger that got let out of the cage.
Aside from taking on a detoxifying regiment that is extreme, another approach is to include foods, supplements or activities that have a more gentle cleansing effect which will work over a period of time. This approach is recommended in general for those that want to keep ahead or keep up with the ongoing intake of toxins, chemicals and the effects of stress on an ongoing basis. It is also the approach to those that have severe chemical toxicity or are too young or nutritionally depleted to be able to handle anything more intense. This would include children and the really weak. The other side of this approach is to be aware of which foods or activities should be eliminated or avoided as they are adding to the disability. Usually these eliminated items can eventually be reintroduced.
Cleansing and detoxing is a two part process. The first is to pull toxins up from where they are lodging in the body. The second is to get those toxins out of the body. The biggest mistake is when a detox regiment is done to pull up toxins only and ignore this second part. This is usually done from a place of ignorance. If the person is not doing anything or enough to get them out, then these toxins recirculate and reabsorb. Now you are left in a worse state than when you started, as what you have pulled up were possibly not as active originally in causing symptoms. While this is happening there can be many detox side effects such as headaches, fatigue, joint pain, insomnia and further interference with hormones and endocrine. This is also referred to as a Herxheimer reaction that occurs when there is die off as well. The process to increase the body’s ability to get that die off out is the same as mentioned with toxins. It is important to read the signals and cues you are getting from your body and also be educated to what is happening so you can respond appropriately. Waiting it out, getting tough or pushing through, is not always the best option. As many think, you do not have to suffer to detoxify your system.
Depending on what your health scenario is, there are options. If you have a good nutritional foundation and are metabolically sound, you can, prepared with knowledge and strategy, take on some of the more rigorous forms of detoxifying. Very few people are truly in this category.
Another scenario is to adopt a cleansing lifestyle where through a gradual approach you can include strategies, either permanently or at different intervals, to get forward movement in cleaning up your system. This approach can be done with little to no drama or Herxheimer reaction. This would be the nutritive and cleansing approach. It involves using your food protocol as the foundation for this work and adding in some supplementation, activities and protocols that will pull out everything that is being pulled up.
For both these approaches, a health practitioner who has the expertise to know everyone is different and one size does not fit all would guarantee you the best outcome for your situation. To take any other approach than mentioned would indeed, be putting the cart before the horse and sometimes leaving you in either worse health or having your actions be for naught. It would also eliminate the step of having to rebuild your health from the bottom once a chemo or interferon treatment has been done.
Since stress translates to acidic PH and toxins in the body, it makes logical sense to try to manage it in general and minimize or eliminate as much stress as possible when taking on an intense detox regiment. That includes not doing a fast or cleanse, even if it is a food based cleanse, on the evening when you know you will be attending a social event where there are so many foods and alcohol that you may normally partake. Very few people can stand up to the social pressure that may occur after being offered a drink or food they have turned down or refused. In the name of being hospitable, your denial is not taken serious and there could be a lot of pressure put on you to partake in these things. Food and drink sometimes is one of the elements that bind us at a social gathering. Sometimes people that drink to excess use social drinking as a legitimate reason for their own consumption. They only feel right if everyone else is drinking and could take it as a negative commentary on their actions if someone prefers not to partake. This is not a theory but a personal observation over many years. There are always the exceptions, on both sides.
Sometimes your exercise regimen may be too intense at this time and need to be augmented to stretching, walking or something gentler. The reaction to stress is heightened for most as well. Frequently your sense of smell, sensitivity to noise is heightened. It is for that reason you may choose not to go to the Mall of America or Grand Central Station when your norm is a quiet suburb. You would not schedule a cleanse when you are due to take a 2 hour test that your next career move can depend on or supervising 12 children at a birthday party. These are examples that may not literally apply, but the idea can indeed be personalized. If upon examination you can’t possibly orchestrate a few days or week when your intense stress can be minimized then a detox program is most likely not your immediate problem or at the top of your list of what needs to be addressed for you to have a better quality of life and improved health.
What results are you looking for? Just know that it is a rare occurrence when any one time endeavor will be the complete answer to everything. Extreme actions frequently, if not always, have the natural rebound affect of equal and opposite reaction. Some that do extreme cleanses are really just expressing or finding an outlet for their personalities or acting out of being misinformed. Good health, both mental and physical stem from a place of balance.
Time frame and expectations are usually two things that are viewed unrealistically and frequently bring someone to equate that things aren’t working. What took a lifetime to accumulate and happen physically, will not be completely resolved overnight with one drastic cleanse or upon restructuring your food protocol even if it is a step in the right direction. Time is the missing nutrient! Plateaus are really necessary and healthy. It is the body adjusting to the changes that have occurred up until that point with the work you have done. If you compare the work you take on in regards to your health, and compare it to climbing a mountain, you would realize that stopping at intervals and resting to acclimate to what you have just done, is of major importance to how the rest of the climb transpires. Without those plateaus you will be taxed, stressed, and risking an outcome that will have consequences or require intervention, problem solving or a repair of some kind. Healing is exactly the same. This isn’t boot camp. There is no reason to tough it up or be considered a failure. Honor your body, learn to read the signs it shows you and don’t let flawed or incorrect information override what you feel to be true.
As an experienced professional who has 18 years of hands on experience in this field with clients, as well as personal experience as I have taken on this journey for myself as well and have personal knowledge of these tactics and experiences, I can assist you with the support, knowledge, education and strategies necessary for your personal journey as well.