Do I need a body detox if I’m not overweight?
“I have never been what one would call a healthy eater. I eat what I want. I eat pizza when I want and cheesecake when I want. My friends are all jealous. They tell me if they ate like me they would look like an elephant. One of my friends looks like an elephant and practically flaunts herself. So what about the detox diet? Is it for me or my fat friend?”
This is a very good question and the answer is that the detox diet is for both of us. Just because you can eat anything and not get fat doesn’t mean your body is “clean.”
Other symptoms of a toxic body include, but are not limited to, allergies, sinus problems, arthritis, digestive problems, and intestinal problems. If you have bad breath, guess what? Your body is toxic. Your fat friend also needs the detox diet. His body is not cleansed of the toxins we are exposed to on a daily basis. Your digestive tract isn’t working properly, and your colon is most likely clogged with rotting fecal matter. A good detox diet will benefit both of you.
“Where do all these toxins come from?” This is another great question. They are found in virtually everything in your daily life. Here are a few examples:
Do you eat french fries? Even if a fast food restaurant uses the “good oils” that are not hydrogenated, guess what? When most oils are heated above 150 degrees, they hydrogenate. So far the “good” fries.
Do you drink or bathe in chlorinated water? Chlorine is very poisonous to the body and seeps through the pores of the skin, the largest and most important organ in the body. When chlorine enters the body, it acts as a cancer-causing agent and is suspected to be a major cause of bladder cancer. It can also cause other problems in the respiratory system.
Do you eat boxed or “prepared” foods, such as hot dogs? These items contain preservatives and dyes that are toxic to the body. These ingredients have been linked to hyperactivity in children, as well as certain types of cancer. Because they are “unnatural”, they are foreign to the body and are treated as unnatural. This overloads the immune defense system and eventually causes a low immune response.
Do you use pesticides? Obviously, pesticides are harmful to the body, and we usually know how to avoid being around them. But if we “forget” to properly wash our fresh vegetables or fruits, we are exposed to them. If we live in certain parts of the country where agriculture is the predominant industry, the air is sprayed with pesticides every time a crop is grown. You can’t escape pesticides you have no control over.
Do you use personal hygiene products such as shampoo, lotion or soap? Even these products are laced with chemicals like antifreeze (propylene glycol) and sodium laureth, which when exposed to your body turn into deadly free radicals that attack your healthy cells and render them useless or harmful to your body’s natural function.
Do you smoke or live or work in a smoking environment? There are more than five hundred poisonous chemicals in a cigarette. One chemical that is poisonous to the body is cadmium. It is a predominant element in cigarettes and is evidenced by the “blue” cloud seen in rooms where there are smokers. If the body does not have the essential elements (vitamins and minerals to stay healthy), the amino acids pick up cadmium or other poisonous elements and transport them to the cell. Once in the cell, the cadmium makes it cancerous.
“How do I detox? Is it painful?”
The first step in cleansing the body of the toxins it is exposed to every day is to cleanse the colon. Good health begins in the colon. The colon is the organ that “feeds” the body. Most of us think that the colon is just for eliminating waste. This is only part of what the colon does. Once food is digested, it is broken down in the intestinal tract into all of its components. These components consist of materials vital to the body’s function and materials that are waste, including toxins. The colon, through a process of absorption, “feeds” the nutrients to the blood, which carries the food to the cells. The waste materials are then expelled from the body as a normal function. If the colon is working properly, there should be no need to “tighten” or expel waste. The intestines must “move” on their own and the “impulse” must alert you in time to be in an appropriate place for movement. Holding back “movement” is unhealthy and can lead to poor bowel function.
When the colon is “overloaded” with toxins, it automatically secretes a gummy mucus that prevents toxins from entering the bloodstream. When mucus becomes too thick, it prevents even essential health nutrients from entering the bloodstream. All that digested food then returns to the colon and starts to putrefy, hence the bad odors. This introduces even more toxins into the enclosed area…as well as into the bathroom or anywhere else it can escape.
Colon cleansing can be as simple as eating high-fiber foods like bran muffins. However, eating a cup of fruit like organically grown blueberries or raspberries (to avoid pesticides) may be healthier because the other ingredients in the bran muffin may not be as beneficial. You would have to eat ten bran muffins to get the same amount of fiber in one fruit cup. Increasing your intake of fresh vegetables will also add much-needed fiber to your diet to cleanse your colon. Chlorophyll from green vegetables like broccoli, spinach, and greens of all kinds, is great for detoxifying the colon and helping to cleanse it. Fiber not only absorbs toxins, it helps expel waste.
“Does fasting remove toxins from the body?”
Yes, fasting is another way to detoxify the body, but it’s not for everyone. Fasting is a way to relax the body’s systems and give them time to use available nutrients to properly replenish cells and eliminate waste. It’s like giving the body a “catch-up” time to focus on healing and eliminating toxins. No food should be eaten during a fast and only limited amounts of water are taken. Fasting should not last more than two or three days unless supervised by a doctor.
“Are there easier ways to detox?”
There are some easier ways for people who are “too” busy to go through all the routines that are involved in the above methods. There is a product on the market that serves to detoxify the body through the feet. Many naturepaths and health food stores use this method with great success on their clients. Your feet are “soaked” in a bath of specially treated water to remove toxins through the feet. Two ways you notice the removal of toxins is by the change in the color of the water and by the way you start to feel. Depending on which system the cleansing is targeting, be it the lymphatic, circulatory, respiratory, or digestive system, the water will have a different color. Similarly, you will feel the difference in any system that has been cleaned.
The number one effect a body cleanse will have on you is an increase in your energy levels. So come on, admit it, you need a body cleanse. Everything around you is crying out for you to become one. Grab your fat friend and pick a detox program that will make you and your friend the envy of all your other friends!