Detoxification

The word "detox" is very in vogue at the moment and probably one of the most over- and mis-used terms in health and wellness contexts.

Detox appears on everything from bath oils to smoothie labels and one can be forgiven for assuming that "detox" is something you can buy in a small box from Superdrug.

So what does detox really mean?

Toxification means poisoning. So It is the de-toxification of the body - removing from the body substances which, if left inside the body, would lead to in-toxification (poisoning; yes, being drunk really is being poisoned).

Potential poisons, or toxins don't just come from cigarettes, alcohol, junk food and pollution. Every time we release stress hormones (adrenaline etc) these also need to be metabolized (detoxified) and neturalised.

We have the potential to poison ourselves (autointoxicate) each and every minute we are alive.

Let me show you....

Breathe in, take a nice deep breath for a count of 4. Hold for a count of 12 and then breathe out for a count of 8. You just detoxed. A bit. Honestly!

Carbon dioxide is the resulting waste gas from many types of cell metabolism. This gas is dissolved into the blood stream as carbonic acid. This acid waste must be removed from the blood stream as quickly as possible to prevent the blood acid-alkali balance - the blood pH - from becoming too acidic. When you breathe out, carbon dioxide leaves the blood once again becoming a gas in the lung alveoli and is subsequently breathed out. So breathing out is a form of detoxing! Simple and cheap. Doesn't come in a box from the chemists!

So the key to successfully maintaining the correct blood pH is to make sure the body doesn't have too high a toxic or acidic load. On an every-day basis, we are in need of detoxing as each and every metabolic process is taking place normally. When you add all the other toxic load that we are fond of ingesting in our modern indulgent and self-destrctive lifestyle, the cigarettes, the sweets, the alcohol etc., then you can see how we have a need to detox more often, more thoroughly and probably with more active measures than just exhaling.

Apart from dead skin and hair cells, each and every cell inside our bodies is alive which means they are metabolising and respiring. They are taking nutrients and oxygen from the fluid around them (interstitial fluid) which comes from the bloodstream and lymph system. Once they have used what they need, they excrete the substances they don't need and/or their products. These go back into the lymph fluid and bloodstream and are eventually broken down (metabolised) and/or excreted from the body in one of four ways. The liver is the master detoxification organ as it handles most unwanted an toxic substances we ingest. However, once it has neutralised various poisons, the liver needs to dump the products of its detoxification processes out of the body. The avenues of external elimination from the body are:

Lungs - through the breath
Kidneys - through the urinary system
Skin - through the sweat glands
Bowels - through the faeces

Ingesting excess animal proteins can result in a high level of acidic waste which needs to be neutralised and excreted (detoxed), so cutting down on your intake of animal proteins is a good place to start your detoxification programme. It goes without saying that cutting out alcohol, cigarettes and high levels of sugar will also assist the body in its work to detoxify. A high intake of sugar will also break down into a waste load of carbonic acid to add to the pile. Reduce your stress levels - make your own "DO NOT DISTURB" sign and use it at every opportunity! Take up yoga, candles, incense and new age music. Do whatever it takes to reduce your emotional and mental stress as they too are toxic.

What else can you do to refresh and clean out the body as a good start to a new year programme of healthier living?

Alkaline foods and drinks will give the body a lighter load of waste disposal and taking nutrition in the form of juicing will give the digestive system a bit of a rest and enable the energy saved to be used to better purposes and enhance detoxification.

An ideal start to a detoxification programme would take into account the four avenues of elimination and aim to support and assist all these avenues.

1. Lungs - go for walks in the fresh air every day - the exercise is also good for the body and a nice brisk walk will assist in the deep breathing and expulsion of carbon dioxide gas. Make a habit of conscious deep breathing. Good for the brain cells too!

2. Kidneys - drink at least 2 litres of clean, pure, water every day. Cola drinks are highly acidic and cups of tea and coffee make you "pee" more than you drink in - a half pint of tea will have you running to the loo to lose three quarters of a pint in the urine. A net water loss for the body. Water is a master solvent - most waste products and toxins are soluble in water and safer in more dilute concentrations; so the more water you give your body, the more it can use for safer detoxification.

3. Skin - sweat is a solution of water and waste products; it is rich in organic substances which makes it so ideal for bacteria to feed on - this is why old sweat smells so unpleasant, you are feeding bacteria on your old rubbish! Clear out your pores of dried salt residues and old skin cells which may block the exit for more sweat. Dry skin brush before your daily shower and clear out the exits for these dissolved toxins. If you have access to a sauna, this is an ideal way to keep the skin clear and allow the sweating mechanism to carry toxins from the body efficiently and safely. Daily skin brushing will soon become addictive, it stimulates the blood capillaries in the skin and makes you glow with good health! Exfoliate regularly in the shower or bath to keep the dead cells from building up and dulling the complexion. Indulge in a massage - especially aromatherapy - as often as you can afford it.

Juice-Fast¹ for a few days and give your digestive system a rest. Apart from sex, the most energy we use on a daily basis is for digestion (well, all of us digest daily....). If we let our juicers do the chewing for us and swallow only the nutrient-rich solutions which they produce (the juices), we can nourish ourselves with the minimum of effort needed from the body. Juice combinations high in green leafy vegetable juices are highly alkaline which helps the body to balance its blood pH with less use of alkaline salts from the bones (yes, your body will take calcium from your bones to neturalise its acid waste load if you eat too many acidic proteins). The best juices for detoxing contain lots of cucumber, celery, fennel and spinach. Five juices and 2 litres of water every day will keep your taste buds and your mouth busy enough not to feel deprived and will give your body marvellous support for its detoxing chores.

One thing to remember - just like cleaning out that cupboard under the stairs.... at first you chuck out the piles of shoes and stir up the dust and make an even bigger mess - likewise with detoxing, you can re-dissolve crystalized toxins which have been stashed in various hiding places around the body - this can make you feel under the weather a bit for the first couple of days. Rejoice in this feeling, it means you are sweeping all the rubbish out from its hiding places and dumping them out of the body for good. The finished product will be clean and tidy "underneath the rug" as well as the bits that show!

The other good thing about detoxing is that it often leads to a noticeable loss of excess fat from the body - this sounds like a great double whammy to start the New Year!
Happy Detoxing.

References:
1 7lbs in 7 days by Jason Vale
This book is an excellent introduction into juice-fasting and takes the beginner through the whole subject of juicing from theory to practical with delicious recipes and timetables, even giving shopping lists to make it easy to prepare. A great place to start your juicing journey.
2 The Detox Miracle Sourcebook by Robert Morse, N.D. Module 7.7, Raw Fruit and Vegetable Juices, p 225
This book is a comprehensive font of knowledge from basic physiology to complete detoxification. A must for the interested therapist and keen amateur alike.

Further Reading:
The Complete Book of Fresh Vegetable and Fruit Juices by Norman W. Walker
Juicing by Michael T. Murray
Juicing Therapy by Dr. Bernard Jensen
Slim 4 Life by Jason Vale
Article – supplementary – feature on juicing and recipes to back up Detox article:
Here are a few delicious-tasting juices which will support your body beautifully during a detoxification programme.

As you progress, try and reduce the amount of fruit in your juices as the more green leafy vegetables you juice, the better for the body; fruits can lead to blood sugar fluctuations which may make you feel more hungry. But, if the addition of fruit makes it easier for you drink the juices, then go ahead and enjoy them as they are.

These recipes will provide masses of enzymes, vitamins, and minerals without loading the body with acid waste. They are particularly high in electrolytes, and some are rich in chlorophyll for purifying the blood the lymphatic system. Chlorophyll is one of nature's best heavy-metal and chemical detoxifiers.² Juices give you nutrition without your body having to work for it. Just what you need when detoxifying.
(Note; the lemons and limes in the recipes do not make the juices acidic; paradoxically, they metabolise to an alkaline "ash" when digested)
Most recipes will serve two people a generous large glassful each:
Le Digestif:
4 apples
1 cucumber
large stick of celery
small piece of fennel
1/2 lemon, peeled
1 lime, peeled.
Freshen Up:
one whole cucumber
two pears
sprig mint
small handful of parsley
one apple
small piece of peeled lime
Apple of My Eye:
4 apples (green ones are best for this one)
1 lemon (half peeled)
1 lime (half peeled)
one whole romaine lettuce
handful of spinach
Non-tequila Sunrise:
1 red pepper and 1 orange or yellow pepper if you can find them
2 peeled oranges
3 large carrots
1 lemon roughly peeled
2 red apples
toss in some fresh apricots if in season
1 whole peach or nectarine if in season
Juice all the above ingredients, pour half glassfuls out, then add:
1/2 small beetroot to the juicer (for the hard-core juicers - omit if you are on the nursery slopes!)
Mix the beetroot juice with the remaining juice in the jug and top up the glasses
(you can almost feel the beta-carotene coursing through your viens from this one!)
Swamp Juice
(we call this Shrek Juice at home, but we do not have permission from the movie makers to use this name here!)
Quantities are for 2-4 people as we always end up sharing this with non-believers and on-lookers!
Large handful of Spinach
Large piece of broccoli stalk
6 Brussels sprouts
Handful of any fresh sprouts (alfalfa, clover, sunflower, etc)
1 stick of Celery
handful of Parsley
3 large Carrots
1 Lemon
1 Lime
1 whole Cucumber
4 Green apples
1/4 Pineapple
- make juice from above ingredients and then add to blender with 1/2 avocado pear, 1 teaspoon spirulina, 1 teaspoon of dried wheatgrass.
drink immediately.