Why Detox?

Do you need to detox?

You take in more chemicals, additives, pollutants, hormones, and stimulants today, than ever before in history. Your body has not evolved as fast as the world. Essentially, your body is the same today as it was 500 years ago, but how has what you put into it changed?

Think about it. From the air you breath to the water you drink, there are more chemicals being ingested than your body can get rid of, possibly. Some people lead a very "clean" lifestyle, they eat right, plenty of veggies, rest, no stress (or the learn how to manage it), they don't smoke, or drink alcohol... their toxic load will be lighter, than some one who lives a stressful life in the city, drinks, smokes, drinks tap water, eats fast food, doesn't exercise and doesn't supplement their diet.

The first person in this example will need to detox less, the second will need more, and, of course, will need to change their lifestyle, to a more ... wellness approach. Over time, both need to cleanse their system to reduce the residue and accumulation left by "modern living."

I once had a man come into my clinic, and he had quite a chuckle. I was working the front desk, so he thought i was a receptionist. He went on to comment on something that was posted about detoxification, and his comment was, "what toxins? There are no toxins!" Of course, I explained to him where they come from, he stopped laughing. Below, is a short list, a very short list actually. Of common substances that may change the way your body functions, cause stress in your body and cause extra work for your system.

Pesticides

These poisons are used to kill pests, but they also get into our food. Most people do not wash their fruits and vegetable well, and even when they do, it does not undo the damage. There are many of these chemicals that were found to be too toxic to be used, so they were banned. Many of these banned poisons have found their way south, to central and south America. Where do your fruits and vegetables come from in winter? Not to mention toxins are found in high concentrations in animals that are fed food that has been treated with these poisons. The toxins are stored in their fat, more on that later.

Anti-parasitics

Again, many of these are fat soluble and end up being stored in higher concentrations in the animal's fat deposits, and, possibly your fatty deposits as well. This is actually one theory for cellulite.

Hormones

Hormonal Growth Promotants (HGP) are in implants in the animal's ear. HGPs increase weight gain and the efficiency of food conversion in cattle. In the US, there are 6 FDA approved hormones, with three being natural, and 3 being synthetic. In 1988 the European Union prohibited the use of these hormones.

Use of hormones in dairy cattle in the US

Monsanto prints the following on the warning label on each package of the hormone: "Cows injected with Posilac are at an increased risk of clinical mastitis (which results in visibly abnormal milk). The number of cows affected with clinical mastitis and the number of cases per cow may increase. In addition, the risk of sub-clinical mastitis (milk not visibly abnormal) is increased. In some herds, use of Posilac has been associated with increases in somatic cell counts…Use of Posilac is associated with increased frequency of use of medication in cows for mastitis and other health problems.…"

Gonadotrophin Releasing Hormone (GnRH)

GnRH is used to Improve conception rates.

Estrogen

Used for preventing conception.

Corticosteroids

Used in Inducing calving, aborting calves, and ovarian cysts.

Antibiotics

This is a group of drugs approved for use in animals to stimulate growth and improve feed efficiency (so that less feed is required for growth), and also to reduce infection and stock loss. There is concern about how this affects human health. Over use of antibiotics can cause resistant bacteria leading to more difficult health problems that may not respond to antibiotic treatments.

You know what they say.... You are what you eat!

This is only a small example taken from only one industry. This is not even touching on the problem of mercury in fish, or the higher levels of arsenic in chickens because of the feed given to them. Out of 155 samples taken from the grocery store, 55% had detectable levels of arsenic, and 100% of chicken used in fast food establishments had detectable levels of arsenic. More information can be found at www.iatp.org.

What about water?

Do you drink enough water? Most people do not. I am happy when my patients drink 6-8 glasses per day. Coffee, tea and sodas are not water, and many of those not only add toxins, but also act as a diuretic and drain water from you. The problem with this is, you then reduce your body's ability to remove toxins, both from metabolic waste and external factors, from your system. So, Drink More Water!

You should choose natural spring water, or reverse osmosis water over tap water. Do not use distilled water. Actually I give this to people when their have high electrolytes in their urine because it will pull the electrolytes out of solution to be excreted. Tap water is not a healthy option. There was a link between chlorinated water and cancer, Drinking Water Mutagenicity and Gastrointestinal and Urinary Tract Cancers : an Ecological Study in Finland, reported in the American Journal of Public Health (August, 1994). Not to mention chlorine is thought to interfere with beneficial bacteria in the intestines. There are many problems with tap water, and that discussion could get quite lengthy, just understand there are better options.

Foods You Eat.

The foods you eat may be another source of toxins in your system. This is an easy one to over come by creating a personal wellness diet plan. Of course you would also want to limit the processed foods, and eliminate , 100% artificial sweeteners from your diet. Yup, even the one in the yellow packet. Even though is says it's made from sugar, digging deeper will reveal it to be a health hazard. Stay away from it. It used to be enough to detox at night. Your body goes through a mini detox every night while you sleep. You fast, and your body repairs. Thats why in the morning you break your fast with.... break-fast. The healthier your eating and your lifestyle is, the more efficient this mini detox is, and the less often you may need to do a full detox program. This is why doctors (and mom) used to tell you not to eat late at night, it interferes with this mini detox process, because your body must divert energy for digestion instead.

Use a personal detox plan to reduce the toxic load in your body. This is not a daily thing, although daily activity plays a role. Its a lot like changing the oil in your car. You want to remove the build up, and help your body maintain optimal performance. Many people develop digestive disorders, allergies, lack of energy, joint problems, etc.. as they get older. You should recognize this for what it is, the body becoming inefficient in its operations, and needing help in increase its functionality.

What you put into your body is only half the picture. What you eliminate and what you keep, is the other half.

So the rest of the saying is, "You are what you eat, and you are also what you don't excrete."

This is another important reason to use a detox program. Nobody gets rid of all of the toxins, and with out a detox progrom to "clean house" your body will accumulate and store the toxins it can't get rid of.

As a doctor of oriental medicine, your elimination processes can tell me a lot about your body's functions. One great indicator of your health is your bowel movements. OK, say it with me.... "yuck! That's Gross!" OK.. got that out of your system? (no pun intended) Great, lets move on. Because the subject is not normal everyday conversation, for most of us, you probably feel that you are normal. That may or may not be, so here is what normal should be:

3 BM's per day. Three meals in, three meals out.

No strong odor

Formed, not loose, not runny, not hard.

No undigested food, except maybe corn or nuts.

There is more, but paying attention to these basics can give you early warning signs that your body is not happy with something you are doing. There is an old saying that disease begins in the gut. I have to agree with that theory. I won't get into that too much here. Thats a whole other topic. Just know that your intestinal function is more than just a tube which funnels waste, and is very important to your health. There are many "nooks and crannies" in the intestines where built up waste can settle. Its important that these things are removed or digestion and health will suffer.

You have to live in the real world, and can not live as if you are on top of a mountain at a meditation retreat. You may not be able to do much about the pollutants in the air, but you can have plants in your house, eat well, make sure you have enough vitamins, etc... You may not be able to eliminate all the toxins in your life, but you can reduce them. A good detox program can help reduce your toxic load, and a wellness plan can help you keep the need to detox again, low. The list of toxins on this page are a very small portion of what we take in. There is much more. You can reduce in some areas, and eliminate in others, but ignoring the need to detox will result in imbalances in your body and your body's functions.