We're hearing a lot about toxins lately, and for good reason: Over the last 50 years, some 70,000 to 100,000 different chemicals have been introduced into the food supply and environment, with about 1,500 new ones added each year. These man-made chemicals (referred to as persistent organic pollutants, or POPs) are an issue for the following reasons:
They invade the environment; spread through our water, air and soil
They are taken in and stored in fish and animals
They eventually reach the top of the food chain - humans, when we eat plants and animals
Babies are born already carrying as many as 300 different chemicals in their bodies, and studies cite that breast milk is filled with environmental pollutants. It has gotten so bad that some physicians have begun to recommend that mom's refrain from nursing their babies.
Perhaps you've heard the term "body burden," which refers to the total amount of toxins you carry in your body. We each have a total toxic threshold, or a limit to the number of chemicals we can process before our detox organs become overloaded. Each day we're exposed to carcinogenic environmental pollutants and toxins from household cleaners, cosmetics, body care products, food supply, medications. Certain chemicals and heavy metals can affect our nervous systems and contribute to many symptoms including anxiety, insomnia, ADHD, chronic fatigue, autism, Parkinson's disease, and dementia.
When toxins build up in our systems and overwhelm the liver and detox organs, symptoms result. Signs you are "toxic" may include:
• Recurrent headaches
• Digestive issues like constipation, gas, heartburn, indigestion, bloating
• Insomnia
• Foggy thinking, trouble concentrating
• Fatigue
• Inability to lose weight (toxins are stored in fat cells, making the body reluctant to burn
excess fat)
• Anxiety and depression
• Joint pain
• Generalized inflammation
Hormone Imbalance and Deficiencies
Women especially are susceptible to the effects of toxins because of our sensitive endocrine systems. Toxins can affect fertility and hormone balance, so it's especially important to detox your system twice yearly, and take the steps below to reduce the toxins in your daily life.
Use Non-toxic Personal Care Products and Fragrances:
The average American woman uses over 500 chemicals on her body every day. Your skin absorbs everything you apply to it, and those chemicals you can't pronounce that you see on the bottles of your personal care products have to be neutralized, detoxed, and excreted by your liver and kidneys all day long. So start lowering your overall toxic burden by minimizing the amount of personal care products and fragrances that you use on a daily basis. Also look for products with natural ingredients - these can be found either online or in your local health food store.
Use Non-toxic Household products:
This is a big one. Household cleaning products are among the most chemical-filled and cancer causing products on the market today. We inhale and inadvertently ingest them. So switch to green cleaning products, or even better, make your own. It's so easy. You can use essential oils, vinegar, borax, and hydrogen peroxide, and baking soda. Here's an example: Easy bleach substitute - mix hydrogen peroxide, water, and lemon essential oil. This can be used to freshen your whites and for any other purpose you'd normally use bleach.
Clean Up Your Food Supply:
You probably know that buying organic is important, but it gets very expensive. I tell my patients to prioritize by buying organic meats foremost. Commercially farmed animals and dairy cows are raised under abhorrent conditions and are given hormones and antibiotics, which end up stored in their fat and flesh. Also avoid farmed fish, which are filled with toxins and PCBs. After that, avoid the "dirty dozen" high pesticide produce list. To save money, it is OK to buy conventional produce with thick peels or skins, like avocado, citrus, or winter squash.
Avoid Plastic Containers & Canned Foods:
Plastics contain dioxins, which are endocrine-disrupting chemicals that leach from the plastic into your drinking water and food. This gets worse if you heat food in plastic, or if you're leaving water bottles in hot cars. Canned foods, polycarbonate plastics, and epoxy resins contain bisphenol A (BPA). Exposure to BPA is a concern because of possible health effects of BPA on the brain, behavior and prostate gland of fetuses, infants and children.
Poop Regularly:
Yes, you read that right. Stool is one of the main vehicles for detox. The toxins, cholesterol, and excess hormones the body doesn't need get bound up in stool and need to be excreted regularly. If you're constipated, toxins sit in the colon where they're reabsorbed into your system. You should be producing a banana-sized sinker daily. Yep, every single day.
Clean Up Your Indoor Air:
In the last several years, a growing body of scientific evidence has indicated that the air within homes and other buildings can be more seriously polluted than the outdoor air in even the largest and most industrialized cities. People spend approximately 90 percent of their time indoors, so for many people, the risks to health may be greater due to exposure to air pollution indoors than outdoors. What to do? Open your windows! Don't let your house get stuffy. I open windows daily to air out my home - even in the winter. I also recommend using air filters and purifiers to rid the air of harmful chemicals and toxins. Austin Air, Air Oasis and Intellipure are all good options.
Support Your Body's Detox Process:
Even with all of our best efforts we can still be exposed to chemicals and toxins in our environment on a daily basis. So it is important to support and optimize your body's natural detoxification mechanisms. While I recommend the Restorative Medicine Cleanse for 2-4 weeks twice per year, I also think it is important to use the following approach to detox on a more regular basis:
✔️Far IR or dry sauna use for 30 minutes 2-5 times per week
✔️Exercise and movement daily to support lymph drainage
✔️Homeopathic lymph drainage remedies such as Drainage by Xymogen
✔️Multivitamin and high quality protein to support Phase 1 and 2 detox in the liver
✔️Use of toxin binders daily or several times per week such as activated charcoal, bentonite clay, fruit pectins, chlorella and silica