New Year Detox
in Blogs

It has come to the time of the year where you will hear heated discussions in the media about the use of detox diets to clear away the excesses of the festive season. Health shops will sell many supplements that have the word ‘detox’ on the label and complimentary health practitioners will provide various types of support, ranging from a single nutrient supplement, through patches that are thought to draw toxins out of your skin, to multi-day juice fasts.

Orthodox medical doctors on the other hand, will tell us how the liver is very competent at clearing out our Christmas indulgences and that we shouldn’t waste our money on non-scientific detoxes.

So, who is talking the truth in the battle of the health experts? Well, both really! It is true that our body does a very nice detox job all by itself – the gut, liver, kidneys and skin are beautifully designed for this purpose. There are two buts with this argument though:

  1. We are now exposed to environmental toxins that were not around when we were born, not to mention tens of thousands of years ago when humans first evolved. There is no way that the human genome can evolve fast enough to deal with all of the toxins in our environment (some of which are listed below).
  2. The human detoxification system needs a number of nutrients to function – in particular, a number of amino acids, B-vitamins and antioxidants. However, if your diet does not supply these nutrients in high enough amounts, or if other systems in your body compete for the same nutrients, you will be left in short supply. For example, our stress glands (adrenals) and our immune system both deplete the body of these same nutrients.

To summarise, just like a job, if you don’t have much work to do and you are well resourced, all of your chores will be processed at a good pace. However, just like many of us, if the workload is over-bearing and resources in short-supply, a back-log is created. So this is what happens with the liver – if it can’t keep up with the workload, your body can become quite toxic.

The ability to detoxify is a major determinant of our health

Genetically, our detoxification strength can even determine who is able to smoke 20 per day and live to 90 and who may live the ‘clean life’ and contract cancer at age 50. We can all improve our detoxification abilities by reducing the workload for the poor liver and by increasing the nutrients that it needs to do its job, but some people need to do this more than others. This information is now available via genetic testing.

Check this table to see if you are showing any signs of toxicity – there are also many other indicators:

Detox table

The 2-Step Process to Detoxify our Bodies

1) Reduce the workload
Toxins are everywhere – in the air we breathe, the food we eat and the water we drink. Systems in the body, such as the immune and digestive systems, also produce substantial toxins that the liver must deal with, especially when the body is under stress.

Types of toxins:
Heavy metals – e.g. lead from pesticides, cigarette smoke and water pipes; mercury from dental fillings, contaminated fish and cosmetics; aluminium from antacids, cookware and deodorants.
Liver Toxicants – e.g. toxic chemicals, drugs, alcohol, cigarettes, caffeine, solvents, pesticides, herbicides, food additives and food allergies.
Microbes – e.g. bacteria and yeast in the gut; by-products of immune response to invaders.

So, limit your exposure to environmental toxins when possible: clean out your cleaning cupboards and replace with eco-products, consider fewer toiletries*, use organic food when you can afford and source it.

*A recent UK newspaper report suggested that the average woman put over 100 types of chemicals on her skin per day through the use of skin creams, perfumes, deodorants, shampoo, conditioner, hair spray and make-up.

2) Increase your resources

  • - Eat a diet based on fresh fruit and vegetables, whole grains, beans, nuts and seeds, deep-water fish and free-range/organic dairy, poultry and meat.
    - Limit or eliminate intake of alcohol, cigarettes, caffeine and drugs (prescription or recreational).
    - Exercise regularly.
    - Drink plenty of filtered water and herbal teas.
    - Sleep lots – your detox activities are highest at night. For this reason, don’t eat a big meal just before bed.
    - Supplement - specific supplements that contain all the key detoxifying nutrients and herbs can increase your liver support.

Your detox plan

For the past 16 years, I’ve supported my clients through a 3-week gentle detox, especially each New Year. If you would like engage in this process, it consists of a 1-hour initial consultation, a 3-week structured detox and a 1-hour follow-up consultation to transition you out of the detox and into sustainable nutrition. It costs R1500 for the two consultations.

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