Spring Detoxification: Is it right for you?
Spring is just around the corner, and there’s a lot of messaging and products out there about detoxes and cleanses. What does it really mean to detoxify and why should or shouldn’t we do it? In this post, we’ll demystify detoxification and give you a path forward so you can choose what’s best for your body.
Detoxifying Your Body Naturally
Our bodies naturally detoxify everyday as part of normal physiology. Detoxification is one of the body’s most basic automatic functions of eliminating and neutralizing toxins through the colon, liver, kidneys, lungs, lymph (part of the immune system), and skin. Unfortunately, in this day and age, with the pollution found in the air, water, and food we eat, our bodies have a hard time keeping up. Our chemical laden diets, added unnatural fats, processed sugars, excess caffeine and alcohol, radically changes our internal ecosystem.
Additionally, our body naturally produces its own metabolic waste products every day that can get backed up in your system if the eliminatory organs can’t keep up due to other outside toxins.
Body systems and organs that were once capable of cleaning out unwanted substances are now completely over-loaded to the point where toxic material remains inside our tissues. Imagine what happens to your pool or hot tub when the filter is clogged and the chemical balance is off - but on the inside of your body!
Frustrated you cannot loose weight?
If these toxins cannot get out through the normal pathways our body does the second best thing it can to try to protect us from these dangerous substances by encapsulating it with mucous and fat so that it will not cause more significant damage to critical life sustaining organs like the brain or heart. Fat cells are like storage tanks for the bodies extra garbage and on top of that produce their own inflammation to add to the mix. Think about it - if you can’t get the garbage out of your house are you going to let it pile up in your bedroom or kitchen, or in the basement or garage?
Understanding Detoxification
Detoxification through therapeutic cleansing diets, sweating (exercise and saunas), hydrotherapy (hot tub/cold plunge) and colon therapy (herbs, colonics, coffee enemas, etc), are some of the best ways to assist your body’s natural self-cleaning system. These therapies are especially important for immune-compromised diseases like cancer, autoimmune arthritis, diabetes, and chronic fatigue but PLEASE work with a practitioner to guide you. Even if your diet is pretty good, a cleanse can revitalize your system and rid your body of ubiquitous inflammation, bacteria, parasites and give your body the rest and energy boost it needs.
Who should cleanse and how?
Not all detoxes are appropriate for all people. For example you actually need a baseline of health before doing a water fast or master cleanse. Juice cleanses can be detrimental to someone with blood sugar issues. The more critical your health is the more critical the preparation and completion phases before and after the cleanse are to know how to best transition your body in and out of a cleanse or detox.
Also, there’s often an assumption we can just “do a cleanse” and our body will automatically hit the eject button, and eliminate all the chemicals and toxins building up in our bodies. But we are not machines that just need an oil change. Detoxification of the human body is not that simple.
Types of Detoxification
Let’s start by talking about the two different types of detoxification:
Physiologic or Natural Detoxification: Involves the body's normal, everyday processes of the liver, urination, bowel elimination and sweating and never exceeds the bodies capacity to eliminate waste.
Forced Detoxification: Utilizes herbal, mineral, environmental or pharmaceutical means to push the body beyond its normal physiologic capacity.
Forced detoxification has its place in health and healing and you want to be crystal clear if you are taking on a protocol in this way that you have the professionally trained support to help manage symptoms that may arise in the process. Examples can be as vast as the different people as it is highly personal to what your body is capable of eliminating and how well your organs of elimination are working. What may be physiological detoxification (a juice cleanse) for one person could be force detoxification for another person.
What It Takes to Detoxify
First and foremost, our bodies require REST. If your body is not relaxed and at ease in a parasympathetic state it will not fully and completely allow the toxins to get all the way out of your body. There are three types of rest:
Mental rest: mostly happens during sleep.
Physical rest: not using your muscles.
Physiological rest: not using your organs. The main organs that you can provide physiologic rest to are the digestive organs which you can do by not eating, or fasting.
Note about fasting: Thousands of years of history show humans beings have always had periods of fasting in their lives naturally built in. We as a wester society do not. Fasting can be very, very good for you and its important to recognize fasting is a type of cleanse and as such requires REST to be most effective.
Simply not eating is not a complete fast. The ritual and practice of fasting includes rest, solitude, contemplation, mental relaxation (aka no screens, reading, working, etc) light exercise, and lots of sleep. in other words the most effective fasting happens in TIME OFF, free from work and life responsibilities.
Types of Cleanses and Considerations
None are inherently better then another – each has its merit, and specific uses, so the question is: are they right for YOU?
Here is a list of various cleanses from most intense to least intense:
Multi-day fasting: examples medically supported water fasting, or master cleanse. Recommended for 4-8 days. Concerns are for people with chronic fatigue, adrenal insufficiency, low blood sugar.
Multi-day juice cleanses: loads of options, best is to start with 50% fruit 50% veggies and transition to 100% veg in the first 3 days. Focus on bitter greens in the spring. Recommended for 7-14 days. Concerns are for people with diabetes or elevated blood sugar concerns.
Raw vegan cleanse: a brilliant reset to lower inflammation and reinforce how to eat lots of veggies. Recommended for 28-days, consider 7 days of juice only in the 3rd week. Concerns are for people who tend to have constipation and sluggish ‘cold’ digestion.
Carnivore diet: believe it or not this is a great option to reduce an autoimmune flare, heal the cardiovascular system, do a hard reset on blood sugar control and allow your body to be deeply refueled with essential proteins and fats. Recommended for 30-90 days. Good for people who are experiencing systemic weakness or significantly depleted from chronic stress, over overworking, care taker fatigue, or chronic-always-on-demand output.
Whole foods cleanse: Eliminate all processed foods, sugar, dairy, and unhealthy oils and incorporate pasture raised organic proteins, fats, and vegetables. Examples include the whole-30 program or inflammation spectrum. Easiest to follow and applicable to anyone.
Technology cleanse: No screens, wifi, or even electronic toys/ games after work hours and weekends for a month. Let your brain discover its creativity again, read a REAL book, make art. color, play board games, sports outside, even use lanterns and candle light and live like you are camping. Your brain, eyes, hormones, circadian rhythm and SOUL will thank you!
NOTE: When it comes to detox / withdrawal symptoms, some say you have to feel worse before you feel better. This is not necessarily the case and some of these symptoms point to the difference between physiologic/natural detoxification and forced detoxification. Caffine and sugar addiction withdrawal symptoms of low energy, brain fog and head ache is common in the first two to three days. Reach out to a medical practitioner for more significant symptoms including constipation, nausea, feeling excessively cold, plummeting low energy, or unrelenting headache.
Things to consider:
Beware of any cleanse that is just a single product with no guidelines to change how you’re eating/ living etc. These products may be helpful but are really not a cleanse.
Beware of any fast or juice cleanse that doesn’t have lead in and lead out diet recommendations. ALWAYS have a clear exit strategy.
Length of time you can truly dedicate:
Short and fast: 3 to 7 days – best for fasts or juice cleanses.
Medium and effective: 14 day focused raw vegan, juice cleanse, or prescribed & guided liver, colon, or inflammation cleanse
Longer 30 days+: GREAT for habit changes, lifestyle change, sustainable weight lost. These have the least risk of detox symptoms, and in general they are healthier.
Your current health status and bio-individuality.
BLOOD SUGAR!!!
Hormone health: Adrenal function & thyroid health
Make sure you have the time, space, and energy in your life to do it right.
What are your goals? Why bother doing this at all? What do you most want out of it in the end to incorporate into your life?
In general, it’s best to use a cleanse to bridge the gap from where you are now to a lifestyle that will support you in having HUGE energy, a fit, strong body, and a clear focused mind to go live the life you are meant to!
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Here’s one of my favorite recipes to support your body’s natural detoxification processes in the Spring. Enjoy!
Sarah’s Favorite Green Juice Recipe
Ingredients:
Organic baby spinach or kale.
Organic cilantro.
Organic cucumber.
Lime or lemon juice.
Filtered water.
Stevia (optional).
Add all ingredients to super blender in the order listed (ice on top) and blend to desired consistency. Drink immediately to get the most benefit from the nutrition in it.
Health Tip: Spinach is not just for building strength (turns out Popeye was right) but is also full of powerful anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer benefits. Cilantro, in addition to being great for detox, also can help regulate insulin release and blood sugar control.
Incorporating detoxification into your routine can bridge the gap to a healthier lifestyle, supporting increased energy, physical fitness, and mental clarity. It's essential to choose a cleanse that aligns with your health goals and consult with a healthcare professional if needed. Remember, detoxification is a journey, not a quick fix, towards achieving overall wellness.