For whom? Why?
To detox is to use natural techniques, mainly food and plants, to remove toxins from the body, to purify, to cleanse from within.
The accumulation of stress, bad eating habits, abuse of alcohol, cigarettes, coffee, pollution all disturb and clog the body.
The body becomes saturated with the accumulation of these unpleasant physical and emotional toxins.
The organs then lose their vitality and those whose job it is to filter these toxins (skin, lungs, kidneys, intestines and liver) become completely overloaded and no longer eliminate and store these useless residues.
We know the consequences: lack of sleep, pale complexion, fatigue, stiff muscles and joints, weight gain, irritability, weakened immune system, etc.
And the vicious circle begins, because to hide these evils, we often eat even worse, smoke even more? We are then slowly heading towards illness.
Where do toxins come from?
- Digestion of the food we eat (starch, flour, sugar, meat)
- The normal life of our cells: cells live, produce waste to be eliminated (CO², etc.)
- Chemical substances added to industrial food: additives, preservatives, colourings
- Traces of pesticides from conventional agriculture, traces of chemical fertilisers, etc.
- Heavy metals from certain foods (such as mercury in fish) and polluted air (lead).
- Recurring negative thoughts, stress causes the body to produce toxins (acids)
- We could even add to this list the endocrine disrupters present in plastics (the bisphenol A family) and in cosmetics derived from petrochemicals (creams, shower gels, varnishes, make-up, etc.).
How does the body deal with these toxins?
Here are some of the ways the body deals with toxins so that it is not poisoned:
- Fat production to contain, store and prevent tissue burning
- Oedema, which is an accumulation of water to dilute the toxins
- The production of neutral salts (stones): in fact, acidic toxins are neutralised by the alkaline minerals in the blood, the mineral reserves of our body (bones, teeth, hair, nails); the neutral salts thus formed are, in principle, eliminated by the kidneys... if they work well!
- Elimination by the kidneys, intestines (and sometimes by the skin and lungs)
How to do your detox? 3 essential points
It is essential to follow these 3 points for any cure:
- Reduce food intake for a few days (digestive rest)
- Stimulate the excretory organs (intestines, liver, kidneys, skin, lungs)
- Rest and relaxation
1. Reduce the amount of food
During your detox, you will eliminate all foods that promote the production of toxins:
- Refined products, coffee, tea, chocolate, milk, alcohol, confectionery, sugar, creams
- Red meat, cooked fats, sausages
- Cigarette smoking and alcohol
So yes, meals will seem more bland, but that's for the good of your body.
Instead of the above foods, we prefer fruits, raw and cooked vegetables, rehydrated dried fruits.
You can eat mixed salads, soups, steamed vegetables with a little olive oil.
For dessert, replace dairy products with jam, chocolate with dates or dried apricots.
There is a whole range of detoxes with different levels of restriction:
- A quick detox might consist of skipping dinner (intermittent fasting) and drinking a sugar-free diuretic herbal tea or broth.
- Mono diet: eat only one (healthy) food a day: grapes, raw or cooked apple, raw or cooked carrot, pear, brown rice, etc.
- Fresh fruit and vegetable juice diet: over the course of a week, eat a healthy diet and drink fruit and vegetable juices 30 minutes before each meal.
- You can also follow a plant-based diet without animal products for a few days.
- Finally, the most intense detoxification is total fasting, which means that no food is eaten, only sugar-free drinks. It is advisable to be accompanied by a naturopath to ensure that everything goes well.
2. Stimulate the excretory organs
The organs of elimination are called the excretory organs.
These are the kidneys, intestines, skin, liver and lungs.
They are filters and their job is to eliminate and release all kinds of toxins.
During your cleansing cure, you will stimulate their work and avoid the possible drawbacks of detoxification in the following ways:
- To aid intestinal transit: drink Alder Buckthorn tea or take blond Psyllium bark, Plum juice (or rehydrated plums). Don't do all 3 on the same day, of course. Remember to take a walk or do some physical activity.
- To help your kidneys eliminate toxins, drink at least 1.5 litres of water a day or herbal teas without sugar.
- Help your skin to sweat by taking warm baths, playing sport, going to the sauna or steam bath.
- Support lung elimination (of CO2 and volatile acid waste) by doing breathing exercises (pranayama), walking briskly, diffusing essential oils in the home.
3. Rest and relax
As the mind is very energy consuming and stress slows down the body's cleansing systems, it is essential that you rest during your detox:
- Meditate
- Take a warm bath, hammam or sauna
- Colourful mandalas
- Gardening
- Limit activities that disturb you TV, crowds, noise
- Have a massage
- ...
And how long does it take to heal?
Between 1 day and 3 weeks, depending on the intensity of the restriction you choose, your vitality, your health, your activity, your toxaemia and .... your motivation!
It is essential to consult a naturopath to find the best treatment for you.
What happens when you do a detox?
You should know that digestion is very energy intensive, especially when meals contain animal fats, refined sugars, etc.
If we limit the amount of food we eat during the day, the energy not used by digestion will be useful for the process of tissue repair (self-healing).
Scars are a clear example of self-healing.
During a detox, the person will eat less, better, without animal products, and their body will take advantage of this to start the healing and elimination processes, especially during the night.
Conclusion
It is important to be accompanied by a naturopath in order to best eliminate the various toxins from the body, as their general natural health practice includes several techniques in addition to food restriction.
Depending on the state of health or fatigue of some people, the elimination is not done well and headaches or other pains may occur during detoxification.
As we have seen, there are many possible cures, from the most restrictive (fasting) to the easiest to follow, such as monodiet or intermittent fasting.
The length of the cure depends on your own desires, vitality, health and motivation.