Who says you can't detoxify your body?

“There is no known way – certainly not through detox treatments – to make something that works perfectly well in a healthy body work better.”

Edzard Ernst, emeritus professor of complementary medicine at Exeter University

Read the article here:

http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2014/dec/05/detox-myth-health-diet-science-ignorance?

This article is hilarious because it quotes a couple of professors who are in the profession that is most responsible for the worldwide epidemic of drug-induced liver failure and consequent premature deaths.  

Cartoon by Colin Livingstone

I attended a practitioner education course earlier this week on the topic of iatrogenic disease which dealt in detail with how the liver and kidneys metabolise (or should I say "struggles to metabolise") prescription medications into less toxic substances in preparation for excretion. In popular terms this is called "detoxification". I learned that there is a medical crisis with drug-induced liver toxicity. Liver damage caused by drugs such as NSAIDs amounts to tens of thousands of people being killed or maimed annually (Paracetamol, for example, is the leading cause of acute liver failure in the Western world 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paracetamol).  

The liver is an astonishingly complex organ that does a number of critical functions including filtering the blood and cleansing the body of wastes and toxins. When it comes to pharmaceutical drugs, we must bear in mind that the liver never had to deal with any of these toxic substances until less than a hundred years ago! It is hardly a surprise that the liver of even the most healthy person struggles to detoxify these alien chemicals. Here is a review of the huge problem of drug-induced liver damage, as well as it giving an overview of how the liver detoxifies drugs and other toxins: 

http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMra021844 

Here's a Youtube video about liver health:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bx6kj6xLCZw 

Detoxification processes can be supported and the liver given some protection from harm by supplementing the healthy diet with a variety of nutritional compounds ranging from glutathione to milk thistle. The only debate we should be having about detox is whether or not a person needs to support this natural, ongoing body process with special diets and supplements? I accept that there is no shortage of quackery out there which is why one is best advised to seek the assistance of a knowledgeable health professional, rather than a shop assistant, especially if one suspects harm is being caused by prescription or over-the-counter drugs.

While being laughable, it is still very sad to read articles like these which come across as a blatant and sensational attempt to bag anybody who wishes to promote health beyond the simplistic message:

"Eat healthy, exercise regularly and don't forget to take your meds" 

Rest assured that we can do much better than that!

Foods that help the liver do its work:

About this website 

The advice in these articles is given freely without promise or obligation. Its all about giving you and your family the tools and information to take control of your health and fitness.

Candida and Fungal Infections? Gary Moller recommends you explore this programme: Click Here!

Nutritional Medicine 101: How to do a "Challenge Test" (updated 2/12/2013)

"Hey, just curious and maybe coincidental,but I tried one drop of Lugols iodine today.  Had a horrible headache and totally out of it today.

Any relationship you think?"
(Name withheld)

It is possible that a nutrient, such as iodine, a nutritional therapy, such as for adrenal fatigue, or a therapy for candida or intestinal parasites may trigger some unpleasant symptoms.

Where there is the coincidence of feeling under the weather and taking a nutrient, like Lugols, how can we be sure it is the iodine and not just mere coincidence?  Perhaps the patient has caught a virus, or just woken that day feeling "off colour" as so often happens for no apparent reason? 

Adrenal and thyroid dysfunction, a poor diet and many medications may result in sluggish liver function and sluggish detoxification at the cellular levels.  While this is a controversial subject, I have no doubt that this is the case for many people who have been operating on less than all cylinders.

Anything that upregulates cellular metabolism, including liver function, can result in an increase in discomfort.

Think of an old motor that has been sitting unused and poorly maintained for a long time: When it is restarted there may be considerable difficulty turning the motor over and success may finally be greeted with much unpleasant and worrying coughing, spluttering and blowing of dirty smoke out the rear end before finally bursting fully into life!  This may happen with a person - kind of!

When this happens with a person, the already toxic liver may struggle to cope with the metabolic load of the 1.5 trillion cells of the body off-loading built up toxins into the circulation.  If there is parasitic die-off, the detritus must be disposed of which is an unpleasant, but necessary process for the body to deal with.  All the while, the poor old liver is struggling with disposing of the toxins from within into the bile where it is excreted into the digestive tract.  The result may be headache, aching muscles and joints - and even digestive upset, including nausea.  The digestive upset may be due to the toxic bile upsetting the gut.

In the case of iodine therapy for thyroid dysfunction, there may be an initial over-reaction of the thyroid to the increase in iodine.  This is not necessarily a bad thing; but confirmation that the therapy is on the money.  Think of a person found dying of thirst in the desert.  While they may require several liters of water, resuscitation begins with a teaspoon - not a liter of water.  The same principle applies in the case of nutrient starvation.

If the symptoms are tolerable, where there appears to be a reaction, then the best action may be to hunker down until you break through.  This may take a few days.  If the symptoms are intolerable and/or we are still not sure if the nutritional therapy is the cause (the cause may be a virus, for example) then we do this version of the "Challenge Test".

• Stop all nutrients for 24 hours, or for as long as it takes for symptoms to disappear then...
• Start again with the nutritional therapy but at a level lower than before.
• If there are no symptoms after a week, then step up the dosage a little and keep steady for another week.
• Keep incrementally increasing each week until you have reached your target dosages as determined by your health practitioner.
• If symptoms return then stop for another 24 hours, or for as long as it takes for symptoms to disappear, and then resume at the level below which symptoms again arose.
• Continue this process for as long as it takes to reach your target levels symptom-free.

This is a most useful procedure for determining what is having an effect on your body.  It is also a nutritional treatment procedure in itself (Consult your health practioner about how to use this procedure):

Imagine this being a bit like "tidal flushing" of a polluted estuary - with the initial flush of the tide, much polluted muck is dislodged and carried out to sea.   This is very unpleasant, initially; but with each tidal flush, the water becomes cleaner and cleaner and estuary gradually returns to a pristine environment with abundant life.  The same occurs within your body.

If you are taking multiple supplements, or suspect a food may be the culprit, you may do a variation of the above by eliminating all of the suspects from the diet, waiting until you are symptom-free and then gradually reintroduce each item back into the daily diet, one at a time, carefully monitoring symptoms.

About this website 

The advice in these articles is given freely without promise or obligation. Its all about giving you and your family the tools and information to take control of your health and fitness.

Candida and Fungal Infections? Gary Moller recommends you explore this programme: Click Here!

Cleanse Your Body from the Inside Out

Comment by Gary:
This article is by Guest Writer, Holly Mcarthy, Editor of a website about Geriratric Nursing Training in the USA.

There are many body cleansing systems. There are a number of fads doing the rounds right now, such as the Lemon Detox Diet. I have had two cases so far of people suffering heart palpitations and severe muscle cramping while on the Lemon Diet. Rather than just criticise these fad diets, I have decided to research the subject and offer a detoxification programme that is both effective and safe.

The detox programme that I have chosen is the "Herbalist's Herbal Detox Kit" which is formulated by a leading New Zealand health practitioner herbalist, Brett Elliot. The herbal combinations in The Herbalist's Herbal Detox Kit work to improve digestive secretions, such as bile and enzymes, increase peristalsis, and speed metabolism. Liver and kidney functions are also stimulated.

Here is Holly's article:

_______________________

Cleanse Your Body from the Inside Out

As we get older, our bodies have done an amazing amount of work in keeping us healthy and free of complications. While the body may get run down and sick from time to time, it is generally successful when it comes to achieving this goal. As winter begins to come to a close and spring peeks around the corner, we need to consider cleansing our internal organs to help make sure that our bodies operate at peak performance.

Why Cleanse?

Our bodies are constantly working to keep us healthy and disease-free. For example, the liver, our master cleansing organ, filters two quarts of blood every minute. As this blood passes through, the liver filters and cleans the blood, removing impurities and toxins. If you were to look at your body as you would any other sophisticated machine, it becomes clear that some maintenance is in order from time to time.

In addition to the liver, the lungs, kidneys, skin, lymphatic system, and intestinal tract all work to help remove or eliminate harmful toxins from the human body. Obviously, the amount of toxic buildup in the human body depends very much on the lifestyle of the individual in question, but everyone needs to cleanse from time to time.

Some signs and symptoms that you made need to do a cleansing cycle include headaches, fatigue, skin problems, depression, cloudy thinking, weight gain, bad breath, or body odor. These complications may indicate a buildup of toxins in your organs and tissues.

Beginning this cycle in the beginning of spring is a great way to maximize the benefits of internal cleansing. However, if you have a feeling that your body has a particularly large amount of toxic buildup, it may be necessary to run through a cleansing regimen a couple of times to see and feel the desired results.

Selecting a Cleansing Product

There are many herbal cleansing products on the market these days that can be found at most health food stores. You want to find a product that is going to be a whole body cleanse. Each step of this cleansing process is going to focus on different parts of your body to ultimately foster a sense of health and well-being.

Targeting the organs, especially the liver and making sure they are clean and operating at optimal levels is the ultimate goal. The digestive system should also be targeted, with the aim of cleaning out the fecal matter and bacteria that build up in the system over years of eating processed foods and not chewing food properly.

What to Expect During Whole Body Cleansing

As you begin your cleansing regimen, you can expect several things to happen. The first things you’ll notice is that you actually might feel a little worse. Don’t let this bother or deter you—it means the supplements are working. Speak with your doctor before and during the cleansing process to make sure that you are healthy enough to participate in a cleansing program. Some symptoms, such as bad breath, body odor, and skin problems may worsen as you eliminate toxins.

Additionally, you will more than likely have several bowel movements a day that will contain old digestive buildup. This is normal and also indicates that your cleansing program is working effectively. After you have completed the cleansing process, you should feel markedly different and hopefully better. Cleaning your body from the inside out should be done at least once, but preferably twice a year to ensure optimal body function and performance.

By-line:
This post was contributed by Holly McCarthy, who writes on the subject of a geriatric nursing certificate. She invites your feedback at hollymccarthy12 at gmail dot com

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