Things You Can do to Detox Your Body

Last month we discussed symptoms of toxicity in the body. This month, we are talking about what to do when your body is toxic. 

How Detoxing Works

If you are not doing something regularly to eliminate toxicity, then most people can assume their bodies have a certain level of toxicity. Toxins leave the body via feces, urine, or sweat. 

“Whenever someone decides they want to ‘detox’ the body,” says Dr. Michelle Ewer of the Thermography Center, “it needs to be done in steps and there are often certain organs (like the liver or kidneys or spleen) that must be supported first before the detox process can begin. Once the proper organs are supported, then it is best to check the lymphatic system (which is also your immune system), because if the lymphatic fluid isn’t moving, then the toxins cannot get out of the body.”

Things You can do to Detox

Detoxing has been practiced for centuries by cultures around the world, including Ayurvedic and Chinese medicine systems. Detoxification is about resting, cleansing, and nourishing the body from the inside out. Here are a few ways you can help detoxify your body:

Sweat More – Sweating is one of the easiest ways for the body to get toxins out of the body via the pores of the skin. The more you can sweat on a regular basis, the more consistently you are helping the body eliminate toxicity. 

Have a Detox Foot Bath – The bottoms of your feet actually have the largest pores in your body. You can test this by putting a piece of garlic in your sock – you will taste it in less than 5 minutes! This happens because the pores on your feet are highly absorbent, so on the flip side, this means that they can also release larger toxins more easily in that area. Foot baths help pull the toxicity through those pores. 

Eat Detoxifying Foods – There are two kinds of “detoxifying” foods. The first is sulfur-based foods like Brussels sprouts. Sulfur is a great binder for toxin removal. The second kind is foods high in antioxidants like leafy greens and berries. Antioxidants have an extra electron that binds to the unstable single electron of a free radical (which we get from things like cooking oils and processed meats), that unstable electron is what makes free radicals dangerous and damaging to the body. 

Drink Better Water – The best type of water to drink is either distilled or reverse osmosis. Distilled water is especially good for anyone who has a high toxicity load because of the way it is filtered: They collect only the hydrogen and oxygen molecules as the end product. There is no extra information in the water. Dr. Ewer recommends drinking distilled water for about a month 2-3 times a year to help the body work through toxicity build-up throughout the year. If you are considering a whole-house filtration system, or for everyday water, reverse osmosis water is your best bet.

Check Your Products –  The products we put on and in our bodies may contain toxins. Look for clean products by checking the ingredient labels or go to the EWG (Environmental Working Group) website https://www.ewg.org/ where they have a consumer guide for household products and cosmetics. This guide will give you more detailed information about which products are toxic and dangerous and which ones are safer options. There are also apps you can download to your phone. Some scan barcodes, others scan ingredients and they can help you make better decisions on what products to use. As a rule, just be sure you can recognize all the ingredients in any product that you buy– if you can’t pronounce it, don’t use it! 

Dry Brushing – Dry brushing simultaneously stimulates both the circulatory system (blood flow) and the lymphatic fluid. Your lymphatic fluid is like a highway that transports toxins and waste out of the body. Dry brushing is a great way to maintain good flow in your blood and your lymph. For an added bonus, do it before you get in the shower because it also exfoliates the skin.

Sit in an Infrared Sauna – Sitting in a full spectrum infrared sauna for only 20 minutes is the detox equivalent of jogging 5 miles! This is because you are sweating out toxicity in the lymphatic system and stimulating healing in both the organs and systemically throughout the whole body. The best infrared saunas for healing purposes are ones that include all 3 types of infrared light: near-infrared, mid-infrared, and far-infrared. 

How do You Know if Detoxing is Working?

The best way to measure if detoxing is working is with testing such as a whole-body thermogram and a heavy metal test like the Oligoscan. On average, most people who are focusing on detoxing can redo the tests after 8-12 months and see/feel a noticeable difference. 

You can schedule either of these tests with The Thermography Center of Dallas here.