What is Detoxing?
Detoxing may be defined as cleansing the body from poisons and toxins that may have accumulated in the colon, lymph, lungs, gallbladder, skin, blood, kidneys and liver. It gives our bodies to the chance to clear of these toxins thus rendering them more effective in doing their job in the future. These toxins usually derive from foods, beverages, alcohol, smoking, drugs and stress, and when in excess can leave a person feeling tired, sick and overweight.
Detoxing consists of:
• Lessening the burden on the detoxification organs by reducing the body’s exposure to pollutions and toxins for s set period of time.
• A restricted, healthy diet accompanied by certain supplements to help us eliminate the toxins in our body.
Detoxes can vary greatly, between restricting intake to juice only to allowing only for a diet consisting mainly of vegetables, fruit and wholegrains.
Benefits of Detoxing
Potential benefits of detoxing include:
- The elimination of toxins and poisons that have been running through your body. The positive side effects of this varied, with the most obvious being dramatically increased feelings of vitality and well being.
- A cleansed colon that prevents constipation that may cause fatigue, lethargy and bloating.
- A reduction in food consumption. Whilst the amount of food is generally unlimited on a detox, many experience a decrease in appetite that may be attributed to the limited food types.
- Weight loss that may be contributed to a healthier diet, and the flushing of retained water and fat cells.
- A strengthened immune system that is freed from dealing with everyday toxins.
- The clearance of congestion, mucous, gastrointestinal inflammation and fermentation.
- The reformation of bad lifestyle habits such as junk food addictions, smoking and alcohol consumption.
Disadvantages of Detoxing
- Lowered Immunity
- Some individuals experience limited weight loss, or weight that quickly returns once the detox is over once old habits return.
Types of Detoxes
There are many types of detox diets to choose from. Some popular detox diets include:
- Juice fasting
- Master cleanse diet
- Mono Fruit Detox diet
- Raw food detox diet
- Diuretic diet
If you are interested in finding out more information on how detoxing may benefit you, please speak to a professional nutritionist or naturopath.
Originally published on Aug 24, 2010
