Toxic Load Checklist

Now that you know a little about the detoxification systems, here are some signs that your detoxification pathways may not be working at optimal levels.

Respiratory Dysfunction Checklist

Mucous producing cough

Aware of irregular or heavy breathing

Discomfort at high altitudes

Sigh frequently or “air hunger”

Shortness of breath with moderate exertion

Digestion Dysfunction Checklist

Hypochlorhydria- too little stomach acid

Indigestion, burping, bloating or sleepy immediately after meals

Heartburn or acid reflux symptoms

Nausea in evenings

Proteins hard to digest, complex meals hard to digest (combination of proteins and carbs)

Sense of excess fullness after meals

Feel like skipping breakfast, overall low appetite

Undigested food in stool

Lower Digestive tract

Anemia, unresponsive to iron

Coating on tongue

Fungus or yeast infections

Less than one bowel movement a day

Constipation, stools hard or difficult to pass

Irritable bowel or mucous colitis

Cramping in lower abdominal region

History of parasites

Liver and Gallbladder Dysfunction Checklist

Pain between shoulder blades

Stomach upset by fatty or fried foods

Loose stools with fatty foods, irregular stools, fat in stools (shiny, floating)

Nausea

Dry skin, itchy feet or skin peels on feet

Gallbladder attacks

Gallbladder removed

Bitter taste in mouth, especially after meals

Easily intoxicated or hung if you were to drink wine

Pain under right side of rib cage

Overall Toxin Checklist

Do you rarely break out into a sweat?

Do you use aluminum cooking equipment?

Do you have mercury amalgams?

Do you have your clothes dry-cleaned?

Do you eat “fast-food”  > 2 times a week

Do you drink tap, well or bottled water?

Do you have strong body odor?

Do you drink < 4 cups water a day (approximately 30 oz)

Do you live in a large urban or industrial area?

Do you use lawn or garden chemicals?

Do you sit on your computer 3+ hours a day?

Do you exercise < 3 times a week?

Do you use tobacco products?

Do you eat large fish (sword fish, tuna, shark, tilefish) more than once a week?

Do you urinate small amounts of dark urine only a few times a day?

Are you frequently exposed to solvents and chemicals at work or at home?

When you drink coffee or other substances containing caffeine, do you feel any of the following:

wired, increased aches in muscles and joints, anxiety, palpitations, sweating, dizziness?

Do you have a reaction when you consume foods containing MSG, sulfites or other preservatives?

Tomorrow I'll be posting some suggestions for improving your detoxification systems.

A Closer Look at the Detoxification Systems

·         The Digestive System:

• The digestive system clears toxins from the body on a regular basis. An extreme example of this is the effect from a bout of food poisoning, this is detoxification at work. Less dramatically, stomach acid and various types of cells throughout the digestive tract work to protect the body from pathogens and to excrete harmful bacteria along with other waste. 

• The liver is most important organ for detoxification and it is extremely important in the digestive process. In addition to its numerous metabolic roles, the liver detoxifies drugs and alcohol, and its phagocytic cells ingest and excrete bacteria.

www.doctor-recommended-stress-relief.com

• The endocrine system is also indirectly involved as the endocrine cells throughout the digestive tract are involved in the entire digestive process.

 The Lymphatic System 

• The lymphatic system also encounters toxins on a regular basis. It kicks into high gear following illness or injury, providing a complex defense system to heal injuries and destroy pathogens. 

• As part of the body’s immune system, it works by employing lymphocytes and phagocytes to attack and remove microorganisms, foreign cells, and cancerous cells. It is also responsible for the day to day drainage of waste from the cells.  

www.healingdaily.com

The Respiratory System

• When thinking about detoxification, the lungs may not immediately come to mind, however they are responsible for the removal of gaseous waste from the body. Without the respiratory system’s excretory properties we would die from the build-up of carbon dioxide in our cells. 

pulmonary.pediatrics.med.ufl.edu

 The Excretory System

• The excretory system’s function is to remove waste, including toxins from the body. 

• The urinary system works in concert with the circulatory system to remove waste from the blood. The kidneys are also responsible for maintaining the proper fluid balance of the blood, the acid-base balance, and electrolyte balance.

www.medicinenet.com

• In addition to protecting the body from the environment, the skin and body membranes act as both an intricate warning system through its connection to the sensory cortex, and as part of the excretory system through its distribution of sweat glands. Sweat serves to regulate the body’s temperature and it secretes acidic chemical barriers to deter the growth of bacteria

www.studyblue.com

To Detox or Not to Detox, That is the Question for This Time of the Year

Why Are Post-Holiday Detox Plans So Popular?

The answer to that is fairly evident…most of us over-indulge with those once-a-year-holiday-favorites. Sadly those wonderful treats are usually laden with more sugar, fat, salt, and carbohydrates than our bodies can handle. Thus the post-holiday pounds follow, along with lower energy levels. This is when people start to look for a quick fix, often treating a detox like a crash diet.

Crash diets are not a good solution to long lasting weight loss. Though you may lose a few pounds quickly, you are lowering your metabolism at the same time and setting yourself up to regain the weight you lost. Therefore treating a detox as a way to quickly lose a few pounds is also not the healthiest move.

This is one of the reasons the topic of detoxing has been called into question in recent years. Some proponents have mislabeled, misled and encouraged misuse of detoxification plans. However, properly used, a detox can be a good first step in cleaning up some unhealthy eating patterns, it can assist in identifying food sensitivities, it can improve liver function, and it can remove toxins from the body.

Another point about post-holiday detoxes is that winter is really not a good time to begin a detoxification program. Consider our ancestor's seasonal eating patterns, winter was a time of warming foods. During winter the body has to work at keeping warm, therefore cooked and traditionally preserved foods are eaten as a ready source of fuel. During Spring our bodies don't have this need. This is also the time of year when bitter greens, which are excellent detoxifiers, begin to grow.

What is a Detox Plan?

Detox plans can vary from simply eating a cleaner more plant-based diet to a chelation to clear heavy metals from the system. The latter should only be conducted following tests with findings of high levels of lead or mercury and under professional supervision (Look under resources for additional information). Between these two extremes there are liquid fasts, raw food plans, along with teas, herbs, and supplements. The goals of these plans are generally the same; to purge the body of toxins.

The body has several ways to rid its self of toxins:

·         The respiratory system

·         The digestive system

·         The lymphatic system

·         The excretory system

The urinary system

The skin and body membranes

The endocrine system is also indirectly involved as the endocrine cells throughout the digestive tract are involved in the entire digestive process.

Over the next week I will cover important information on each system, help you identify whether any of your detoxification systems are suffering, and will identify strategies for improving your body's detoxification systems.