What is Detoxification?
Detoxification is the process of removing toxic materials from your body. It is surprising to know as to why your body needs detoxification, in the first place. You are not alone to think why your body house would any toxification at all. Our bodies could be consuming toxic chemicals either from air, unhealthy food habits, water, cosmetics, or plastic containers we use, micro-waved food or any other habits we may have. The intensity of toxicity could be ranging in degree depending on how much junk a body is exposed to or not.
Body is self-healing
The human body is known to be self-healing in many ways, but the problem arises when toxicity hampers the healing process and instead leads to health challenges. It could show up in the form of recurring headaches, constipation, skin problems or body aches, weight gain or water retention, puffiness and the like; the list goes on. Often, we take instant pills to suppress the headache or address whatever the issue is at a superficial level, before getting to the root of it.
Detoxification plays a key role to repair the body and make possible attempts to care for the body.
Top 7 steps to detox:
1. Cleansing: Clearing up your gut, emptying the muck out of the intestinal walls. In case of constipation, this is an important step as to how often constipation interferes with any nutrients being absorbed into one’s body. Experts have reiterated this time and again, that disease usually starts from the gut and if the gut is not healthy then, it could sooner or later pave a path to some illness.
2. Fasting or Intermittent fasting: Give time for digestion of your earlier meal. The digested food is converted into fuel and this fuel will be consumed by the body for proper functioning. And when there is no food in your stomach around this time, your body can divert its energy into focusing on other organs functioning. During the fasting phase, your body tends to do the “maintenance” job and analyze, repair as required. Fasting is often seen naturally in animals on a regular basis. You, certainly, would have seen a dog plucking out grass and eating it, without consuming food when the dog is unwell or on some indicative days.
Discuss with your doctor or nutritionist before you get into a mode of fasting and before establishing a routine. Check this link for more information on intermittent fasting.
3. Drinking lemon water, every day on empty stomach:
This is a well-known tip to get your system kickstarted every morning, on an empty stomach. If you are unable to do any other form of detoxification, consuming a simple glass of lemon warm water is good enough, if taken consistently. This tip has long term health benefits. You can see visible health benefits in 1-2 weeks’ time- better digestion, clearer skin, alkaline body nature, lesser body pains, boost of energy .
4. Diet management: As cliched as it may sound, eating more alkaline foods and natural foods is one of the evergreen tips, to improve your health. Eat more fruits and whole vegetables (steamed vegetables or raw consumable ones) during the day and minimize intake of any junk food. Fruits and vegetables support your detoxification process, help your digestion, significantly aid the functioning of your vital organs.
5. Hydration (consume lots of water): More than 70% of our body is made up of water. Water is the key medium in our body which enables a proper functioning of the body. Water helps in eliminating wastes, smoothens blood circulation, supports detoxification of your liver, kidneys, digestive system- to name a few benefits.
6. Sweat it out: Exercise or do brisk walking or sweat it out in a sauna. Sweating unclogs our pores, burns calories, releases wastes. The skin releases wastes’ in the form of sweat, which is why sometimes when there is too much toxicity, the sweat stink is more intense. Sweating supports our kidneys and adrenal glands by aiding in the elimination system. Often, retained water is released through sweat, apart from our internal systems.
7. Sleep well: Getting a good night’s sleep is a path to good recovery and rest to your body. The body’s metabolism is active in sleep and works wonders while you sleep. Sleeping helps in weight loss, clearing your mind, rejuvenating your body. Click for more detailed inputs on how to lose weight while you sleep.
Detox Top 10 benefits
Some of the top benefits of detoxification are listed below. But it is not limited to these 10. Detoxification goes far below the surface and gets to correct root problems.
1. Glowing, Clearer skin
2. Better digestion
3. More energy, lesser fatigue
4. Improved health
5. Lesser infections
6. Weight loss, minimizes water retention
7. Improved body functioning
8. Better moods and positive mindset
9. Prevention of long term illnesses
10. Better sleep
While doing a detox is good to do on a regular basis, it is important to gauge whether you need a detox at all. Each body type is unique. Some may need a detox once a year, while some others may need a detox every month; It all depends on our diet habits and other habits which are best known to us. In other words, if you are a vegan and eat healthy by habit, the need for a detox may not be intense. But however, if some one else, is having frequent body aches or skin related issues, it may be important to understand the root cause and seek if detox is an option.
It is recommended to consult a doctor or a nutritionist before a proper detoxification regime is adapted. The approach to detox may vary in terms of intensity or the type of detox needed. For some people, a simple glass of water lemon water 2-3 times a week is good enough, whereas for some others, a proper detox may be needed by consuming only fruits and vegetables, with less or no meat.
Point is detoxification is important and unique. It is crucial to determine the approach before implementing any detox regime, based on what is suitable to you. Needless to say, you must not do a detox simply because 2 of your friends are following a particular detox method and its working for them.
