Cleansing 101: Give your body a break

Cleansing has become a popular term in the American Culture, so popular that is is becoming a fad.  There are tons of products on the market aimed at helping people do the ultimate cleanse, from the newly  popularized Acai berry, to the 2-week cleanse in a box.  Why are we so obsessed with cleansing?  Lets investigate the dietary habits of American, this may clue us into their incessant need for detoxing.  

In 1 year, the average American consumes:  

• 100 pounds of refined sugar 
• 55 pounds of fats & oils
• 300 cans of pop
• 200 sticks of gum
• 18 pounds of candy
• 5 pounds of potato chips
• 7 pounds of corn chips, popcorn, & pretzels
• 63 dozen donuts
• 50 pounds of cakes & cookie 
• 20 gallons of ice cream 

Wow, these statistics are profound, and the first thing we should do when we venture into a cleanse is removing these culprits from our diet!

A question I get asked often is "what do you think of colon cleansing?".  Well, I am definitely a fan of moving your bowels, but I am not a proponent of using harsh stimulant laxatives to get things moving.  I also do not think of "colon cleansing" as a way to cleanse the body.  For starters, bowel elimination is just one of the ways we remove toxins and waste from our bodies, and most of us are simply not storing enough fecal matter in us to warrant it as the end all, be all to a cleanse.  Other organs of elimination include our kidneys, liver, and skin.  When we think of cleansing our body, we should think of our entire body as an organism, and not just pinpoint it to one area like the colon.  In fact, I think that using herbal stimulants like Cascara Sagrada and Senna to get things moving can do more harm than good, especially when taken daily.  These herbs weaken our ability to use our own muscles to move things through peristaltic action.  At some point, daily users become so dependent on them that they can no longer have a bowel movement without the use of these herbs.  A better alternative is magnesium, preferably magnesium citrate.  It is a natural osmotic, pulling water into the colon, and at the right dosage, will facilitate a bowel movement.  And magnesium does not stop there, it is involved in 1,000's of other biochemical reactions in our body and most of us also happen to be deficient in it.  It is also responsible for:

• relaxing our muscles
• causing our blood vessels to expand, leading to a decrease in blood pressure
• a co-factor in making fuel for our bodies, leading to better overall energy
• calming overall, especially helps with mood and sleep

And the list goes on.  Supplementing magnesium to our diet may not be such a bad idea, we need more of it anyway considering the nutrient content of our food these days, or lack thereof.  

Our liver is one of the chief organs for detoxification.  Fortunately the cells of our livers can re-generate, and will completely turn-over every 6 weeks.  Just think, we can have a completely new liver in just 6 weeks.  Our bodies have an incredible ability to heal, despite everything we put it through, just take a look at the statistic above if you need another reminder!  There are some wonderful herbs out there we can use to help aid our liver in its restorative and detoxification efforts.  There include but are not limited to:

• Milk Thistle
• Dandelion
• Artichoke
• Burdock
• Turmeric
• Shizandra
• Ginger
• Chicory root
• Licorice

Definitely use these herbs during a cleanse.  Keep in mind that some herbs do interact with pharmaceutical drugs and must be accounted for when combining them together, please consult with your physician first.

Giving your body a break is precisely what you should be doing during a cleanse.  Avoid those foods, such as those listed above.  They cause inflammation, free radical damage, pH shifts, etc.  Avoid anything that is going to make your organs of elimination work unnecessarily harder, like alcohol, caffeine, smoking,  chemicals, preservatives, artificial sweeteners, etc.  Drink plenty of fluids however like reverse osmosis water with a squirt of lemon, or hot tea.  Aim for organic first, and strive for a vibrant array of colors. It is also important to sweat more, as this is another route for removing waste material and toxins.  Increase  your daily activity such as with walks or swimming.  Other supplements to consider are glutathione, used in both phase 1 and phase 2 liver detoxification pathways.  Slippery Elm, marshmallow, aloe, DGL and glutamine are gut healers, consider these to rebuild the lining of your gut.  You are only as good as your ability to digest, and then detox.  Apple cider vinegar is great during a detox as well, and can be consumed daily for overall health.   


For the Record:  Cleansing can not be found completely in a box, it is a lifestyle change committed for a specific period of time, we should strive to be healthy everyday though, and not just when we choose to cleanse. 

Best wishes on your journey to health ~

Next to come, Naturopathic Nutrition 101



Resources:  Nutrition 620 lecture, SCNM