Following on from a recent live to air piece on ABC radio discussing the detoxification process, I was inspired to delve more deeply into the dirty world of detox.
Myths and misconceptions around detox abound, detox diets can be done really badly, often leaving you feeling worse than beforehand, be totally ineffective and a complete waste of time and money.
On the other hand, if done well, a detox is a sound investment in your health, has the potential to hugely improve your wellbeing and change the course of your health journey.
Detox- What does it mean?
When I say detox, I mean a prescribed diet and nutrition plan that actively enhances and supports the body's organs of detoxification to remove toxins that have been stored in the body.
Why Detox?
Your body is an amazing beast. Daily, the processes of metabolism work to remove toxins from your system but when your detox processes can't keep up, excess toxins will be stored in various places around your body.
Stored toxins can be found in your fat, in your brain cells, in blood cells, in neurological tissues, in your liver, in your bones, everywhere in fact.
How to Detox
Everyone will require a slightly different focus to their detoxification plan depending on their current state of health, symptom picture and past or present exposure to toxins.
A detox diet is designed to reduce the amount of toxins entering your body whilst actively encouraging toxin removal. We do this by:
Removing white & processed foods
Avoiding alcohol & red meat
Eliminating sugar
Consuming lots of whole grains (if grain tolerant), water, fresh vegetables and juices
Eating small fish, free range eggs, legumes and if really needing meat, free range/organic chicken
Treating the gut with additional fibre, probiotics and nutraceuticals
Adding carefully selected plant and nutritional compounds to upregulate your liver and kidney detoxification capacity
Additional detox strategies:
Dry skin brushing
Sweating/sauna
Castor oil packs
Fresh air and sunshine
How long does a detox take?
This depends again on your individual set of circumstances. For those who are generally quite well, a thorough effective detox can be completed in a little over 2 weeks.
If you've been unwell for a while and your general health is lacking, anywhere from 2 to 6 weeks dedicated to detoxing can reinvigorate your wellbeing.
How often should I detox?
This varies across the board. Generally, an annual detox is ideal, though for some this isn't practically possible, so I say detox whenever you think you can manage it. With some people I am more insistent of regular detox; those with gastrointestinal issues, those on weightloss programs, cancer survivors, couples planning a child and those working in 'toxic' occupations, for example.
When is the best time to detox?
Traditionally Spring is considered an ideal time though with so many of us being busy and juggling multiple committments, anytime you can detox, is a good time to detox.
Once you have completed one detox, enjoyed the benefits firsthand and become familiar with the process, your annual detox can become something to look forward to rather than worry yourself about.
Special Offer
If you've always been curious about detox or feeeling like now is a good time for you to detox, why notconsider a detox taster? A two week detox will include:
Two Naturopathic consultations
A detailed eating plan and sample recipes
'Practitioner only' quality nutraceuticals, targeting liver and kidney detoxification
Body composition analysis