Detoxify Your Body, and Improve Your Health!

As a physician, I’m always saying that I often learn as much from my patients as I hope they do from me. One thing that I realized early on is the importance of choosing my words very carefully when I discuss certain health issues. This seems to be especially true when I suggest that my patients try to detoxify or cleanse their bodies of all the pollutants, chemicals and other nasty environmental “garbage” that are inside their systems. Believe me, I read the headlines of the tabloids too when I’m standing on line at the grocery store, and I know what “going through detox” means for most people. So, although this is exactly what I want my patients to do in order to rid themselves of environmental pollutants, I usually phrase it in a more gentle fashion like “internal cleansing” or something like that. But in reality, what I really mean is that I’d love for everyone I know – friends, family and patients alike – to join me and “go through detox” right now!

“But Dr. Loes,” you might say,” I don’t need to cleanse my body of anything. I feel fine, and it’s not like I live next door to a factory or something. Do I really have that many toxins inside my body?”
At the risk of sounding a bit alarmist, I usually end up replying with just one word to patients like the one above: “Yes!”

Then, remembering my pledge to choose my words carefully, I go on to (I hope, gently), explain the following:

You do not have to live next to a smoke-belching factory in order to have toxins in your system. You do not have to be a smoker (and I hope you are not!). You do not have to ride a bicycle to work along a busy thoroughfare filled with diesel engines (just typing that sentence gives me a headache!) And you do not have to do anything in an obvious fashion on, near or with chemicals to be in need for a good internal cleansing.

Here’s the way I see it. If you are sitting near something that is obviously toxic, chances are you’ll get up and move, right? But what about when you visit your friend to see her new carpets? Or when you walk your dog and go past an area that was recently sprayed for weeds? And since emotional toxins can also be just as harmful to us – what about that difficult co-worker who drives you nuts or the nasty relative you had to sit next to during your holiday feast?

My point is, we are surrounded by all sorts of unhealthy toxins all day long. The ones I worry about the most, dear reader, are the ones we cannot see.

So, now comes the part of any discussion that I enjoy the most – looking for solutions. Our bodies might contain more pollutants than we’d like, but we don’t have to accept this as fact and just “live with it.”

For example, I can think of a baker’s dozen of natural supplements that can really help clean our bodies from the inside out. For example, chelated forms of minerals like zinc, copper and manganese can help flush out toxins, and selenium is an impressive antioxidant that helps to remove free radicals from our bodies.

Chlorella and sodium alginate have impressed me for their ability to remove heavy metals from our bodies, and the herb bladderwrack, naturally rich in iodine, has actually been shown in studies to prevent radioactive bi-products from absorbing into our systems.

MSM, a natural form of sulfur, is also a good choice for people looking to detoxify because it appears to create amino acids called cysteine and methionine that help clean out the body. Nature has provided us with many herbs that help flush out our systems, like beet root, red clover, dandelion root and Oregon grape root. These have all been shown to help purify our blood, detoxify our livers and improve our immunity.

Speaking of the liver, milk thistle extract is another herbal product that I’m very fond of. It can help protect our livers through detoxification. Since your liver spends all day, every day filtering toxins our of your body, keeping this organ in tip-top shape is an absolute must.

Lifestyle changes are also necessary to keep our insides cleaned out. For example, I’m a huge believer in the power of sleep as a way to healing and emotional health. Whether you sign up for yoga or talk brisk walks or have a spiritual outlet, we must find ways to deal with the emotional pollutants as well.

So, in a nutshell: stay away from obvious toxins as much as you can, and educate yourself about the invisible ones so you can avoid them as much as possible too. Try the combination of minerals and herbs and natural remedies that I listed above, and get adequate sleep therapy. Be happy, think healthy, and live your life to the fullest. And at the next family gathering, when you get stuck sitting next to Aunt Nasty, turn to her and tell her all about how you just “went through detox.” It should at least keep her quiet long enough so you can enjoy your pie!

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