Aiding Our Body's Detox when Juicing and in Everyday Life

Detoxing on a plant-based diet.

I love to detox but dislike the symptoms, so I do everything possible to try to minimize those symptoms as I start gradually prepare my body for the juice fast. I begin by eating raw several weeks before I intend to begin my juice fast, but since eating raw is still detoxing my body, I use the methods below when starting my raw diet juice fast prep. (I know that many of your know that I went completely raw on 17 December 2011 after being a high-raw vegan for three years. I went completely raw to see if it alleviated my asthma symptoms. It did. I'm still raw.)


Here are the detox symptoms that are common as the toxins are being pulled out of our cells and released into our bloodstream and begin to travel throughout all of our organs and throughout our entire body. Once in our bloodstream, it is our job to provide those toxins an exit so that we do not suffer from the symptoms below:

• Headaches and other aches and pains
• Fatigue
• Weakness or dizziness
• Skin eruptions
• Coated tongue
• Fever
• Emotional irritability
• Lack of concentration
• Gas 
• Bloating
• Frequent urination
• Temporary constipation or diarrhea
• Temporary of stopping of menstration
• Yawning
• Tight muscles
• Mucus or other discharge
• Sugar cravings

Here are ways that I assist my body with detoxing. I use most of these methods daily while the others I use systematically. 

Detox therapies that I use daily:

• Deep Breathing
• Tongue Scraping
• Dry Skin Brushing
• Sleep Well 
• Rebounding

Detox therapies that I use systematically:

• Epsom Salt and Apple Cider Vinegar Baths 
• Simple Cleansing Bath 
• Lymphatic Massage
• Colonic Irrigation
• Air Bath 
• Detoxing Yoga
• Neti Pot

Other Detox Therapies: 

• Enemas 
• Sauna 

Rebuilding and Strengthening:

• Milk Thistle 
• Probiotics
• Plant-based diet without dairy
• Regular exercise that builds a moderate sweat

Lifestyle Changes:

• Food and Nutrition 
• Enjoying Life
• Nurturing Yourself
• Building Self-Love and Self-Acceptance
• Avoiding Toxic Substances in Diet, Home, and Daily Lifestyle
• Yoga and/or Breathing Exercises 

I am going to start with the most important not only when fasting/detoxing, but to ensure great overall health. Care for your colon and you will feel significantly better both during your daily life as well as when detoxing!

Colonic Irrigation

If you are juice fasting or raw detoxing, experts recommend a colonic on Day 2 or an enema on Days 2, 3 and 4. Another colonic (or enema) is also recommended on Day 8, and if you are on a lengthy fast/detox, you should continue your colonic or enema series to the end of your fast/detox. 

Detoxing/fasting pulls the toxins out of our cells and then deposits those toxins into our bloodstream. If those toxins do not have a quick exit, your detox surface and continue to intense detox (refer to the symptoms list above). 

Also, the more toxic your diet and/or lifestyle habits (i.e. smoking) before your fast/detox, the slower you should detox your body and the more you should assist your body with eliminating those toxins. Use your symptoms as a gage and listen to your body.

Colonic irrigation is a safe, gentle way to remove impacted mucus and waste from the colon. Gross, I know. However, during my series of eight (within 2 1/2 months), I saw black tar-like mucus come out of my colon. My colon irrigation therapist said that what I saw had been in my body for over eight years. Oh my! I could definitely recognize the old as well as the new waste as it came out (part of the tube is clear so the waste coming out can be seen). 

Colonic irrigation dates back to Egyptian times and is similar to enemas; however, colonics use more water and are administered by a certified colon therapist. By repeatedly introducing and expelling water through the gravity method (never get a colonic that is pressurized), in conjunction with the abdominal massage technique, impacted feces and toxins are softened, dissolved and removed.

I love my colon therapist and she is also a coroner for the City of Philadelphia, so she knows the body inside and out! She is truly an expert and the only one I trust!

Please read my post "Squatting is Nature's Way: A Squatting Step and Colonics" for detailed information regarding the importance of colon heath. 

Our colon is one of five major organ's of elimination. It is our sewer system, and if we ate a Standard American Diet high in processed foods, then it is almost guaranteed that our sewer system is backed up and looks like this:

Picture from Daytime Botanicals

When we do not eliminate properly, feces deposits and builds up along the wall and in the pockets of our colon. When the bowel becomes toxic, the blood picks up those bowel toxins. This results in headaches, fatigue and sluggishness. Health experts believe that constipation is the underlying root of many disease and illness. 

Norman Walker, a nutritionist and researcher, advocates a diet full of fresh raw vegetables, positive attitude, and regular colon cleansing as the way to feel young and healthy. Walker asserts, "There is no ailment, sickness or disease that will not respond to treatment quicker and more effectively than it will after the administration of a series of colon irrigations."   

Negative consequences to a impacted colon:

• A Kinked Bowel 
• Fecal Stagnation
• Incomplete Elimination of Cecum and Sigmoid Areas of the Colon (80% of Bowel Cancers are Found in Those Two Areas)
• Toxins Enter the Bloodstream
• Hemorrhoids
• Varicose Veins 
• A Diseased Colon and Body

Regular colon cleansing helps rid the body of:

• impacted fecal matter
• mucus
• parasites
• yeast
• intestinal stress
• unwanted bacteria

Here is an image of a healthy colon that has been maintained by squatting when voiding after a series of colon irrigation treatments removed the impacted stool.  

Picture by Science Photo Library

Benefits of colon irrigation include:

• a reduction of toxins
• improved peristalsis function and inner ecology
• improved absorption of nutrients
• healthier blood circulation
• general feeling of well-being

Deep Breathing

Your body is designed to release 70% of its toxins through breathing, and most of us don't breathe properly. I know that when I used to get stressed or upset, I would start to hold my breath because I was so tense. If we are not breathing effectively, we are unable to assist our bodies with toxin elimination while causing the other systems in our body to work overtime. Not breathing properly can lead to illness.

Other benefits of deep breathing: 

• Releases tension
• Relaxes the mind and body while bringing clarity
• Relieves emotional problems
• Relieves pain (I breathe the deepest during deep tissue massages - ouch!)
• Increases muscles within your body
• Strengthens your immune system
• Improves posture
• Improves the quality of your blood (removes all the carbon-dioxide while increasing the oxygen and blood quality)
• Increases digestion of food
• Improves the nervous system
• Strengthens the lungs
• Strengthens the heart
• Assists in weight control (overweight: extra oxygen burns up the excess fat more efficiently; underweight: extra oxygen feeds the starving tissues and glands)
• Boosts energy levels and improves stamina
• Improves cellular regeneration
• Elevates moods 

Tongue Scraping

Brush your teeth and the scrape your tongue as soon as you awake and definitely before you eat or drink anything because while you were sleeping, your body was detoxing and one main way it eliminates those toxins from your nightly fast/detox is through your tongue and mouth. Morning breath is causing from the toxins pulled from your cells while you were fasting during the night. If you swallow those toxins back down, you are merely redepositing those toxins back into your body. 

• Scraping the tongue removes the toxins and bacteria from the gut that were deposited there during the night. 
• Buildup of bacteria causes bad breath (halitosis), and varies types of digestive and respiratory problems can result from continued absorption from these waste products.

My tongue after Day 3 of Juice Fasting
Picture taken at 6:00 PM

Toxins deposited on my tongue after juicing all day.

Dry Skin Brushing 

"Daily dry brushing increases the activity of pore and eliminates more waste materials (uric acid crystals, catarrh and impurities) than any soap and water." ~Ann Wigmore Institute

Your skin is your largest organ and releases a pound of waste a day (hence the constant dusting). The skin is called the 3rd kidney because it eliminates a quarter of the toxins from the body (the lungs are the 2nd kidney). 

Benefits of Dry Skin Brushing:

• Stimulates blood and lymphatic system
• Helps eliminate toxins from the body
• Increase circulation
• Removes dead skin layers/cells
• Encourages cells to regenerate
• Helps digestion
• Stimulates the hormone and oil glands
• Reduces cellulite (It requires daily brushing for several months to see results - when you stimulate the skin, it begins to break up the toxic deposits of stored fatty tissues that pucker the overlying skin into cellulite.)
• Strengthens the immune system (It moves the toxins through your system more quickly while stimulating the lymph to move waste matter out.)
• Stimulates the nervous system (Stimulating the nerve endings in the skin rejuvenates your nerves and activates individual muscle fibers.)
• Tones the muscles
• Tightens the skin (Increases blood flow to the skin while stimulating the creation of new cells.)
• Nurtures your body while enhancing your general health

When dry skin brushing, always brush towards your heart, beginning with the soles of your feet. Do not brush wet skin as it will not have the same effect. Brush before showering and in between changing your clothes. 

Picture by The Plastic Diaries

• With either long sweeping strokes or brisk circular motions, work upward from the soles of your feet to the legs and thighs.
• Brush all the way up your legs, then over your abdomen (in clockwise circular motions), buttocks, and back. Spend extra time on your hips and thighs if you have cellulite.
• Spend extra time behind your knees and in your groin area where your lymph nodes are located.
• Brush from the palm of your hand toward your elbow and shoulder.  
• Spend extra time inside the bend where your elbow is and under your arms/armpits where your lymph nodes are located.
• Move from the neck down toward your back and/or your chest.
• Spend extra time under each side of your jaw where your lymph nodes are located.

Picture by Healthy Lifestyle Choices

Tips:

• Always use a natural fiber brush.
• The time to brush: before showering, after morning exercise, before breakfast (on an empty stomach), and before bed. 
• Brush gently where the skin is the thinnest (use a softer brush on your face).
• Brush firmly on areas like the soles of your feet.
• Do not share your brush.
• Wash your brush with warm water and mild soap if needed. Let it dry in the sun. 

Rebounding

First, I would like to say that I bought my first rebounder in for $5.00 at a yard sale. My second rebounder, I scored three days later (in the same condition) on bulk trash pickup day. They both work great! Why do I need two rebounders? Because when I'm not rebounding, my two preschoolers are...

I love rebounding because it is a simple way to assist my body with eliminating toxins whether I am fasting or not. When I am not juice fasting, I eat a raw diet and raw, plant-based diets also detoxify our bodies. 

Nevertheless, rebounding is a metabolically effective form of exercise. The rebounding motion stimulates all internal organs, moves the cerebral-spinal fluid, and is beneficial for the intestines, and it also strengthens the immune system.

Basics of Rebounding 

Health benefits of regular rebounding:

• increases lung capacity (aides our deep breathing detox exercises!)
• circulates more oxygen to the tissues
• aids lymphatic circulation 
• aids blood flow in the circulatory disease
• helps normalize blood pressure
• helps prevent cardiovascular disease
• increases production of red blood cells
• strengthens the heart and other muscles
• lowers elevated cholesterol and triglycerides
• improves digestion and elimination
• stimulates metabolism 
• burns calories
• helps shape the legs without the impact of running
• tones up the glandular system, especially the thyroid
• encourages better relaxation and improves sleep patterns
• relieves fatigue
• improves healing processes
• relieves menstrual discomfort for women
• minimizes the number of colds, allergies, and digestive disturbances by boosting the immune system
• improves mental performance
• helps combat depression

Sleep Well


Getting a good night's sleep is as just as important as a healthy diet and lifestyle. Sleeping well:

• Recharges your energy levels.
• Allows your body time to repair and build bone, muscle, and tissue without being interrupted by the tasks that bombard you while awake. 
• Provides an opportunity for your body to repair and rejuvenate itself at a cellular level. 
• Plays a critical role in your immune function, metabolism, hormone cycles, memory, learning, and other vital functions.
• Influences your overall health and general well-being.
• Increase your ability to handle stress.
• Refresh your looks.

The average adult need 7-8 hours sleep a night, especially between the hours of 10:00 PM (I better get to bed!) and 2:00 AM when the immune system most actively rejuvenates itself. 

Epsom Salt and Apple Cider Vinegar Detox Bath

Fill your bathtub with hot, unchlorinated water. If you do not have a water filter, and 2 tablespoons of Hydrogen Peroxide (3%) to the bathwater.


After you dry skin brush, soak in a detoxification bath.


Detox Bath Recipe:
1 cup ACV
1 cup Epsom Salt
Peppermint and Tea Tree Oil (or other preferred essential oils)


Detox Bath Recipe:
Mix together and store the following ingredients:
2 cups Epsom Salt 
2 cups Baking Soda
2 cups Sea Salt
5 tablespoons Ground Ginger


At bath time, add 1 cup of stored dried ingredients and 1 cup vinegar to a hot running bath along with your favorite essential oils.


Benefits:

• Espom salt draws out toxins from your body relieving aches and pains while reducing swelling and relaxes muscles while reducing stress.
• Epsom salt is a simple way to draw out toxins out of the body as the magnesium sulphate is absorbed through the skin in a hot bath and stimulates lymph drainage and draws toxins out through the pores. 
• Baking soda balances an over acidic system, refreshing, energizing, and softening the skin.
• Sea salts soothe while healing open pores and blemishes.
• Ground ginger increase circulation.
• Vinegar soothes and softens skin.

Soak in the bathtub for 30 minutes while drinking a lot of hot herbal tea while soaking. 




Lymphatic Massage

Picture by Medic Magic

Lymphatic massage is a gentle, rhythmic massage of points on the body where lymph nodes are located. It is used to relieve congestion in the lymphatic system. The LM that is generally administered by a trained massage therapist does the following:

• Reduces edema
• Improves circulation
• Stimulates the immune system to eliminate toxins

Detoxing Yoga

Detox Flow with Clara Roberts-Oss

Neti Pot 

Traditional yogic cleansing technique that flushes out the nasal passages. This is great for preventing sinus infections and for combating allergy symptoms for air pollutants. 

Milk Thistle 

Milk Thistle has a reputation of being the most powerful herb for healing and strengthening the liver. You can take MT tablets or liquid or drink MT tea, but do not use multiple forms of MT at once useless directed to do so by your health care professional. 




Simple Cleansing Bath 


Air Bath


Enemas 


Sauna 

Blog post to be continued... 


Much Love!
Priscilla 

Resources

18 Benefits of Deep Breathing and How to Breathe Deeply 

Dry Skin Brushing for Whole Body Health