Effective Detox

[Francois]

When talking about health and a healthy lifestyle then detox comes into the conversation at some point.  There is a lot already said about detoxification; that is to get rid of foreign substances from your body.  Toxins come from everywhere, from the food we eat to the air we breathe.  In some cases, it’s even absorbed through our skin.  

With these toxin in our system, our body does function at peak performance, there is something hindering the normal functions.  

Let’s take a great sportsman, such as David Becham.  When his busy with one of his photo shoots, promoting a new men’s designer, he is dressed for the occasion in the glove-fitting suit.  After the shoot, he goes directly to the LA Galaxy stadium for an important match against their main opponent.  But he doesn’t put on his soccer jersey and boots, no just run onto the field in his suit.  Nobody care that he doesn’t wear his jersey, he looks good in everything he wears.  At the end of the game, he just brushes his suit a little and run of to a prestigious dinner.  

I really don’t think that that would be his best game ever.  Something is not right, something stand between him and his game.  He’ll still perform to some satisfactory level, but not at his peak.  

Or maybe he just forgot that he was still wearing the suit.  At half time, he looks up at the big screen and sees the suit.  Frantic, he run off and put on his boots and jersey.  

This is just some comparison to what happens in the case of toxins in our body.  

The strange stuff inside our bodies are useful somewhere else, like a suit at a nice dinner.  But in our bodies they’re harmful.  That’s why our bodies still can function, but not optimally.  

When is the best time to detox?
At the time we’re thinking about detoxifying ourselves, it’s normally when a lot of different symptoms show up.  Our skin looks terrible, we feel tired most of the time.  Headaches and muscle pains are also sometimes of the common signs.  

Best is to come into a routine of regular detox, to prevent excessive build-up of toxins.  In this little article, we’ll explore some ways to cleanse your system in from excessive build-up and to get into the good habit of a healthier lifestyle.  Best is to detox on a regular bases.  

Spring Clean
The signs of toxin build-up are evident, even under the thickest layer of make-up.  Now you are looking for a way to get rid of the pimples, inside out.  

You have basically two routes to take to your destination.  One is the fast track, the other is the gradual climb.  

When I say fast, I literally mean fast.  Quit eating.  Nope, not a partial fast, where you eat only grapes and drink green tea, not that.  Quit eating completely.  

Fasting is a very old method, but I don’t know whether the people from ancient times realised the complete effect that it has on them.  It’s so good for your health, your mind, your emotions and your spirituality.  

The most ancient writings I have available on fasting are the Bible.  There is already a comprehensive guide to effective fasting.  Later studies en writings only complement what is written in the Bible.  Here we find fast lasting only a part of a day, up to 40 days.  Medical research showed that 40 days is the ultimate.  Longer periods than that brings damage.  But up to 40 days, will do no harm.

For detox purposes I’d recommend a short fast.  If you’d like to take on longer fasts, get at least comprehensive book about the subject.  There are three options for the short fast:  Part of a day, a whole day or up to three days.
For a part of the day, don’t eat anything.  (This is not the part between breakfast and lunch.J)  Skip at least two meals and eat the third on the normal time.  Let’s say you eat dinner.  The next meal you eat is dinner the following day.  
When fasting a whole day, you eat dinner one evening, eat nothing during the next day and start eating again at breakfast the following day.  This is one I’d recommend.
Fasting for two or three days becomes a little complicated, but with a longer chance to get rid of unwanted stuff.  When you resume eating, the first two meals should be foods that is easily digested and well absorbed.  Light meals such as fruits and vegetables are perfect.  

When fasting, drink only water.  Period.  No green tea, no flavoured water, no coffee or cold drinks, just water.  And drink at least 2 litres of water.  It will do only good if you drink even more.  

If you don’t want to quit eating, even for two meals, no problem.  Then there is a more moderate method, the gradual way.  

This is a week long program and easy to follow.  For 5 to 7 days, just eat steamed or fresh fruit and vegetables and a good quality meal replacement shakes.  Drink the shake at breakfast, eat 5 to 10 portions fruit and veggies during the day and another shake in the evening.  

Please note that it needs to be a good quality shake, not the R50 tin in the pharmacy with the girl in the bikini on the cover.  Rather buy it from a direct selling company, where you can get personal attention from the person selling it.  And in general, the products from direct selling companies are very high quality.  Make sure that you get enough protein in with this plan.  Ladies should consume approximately 60-80g of protein daily and men 120-150g.  

When you buy fruit and vegetables, try to buy organic.  Organic food is by far the better choice, because there are no chemical fertilizers or pesticides used on organic products.  In other words there is no toxin in or on these products.  All and all, it is the healthiest choice to make.  

You can use either of these methods as often as you like.  When fasting a day or shorter, you could do it from once a week to once a month.  When choosing the week long steamed veggies, do it at least every three months.  

When undertaking regular dotox sessions, like these above, you are beginning to get into a routine of continuous cleansing.  

Prevention is better than cure.
Rather prevent toxin from entering your system, than trying to get it out.  Here are a couple of tips on how to keep most of the toxins out.  

1.  Eat healthy
These are very general guidelines, stuff you know already, but it’s good to hear it all at once.  
• Buy rather whole foods than processed or refined food.  That is crushed wheat instead of white pasta, or fresh vegetables rather than diced, frozen veggies.  
• Buy organic, whenever possible.
• Stay away from junk food and ready packed snacks.
• Drink at least 2 litres water daily.
• Use different natural supplements to enhance different body functions.
• Take fibre supplements daily.  

2.  Exercise regularly
• Work up a sweat at every exercise session.  Different toxins get eliminated in sweat than in other ways of elimination.  
• Exercise also improves circulation.  Better circulation removes toxins faster from the cells and delivers it in the liver and kidneys.
• Rest just enough, not too much, not too little.  This includes your sleep patterns, your daily recreation as well as your vacations.  (Vacations is not a luxury, it’s a necessity for your health.)

3.  Get health related tools
There is a couple of equipment that is recommended for keeping toxins at bay.  
• Ozone generator.  Super oxygen works miracles when it comes to the fight against and the elimination of toxins.  Just read a couple of positive studies on the internet about ozone.  
• Drink purified water.  Water purifiers are very common these days.  When choosing a purifier, take systems where the useful minerals remain in the water.  
• Get an air purifier.  These systems remove most of the dust and airborne bacteria from the air.
• Clean your house and office with a great vacuum cleaner.  There are two brands available in South Africa which competes for the first place in effectiveness.  I’d recommend any one of those.  (That is not the systems sold on TV, but used to be sold by door to door salesmen.)
• Use healthy cooking techniques.  Use a convection oven, rather than a microwave oven.  Steam your food rather to boil it.  There is nice equipment to steam your food.  This time you can buy the one that is advertised on TV.  

Put these things on your goal sheet or on your family Christmas wish list, but make sure to get these tools over time.  

4.  Overseen culprits.
There are a couple of very toxic substances we tend to get in contact with mostly every day.  I’m just listing these, you could look it up on Google or Wikipedia if you’d like.  I’ve put in ‘microwave dangers’ in Google’s search bar, and the results is huge.
That is the famous microwave oven and plastic food containers.  The microwave change the chemical composition of food, to something unnatural to our bodies.  Plastic bottles (water and cold drink bottles) are designed to decompose in nature.  That makes it a very bio-friendly, at least to some parts of nature.  Problem is that it’s decomposing from the moment it left the factory floor, right through the bottling process, while we’re drinking the cold drink, until it’s either recycled or decomposed somewhere in a dump.  That decomposed plastic is in the water or cold drink when we drink it.  Over time we get a lot of plastic in, through the use of plastic containers.  When you have a choice, rather use glass containers than plastic ones.  

Something else you should take note of is to stay regular with elimination.  Food shouldn’t stay longer than 24 hours in your system.  (Sorry for the ugly detail, but…)  When it stay longer in your system it begins to rot and it become a new source of toxins.  

Luke warm green tea or ginger extract first thing in the morning, on a empty stomach helps a great deal to stay regular.  That is on top of your daily fibre supplements and 2ℓ water.  Please stay away from laxatives, it’s very harmful to your digestive system.  Pick a time of day that you could spend every day on the throne.  Get a time when you’re relaxed.  If you think back a little, you might find a time of day that is the most likely that you need to go naturally.  Make this your regular time.  

Supplements
It is fairly common knowledge these days that we all need food supplements.  Even the healthiest of us needs it.  Specifically when we’re talking about detoxification, supplements play a major role.  

Fact is that with proper nutrition our bodies just function better.  A second reason is that most natural supplements are free of toxins, so in that case you’re doing better than with normal foodstuff.  Further is there supplements available that assist especially the immune and elimination systems.  

Some tips on choosing a supplemental range.  
• Stick to one brand.  Most brands’ products are in balance with each other.
• Only use top quality natural supplements.  These are normally not available at retail stores and pharmacies.  
• Look for personal service when choosing a range.  Get all your questions answered by a real person and make sure the products are targeted on your specific needs.

There are some nutrients that are great for detoxification.  The omega fatty acid-range helps with circulation.  Anti-oxidants are perfect for protecting cells against damage.  And fibre is irreplaceable when it come detoxification.  Make sure that this supplement contains both types of fibre.  One type is only used in the digestive system.  The other is absorbed into the bloodstream and distributed through the body.    



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