Be Well Naturally

by Dr. Arthur M. Presser

Dr. Arthur M. Presser - Advisor Lifebotanica

WHAT’S WITH THE DETOXIFICATION?

If you are breathing 21st century air, eating 21st century food, drinking 21st century water and either live or work indoors, you are probably ingesting and storing toxins at a rate faster than your body may be able to deal with them.

Since the Second World War, we have been on a “better living through chemistry” kick. Today there are somewhere around 60,000 known chemicals in use. We are only now beginning to learn the ones that may be damaging our delicate cellular codes, causing mutations and causing or contributing to degenerative diseases. Our air, food, waters, and environment is laden with toxins.

In this country alone, millions of tons of pollutants are released into our air. Clean air has become quite a rarity. One has only to look up through the brown haze over metropolitan areas to validate this fact. Our respiratory systems, then blood, then every organ and tissue in our bodies are bombarded with heavy metals like lead, mercury, cadmium, arsenic, nickel and aluminum. We now know that second hand cigarette smoke can be as deadly as smoking oneself, delivering potential lethal doses of formaldehyde, hydrogen cyanide, and benzene.

Today’s foods, which are supposed to be our source of life preserving nutrients, have become a significant source of potentially toxic chemicals. If you read the ingredients on your packaged food labels, you might be surprised by the number of chemicals you are consuming in the form of preservatives, artificial colorings, artificial sweeteners, and stabilizers. If you are consuming animal products, you are getting antibiotic and hormone substances from your meat and poultry, and DDT and mercury from your fish. Today’s fruits and vegetables are laced with pesticides, fungicides, ripening agents, fumigants and more, all of which appear as residues for us to consume and store in our bodies.

Our waters, ocean and inland waterways alike, are polluted. Toxins get into drinking water as runoff from industrial wastes, from acid rain, from agricultural chemicals leaching into our water tables, and from the chemicals that public health agencies use to kill microbial matter in our water supply.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, levels of pollutants inside buildings can be as much as 100 times greater than outdoor pollution, coming from sources such as carpets and office machines. Think about what you are breathing in an airplane.

There seems to be no end to where toxic substances can come from. Other sources are pharmaceuticals (both prescription and over the counter), cosmetics and health and beauty aids which may absorb into the body through the skin, household cleansers, and shop chemicals.

Fortunately our body is a self-cleaning system. While we store many toxins, the body has self purifying machinery. Unfortunately, many toxins are stored in fatty tissue and are not always released easily into the aforementioned self-cleaning system. Furthermore, the liver spends much of its energy detoxifying toxic chemicals by transforming them into harmless metabolites and excreting them; and the kidneys helps purify the blood. When you consider that the operation of our hard working organs can only be as good as how well we take care of them, we must ask ourselves if we are overwhelming them with excess poisons. Are we eating foods high in fiber and antioxidants? Are we drinking enough pure liquids? Are we avoiding coffee, alcohol, and synthetic food and drinks? Are we getting enough rest? Are we beating up on our bodies? Are we exercising regularly?

Depending on the answer to the above questions, you could be developing, or have developed a toxic body. A toxic body may manifest itself in many different ways. Some of the symptoms of toxicity are: gas, bloating, constipation and other digestive disorders, headaches, chronic fatigue and weakness, general and ongoing flu-like symptoms, chronic aches and pains, chronic and degenerative diseases, skin problems, allergies, PMS, depression, arthritis, and much more.

A natural approach to cleansing the body includes responsible fasting (juice fasting is an option), increasing water consumption, exercise, and herbal support. When not overloaded and given the chance, the body is a wonderful machine, and can do an amazing job cleansing itself. Sometimes one has to take a few steps back and undo a little abuse before one can move forward to a new higher level of health. Sometimes we need to utilize a serious detoxification program.

There are many good cleansing programs available on the market today, lending a helping hand to the detoxification process. Decide whether you are more comfortable mixing powder drinks, or prefer using more convenient tablets or capsules. Choose a product manufactured by a reliable company. There are far too many products on the market promoted by here-today/gone tomorrow marketing companies and laboratories that are more hype than substance.

Herbs that have been used for centuries to cleanse, purify, soothe and support various body organs and systems include: Milk Thistle, Dandelion Root, Cascara Sagrada, Echinacea, Yellow Dock, Mexican Sarsaparilla Root, Burdock Root, Golden Seal, Cleavers Herb, Rose Hips, Carrot Oil, Aloe Vera, Slippery Elm, Nettle, Couch Grass, and Ginger Root. Look for a product that contains a combination of many these.

Loading...
0