Cleansing and Detoxification for Health
When most people think of ‘detox’ they generally associate it with the method of withdrawing from an addictive substance and whilst this is true, there is a whole other side of detoxification that promotes good health and cleanses the entire body.
Partly due to our rushed daily routine and stressful environment, a lot of us are simply not as healthy as we could be and the effects of this type of lifestyle can take their toll over the years often resulting in chronic illness, weight gain and general lack of energy and vitality. Most people don’t realise that they are in fact carrying around as much as 10 lbs of waste in their bodies, mostly from impacted matter stuck in the colonic tract. Not only is this preventing them from losing weight but can lead to a great number of other symptoms, from the not so serious such as skin problems and fatigue through to life-threatening diseases like colon cancer.
There are a number of methods to cleansing the colon and a quick search on the internet will bring up a large amount of so-called ‘cleansing’ products that often consist of herbal supplements. While one should not dismiss these straight away, it should be noted that many of these products are simply made up of herbal laxatives that will indeed increase elimination, but not do much else for the individual. While for many, an increase in bowel movements may help relieve temporary constipation, it is important not to become reliant on this type of laxative as over time, the bowel can become ‘lazy’ and fail to work as efficiently without the help of a supplement. However, once in a while would certainly not do any harm, although it is certainly not necessary to spend a lot of money on a cleansing product when the individual components can be purchased for half the price! Anyone considering this type of treatment should talk to their health care provider first, just to check that there is no medical reason for them not to proceed, and then consult with a herbalist for recommended supplements. While herbs such as cascara sagrada and senna are popular, their safety over the long term has been in doubt, and it may be wiser to stay with a more known product such as licorice. Using fiber as a way to increase elimination is excellent as many of us do not get enough of this important food group in our daily diet anyway. Phyllium husk has become a ‘buzz’ ingredient of late, being added to many breakfast cereals, and is an effective way of basically ‘pushing’ out the impacted fecal matter from the colon.
Other popular methods of detoxifying the body include liquid diets or juice-fasting, and the ‘master cleanse’ is a particularly well-known method, having been used by many celebrities to maintain their body weight. Although it should not be practised for too long, and the ingredients may not exactly sound appealing, the combination of lemon juice, water, maple syrup and cayenne pepper has proven extremely effective in obtaining quick results. More extreme forms of fasting, particularly those that require absolutely no food intake for long periods of time are definitely not recommended for the average person and should only be undertaken with strict supervision, if at all. By far a healthier method of ‘fasting’ would be to substitute some meals with fresh fruit and vegetable smoothies, increasing the intake of water and reducing the meals eaten to very simple fare such as brown rice and fibrous vegetables.
As with any type of diet, it is important to not expect miracles in terms of weight loss and practise these methods in moderation and only ever with the approval from you r doctor.
News Insiders latest 5 Article by admin
News Insiders Related Articles
Health News