Toxins! They are literally everywhere. In the air we breathe, the water we drink and the food we eat. We are constantly bombarded by a tidal wave of chemicals, heavy metals and toxic compounds steadily released into the environment. These compounds can have a radical effect on the way the body functions by blocking nutrients, mimicking and blocking hormone signals, causing brain inflammation, body inflammation and even triggering autoimmunity. 

While we can’t remove ourselves from the world and live inside a sealed sterile bubble, we can take steps to reduce the toxic burden that our bodies carry day to day. First and foremost is to limit your exposure by not smoking or being around people who do, drinking filtered or clean spring water, eating organically grown food when possible, using natural cleaning products for the home and personal products for your body.

 I recommend everyone does a liver detox at least once per year. I often do them 2-3 times per year around season changes to keep my body’s toxic burden low because I am prone to autoimmunity. When I work with clients, I recommend particular products to rev up the 2 main phases of biotransformation which is just a fancy way of saying, transforming a toxin so you can urinate it out.

Toxins are fat soluble which means they are not easily passed through urine (water) and they like to hang out in body tissues (fat). The first phase of detoxification alters the toxin to make it more water soluble and easier to remove. In doing this, free radicals are created and the toxin becomes “angry” and unstable so it’s important to complete Phase 2 and actually remove it from the body. Nothing is worse than an altered and dangerous toxin getting released back into the body!

In this article, I will only be discussing foods which help biotransformation take place and simple at home techniques to help you start on your path.  I do not recommend juice fasting (a fast or cleanse is not a detox) and I especially do not recommend doing something like that now during COVID when getting proper nutrition is key. If you are interested in doing a deeper liver detox, please contact the office to discuss.  

Benefits of detoxification: Better sleep, more energy, clear skin, improved mood, better GI function, less inflammation, improved immunity, less headaches and body aches.

#1)Detoxifying Foods:

*Cruciferous vegetables: arugula, bokchoy, broccoli, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, kale, radish, cauliflower, collards, turnip.                                                       

*Leafy greens like spinach, dandelion greens, beet greens, chard, collard, escarole, mustard greens, radicchio 

*Herbs like milk thistle, parsley and cilantro are highly detoxifying.                 

*Dandelion, milk thistle and green teas are all useful for liver function

*Garlic, leeks, onion, scallion and shallots

*Artichoke, beets, apples, ginger, blueberries, lemons, flax seeds and chlorella

Aim for 6 cups of detoxifying vegetables per day.

Drink lemon in warm water every morning

Drink several cups of dandelion, milk thistle and green tea per day

#2) Home Treatment-Do a liver pack!

Castor oil used externally on the liver is a wonderful, healing spa-like treatment you can do at home to help your liver get a boost.

PURCHASE: **cold pressed castor oil and a liver pack flannel cloth which are sold at most health food stores and in my Fullscript store.

What to do: Do this at night before bed.

Pour a liberal amount of organic cold pressed castor oil onto a new clean, unbleached and un-dyed flannel cloth.

Place cloth on the liver (just below the right breast spanning from the center of chest to under the arm).

Use plastic wrap around your body to keep cloth in place, protect clothing and your furniture or use an ace bandage to secure it.  Do not get oil on anything-it will stain. Place a heating pad on top of the cloth. It should be warm/hot but not hot enough to burn your skin.  Cover the top of the heating pad with a towel to trap heat in.  Lay down.  Watch TV or read a book for 20 minutes. (do non-stressful things). You will get sleepy so do this before bed.

Remove heating pad, discard saran wrap immediately. 

Fold castor oil soaked cloth and put into a zip lock baggie or jar in the fridge.  You can reuse this cloth up to 20 times. Do not put it into the washing machine.  It will ruin your clothes and machine! Wipe off any excess oil from your skin with a paper towel or napkin and throw away.