Everyone has met someone that “looks so young” for their age. Usually, in my practice, this has everything to do with the amount of antioxidants in their diet and minimizing the exposure to chemicals. Other signs of “chemical overload” consist of fatigue, insomnia, chronic pain, brain fog, headaches, and even issues with food sensitivities. Clean air, water, and food with plenty of nutrients provides the framework for a healthy body and mind. If you have ever had a garden you know how important the soil quality is for a healthy plant. If there are chemicals, sometimes nothing will grow at all. Our bodies and mind need healthy ingredients to to function properly with minimal exposure to toxins. Chemicals can act on our bodies in infinitely small amounts (say parts per billion or even parts per trillion). This is like one drop in an Olympic swimming pool of water. Healers have known about the importance of a healthy planet with healthy soil, water and air in relation to human health for centuries.
Our Environment
Escaping chemicals in our world today is more challenging than ever before. There are over 80,000 known chemicals and likely many more unknown chemicals that cannot be tested. The vast majority of these chemicals have never been evaluated for safety. Certainly, the best way not have to detox is to not expose oneself to the toxins in the first place! Although, avoiding chemicals has become exceptionally difficult, if not impossible in today’s world. The body has to clear more and more toxins in order to stay in balance, or homeostasis. This process requires many cofactors, vitamins and minerals and the ability to detox is one of the main pathways to health. When the cellular processes are overwhelmed by toxins or if an individual is missing one of the many cofactors involved in detoxification then the individual will be unable to get rid of certain toxins. A build-up of these chemicals can lead to an overwhelmed immune system and oxidative stress which leads to disease, especially autoimmune diseases and cancer as well as more rapid aging.
Steps to Detox
The first step to detoxing is removing the toxins from your environment. These can come from food, water, air, or skin contaminants. Most people are familiar with how toxic food can make them feel but often are completely unaware of the quality of their air and its relation to their health. The lungs act as a great transmitter of chemicals right into the bloodstream and potentially the brain. Chemicals can act as a potential threat to our DNA or trigger for the immune system. Chemicals bind right onto the DNA and trigger immune reactions potentially creating autoimmune disease or cancer. Second important step is optimizing the three primary ways to rid the body of things it does not need through sweat, urine and stool. Here are some ways to optimize these detox mechanisms:
- Drink plenty of filtered, clean water out of glass bottles, not plastic, to help the kidneys get rid of water-soluble toxins.
- Increase fiber to optimize gut function and promote healthy bacteria in the gut. The microbiome can help us or harm us depending on what we feed it! Plenty of green leafy and root vegetables with high fiber content will help.
- Activity or saunas to increase sweating and blood flow. Replacing minerals frequently especially magnesium.
The third important step to think about is optimizing our biochemical pathways for detox. Many of the B vitamins assist us in this process. If you have genetic SNP’s (alterations in the genetic code) which cause poor methylation or sulfation you may need to add support with special supplements. These genetic differences cause an impaired ability to rid the body of toxins. But again, if the toxins are not there in the first place then there is not an issue. I like Amy Yasko’s All In One Multivitamin as it contains many of the required nutrients for detox.
Electromagnetic Fields and Detox
Another issue that is becoming more of a problem is the constant exposure to Electromagnetic Fields in the form of Cell towers, Smart Meters, Wifi, and cellphones.These fields can interfere with our intricate cellular chemistry and make it difficult for cellular reactions to occur at a normal rate. Minimize your exposure to help your body perform optimally. Check out https://www.emfanalysis.com for more information.
Fourth, is to optimize your antioxidant status. Many things increase the oxidation in our system. Oxidation is like rust in our bodies through the exposure to oxygen in cellular reactions. Oxidation can damage our mitochondria and cause cell death. Over-exercising, mold, infections like dysbiosis all trigger the immune system and can cause oxidative stress. Antioxidants are key to calm the damage that can arise from these insults. Vitamin C, Glutathione, NAC, B vitamins, Milk thistle, Vitamin A and D all can help to minimize the process and are anti-aging.
Remember to remove as many toxins as you can from your air, water, food and skin products! Breathing clean AIR, drinking clean WATER and healthy organic food without pesticides and herbicides are all so important to good health!! Check out https://www.ewg.org/foodnews/ for a list of the foods most important to eat organic.
Check out Dr. Kessmann’s approved product lines here:
Cleaning:
- Baking Soda
- Vinegar
- Essential Oils like lemon and orange- caution with tree oils
- Hydrogen Peroxide
- Fragrance-Free Dish Soap from Trader Joes
- Ecover dish detergent
Laundry:
- Borax
- Baking Soda- mix with water first and put clothes in later as it can bleach
- Fragrance-Free Natural Line from Costco
Hair Care:
- Accure Shampoo and Conditioner
- Majic Fragrance Free
- For the less sensitive- Bumble and Bumble Coconut Line
Deodorant:
- Schmidts (now available at Costco)
- Primally Pure
- Always make sure Aluminum free
Water:
- Mountain Valley Spring Water in glass- delivered right to my doorstep.
- Berkey filters- love my Berkey and take it on vacations too when driving.
Air:
- Austin Air Filters- I have several of these in my house.
Dr. Kessmann’s knowledge of Functional Medicine allows her to help discover what the issue is in your process that might be contributing to lack of health. She also believes it is important for everyone to detox intermittently to help prevent issues in the future. Prevention is the best strategy. She teaches how to properly heal the gut, decrease toxin exposure and support detoxification through natural means.
References:
- Cano Sanchez M, Lancel S, Boulanger E, Neviere R. Targeting Oxidative Stress and Mitochondrial Dysfunction in the Treatment of Impaired Wound Healing: A Systematic Review. Antioxidants (Basel). 2018 Jul 24;7(8).
- Hodges RE, Minich DM. Modulation of Metabolic Detoxification Pathways Using Foods and Food-Derived Components: A Scientific Review with Clinical Application. J Nutr Metab. 2015;2015:760689. doi: 10.1155/2015/760689. Epub 2015 Jun 16. Review.
- El Assar M, Angulo J, Rodríguez-Mañas L. Oxidative stress and vascular inflammation in aging. Free Radic Biol Med. 2013 Dec;65:380-401.
- Pastore A, Federici G, Bertini E, Piemonte F. Analysis of glutathione: implication in redox and detoxification. Clin Chim Acta. 2003 Jul 1;333(1):19-39.