Excerpt from The Birth Center Client Manual
Detoxification is the body’s natural process of eliminating toxins through the liver, the kidneys, and urine, feces, exhalation, and perspiration.
We are constantly exposed to toxins in the air, water, food, and soil. The modern chemicals that people are exposed to include industrial chemicals, pesticide, food additives, heavy metals, anesthetics, and residues from legal and illegal drugs.
Health issues associated with toxic exposure include autoimmune disease, cancer, cardiovascular disease, endocrine disruption, gastrointestinal disturbances, infertility, kidney damage, low birth weight, multiple chemical sensitivity, obesity, sick building syndrome, and spontaneous abortion.
The better we are at detoxifying these toxins, the better our health will be.
There are many ways to help our body promote improved detoxification:
Reduce exposure
- Improve air quality with a good filtration system.
- Use protective equipment and good ventilation when using chemicals.
- Forbid smoking in your home.
Improve diet and increase intake of foods that promote the detoxification process.
- Increase amount of cruciferous food, which include Brussels sprouts, cabbage, radishes, beet root.
- Increase amount of foods with chlorophylls, such as alfalfa, barley grass, broccoli, buckwheat, chlorella, leafy wild greens, kale, and spinach.
- Increase intake of fresh fruits and vegetables.
- Add phytoestrogenic food to diet, such as red clover, soy, and flaxseed.
- Eat organic food when possible.
- Increase water intake (6-8 glasses of filtered water per day).
- Reduce or eliminate your intake of processed and pre-packaged foods.
To learn more about produce and pesticides to reduce exposure, click here.