Happy Monday!
Today’s article is important in a couple of ways. I have a couple of ladies preparing to do a detox and I thought this might encourage them. We just don’t tend to think of all the ways that what we put into our body affects how our body feels.
One thing that affects many of us is the inflammation that it causes. Inflammation then can cause arthritis, heart disease, cancer and on and on! It affects pretty well every organ in our bodies and even the largest organ, our skin.
What we put in our mouth can affect our vision, our hearing (tinnitus), our nails, teeth and hair. It affects our emotions, our intellect and even our mental status. The big picture is that it literally affects everything about us. If you haven’t figured it out yet, what we ingest is one of the biggest decisions/choices we will ever make for ourselves.
If you know me very well, you will know that THE absolute biggest decision/choice you make will be the master you serve. The health of our bodies is very important, but it is temporary. The master we serve is for our eternity.
We have just come through a major holiday season. It is one of the most difficult times to eat a healthy diet. There are ooey, gooey treats at every turn. And by the end of the season, we are hooked. Maybe, the hardest news is that to stop the cravings and giving in to them, we have to just S.T.O.P. Replace the bad stuff with good food that will fill you up and keep you satisfied. A detox gets the bad stuff out of your system and gives you a clean slate. A new start. It’s only 10 days.
Pray Unceasingly!!
In His light,
Lois
15 Signs It’s Time For A Detox
Dr. Will Cole
The concept of detoxing is certainly not a new one. If you immerse yourself in the wellness world, even just a little bit, you quickly become aware of the hundreds of different ways to cleanse your body. From juice cleanses to Whole30 to sipping bone broth—there’s a detox out there that will tickle your fancy.
With our world growing increasingly toxic, the question is not if you should do a detox; it’s when. So start listening to your body, and if you are experiencing any one of these, it’s a sign that it’s time to start your detox method of choice:
1. You
crave sugar often.
Insatiable cravings are a huge sign that something is off. A diet
filled with processed foods can put your blood sugar and leptin hormones on a
roller-coaster ride leaving you begging for more junk. Doing a detox and
focusing on whole, clean food sources will get those hormones back on track by
providing your body with the nutrients that are currently lacking.
2. You
have digestive distress.
This is one of the most obvious signs that you need a complete diet overhaul,
and a detox can do just that. Constipation, diarrhea, bloating, and gas are not
only uncomfortable; they’re the last things that should be happening if
everything is functioning the way it should be. Hit the reset button with a
detox and give your gut a break!
3.
“Seasonal” allergies are a regular occurrence.
If you have a weak gut microbiome, you’ll also have a weak immune system. And
since your sinuses are just an extension of your digestive system, it makes
sense that gut health and chronic allergies would go hand in hand.
4. You eat
healthy but don’t feel healthy.
Maintaining a clean diet doesn’t mean you never need to detox; even the
healthiest foods can aggravate and flare a person up. Eliminating certain
foods for a period of time can give your gut and the rest of your body a
break. Detoxing can also fuel your body with powerful superfoods that can help
eliminate harmful toxins that build up over time and contribute to health
problems.
5. Your
skin isn’t clear.
Toxin and chemical buildup doesn’t do us any favors when it comes to the health
and appearance of our skin. An overload of toxins can hinder the function of
your liver (which is your body’s main detoxifying organ) and lead to buildup.
Since your skin is also responsible for eliminating waste through sweat, all
those problems can creep up to the surface in the form of acne, rashes, and
inflammation.
6. You are
constantly fatigued.
Persistent fatigue may be a deeper problem, also known as adrenal fatigue.
This occurs when your brain and adrenal glands are not communicating well due
to elevated cortisol levels because of toxin buildup, stress, inflammation, or
microbiome imbalances.
7. You
feel foggy.
If you lack the ability to focus or struggle to remember various details on a
regular basis, you’re dealing with brain fog. When your body can’t eliminate
toxins fast enough, they build up in your body and increase inflammation. Too
much inflammation damages your protective blood-brain barrier and leads to
“leaky brain syndrome.” A detox can start to flush out toxins to
relieve the inflammatory oxidative stress in the hypothalamus of the brain so
you can finally start thinking more clearly.
8. You are
experiencing regular joint pain.
Chronic ongoing inflammation can do a number on your muscles and joints. If you
are constantly sore, stiff, and achy—especially if you aren’t pushing yourself
at the gym—it’s a big red flag for inflammation.
9. You’re
constantly stressed.
Not all detoxes need to be food-based. Stress is a huge contributing factor to all sorts of health issues
and can even trigger autoimmune conditions and bigger mental health problems
like depression. While a food-related cleanse can also be fantastic to help
relieve the physical contributors to stress, sometimes you just need to put
outside stimuli on mute and recharge your mental state.
10. The
idea of a detox makes you want to cry.
If just the thought of having to give up your current eating style makes you
want to cry, you may be dealing with an unhealthy emotional attachment to your
food. Instead of looking at food as essential fuel for a healthy body, it can
be used as either a reward or punishment. Doing a detox can be one way to see
if your eating habits have emotional roots, and only then can you start to
identify your relationship with food and begin to take steps forward.
11. You
are struggling with your weight.
I always tell my patients, “We need to get healthy to lose weight, not
lose weight to get healthy.” Your microbiome is a vast collection of all
different strains of bacteria, and without the proper balance of good bacteria,
bad bacteria starts to take over, and this leads to big problems like
inflammation and a slowed metabolism. Take a time-out and start healing your
gut.
12. Your
hormones are out of whack.
Adrenal fatigue, low sex drive, menstrual disorders, and weight-loss resistance
are all big hormonal problems. Each of these hormonal issues can be
traced back to chronic inflammation, which can be due to toxins and other
inflammatory foods in your diet.
13. Your
sleep patterns are messed up.
Irregular circadian rhythms can be due to underlying hormonal issues like
leptin resistance and adrenal fatigue, which I mentioned above. You’ll be
getting your full eight hours in no time once you’ve started to bring your
inflammation and toxin levels down.
14. You
are depressed and anxious.
Lingering feelings of depression and anxiety often stem from inflammation.
“Leaky brain” starts to wreak havoc by triggering an
inflammatory-autoimmune response against your brain and nervous tissue. When
you start to decrease inflammation by cutting things out of your diet you may
find that you start to feel a sense of calm.
15. You
get cold sores.
Painful cold sores are something that 90 percent of us have had to deal with at
least once in our lives, and about 40 percent of people have recurring
flare-ups. This is due to the herpes simplex virus HSV-1—not to be confused
with the HSV-2 strain that is most associated with the STD genital herpes! Most
of the time the virus is dormant in your body, just waiting for an opportunity
to strike. When your immune system is weak due to factors like toxins and
inflammation, the virus is more likely to activate. So, if you are consistently
battling these pesky sores, it’s time to boost up your immune system with a
detox.