Common Methods of Active Detoxification

Vicki Latham P.A.-C.

This is, by no means, an all inclusive list of detoxification methods. But it is a good jumping off place for you begin to look at the common options that are available.

When I began studying detoxification in 2005, virtually no one knew much of anything about it. My attempts to alert people about toxins, was met with what I called “the deer in the headlights look”. Today, everyone I meet wants to detoxify their body. Detox is the new “buzz word”.   Hundreds of companies offer an abundance of products that promise that they will aid in detoxifying your body. Virtually ALL of these options are Active Detoxification. They all actively stimulate your body to release stored toxins back into your circulation for your normal detoxification pathways to remove them

Active detox methods can be extremely effective, but they also have risks. They require knowledge and discipline to be done correctly. Before starting any ACTIVE detoxification protocol, or method, it is best to check with your health care provider to be sure your pathways in your liver, kidneys, bowel, skin, and lungs are healthy enough to meet the challenge of ACTIVE detoxification.

Your body is generally very good at detoxification, but when your body burden becomes more than it can handle, toxins can be stored in fat, tissue, bones, and on cell membrane receptor sites. The body “sequesters” these toxins for a reason…it didn’t want these things to be present in your blood causing acute health issues. Active detoxification encourages, or forces the body to release these stored toxins back into circulation. Now your detoxification pathways in your liver, kidneys, bowel, lymph, skin, and lungs must deal with these toxins again. Or to put it grossly…you have to pee it out, poop it out, sweat it out, or breathe it out. If you don’t, the body has to store it, again.

Therefore, all active options create the potential for what is known as a “detoxification reaction”. In the process of stressing your normal detox pathways, the toxins can cause symptoms of fatigue, rashes, fevers, vomiting, diarrhea, and general malaise. This can happen, even in otherwise healthy folks. But, if your pathways are impaired by illness, or disease such as hepatitis in the liver, or renal impairment in the kidneys, or inflammatory bowel diseases, for example…then active detox could actually cause significant harm to the body; and be dangerous to your health, rather than beneficial.

It is good to learn about PASSIVE detoxification options, so if you have health issues, you can avoid the risks of Active methods all together. Or ACTIVE and PASSIVE methods can be done together to maximize the effectiveness of your total detoxification regimen. Follow-up your reading of this article with the article “What is the BEST way to detoxify your body”. And “What is the BEST way to detoxify your body in pregnancy”.

ACTIVE detoxification methods are totally contra-indicated in pregnant and nursing mothers. WE want to either get the toxins out with PASSIVE methods, or we want to leave them stored. We do not want them released so they have the potential to pass in the blood through the placenta, and umbilical cord into the developing fetus. This has the potential for tremendous harm to the baby   in-utero, because the pre-born baby has virtually no functioning detoxification pathways until after birth.

Active Methods:

• Massage/Lymphatic drainage: moves lymph through the body, stimulates release of toxins from the skin, muscles, and tissues.
• Essential Oils: used with massage to enhance the release of toxins from the cells of the body.
• Sweating: Sauna’s, sweat lodge. Infra-red sauna’s mobilizes stored toxins in fat with low dose radiation, forcing the sweat glands to sweat out toxins.
• Purging methods: Colon Cleanses, Colonics, Laxatives, Prebiotics-Probiotics
• Acupuncture/Acupressure: particularly good with helping people withdrawing from addictions.
• Algae; Chlorella and Spirulina combine with heavy metals forming compounds that can be more easily eliminated by the body.
• Herbal Detoxification: targeted to stimulate detoxification in specific organs such as the kidneys, liver, or blood
• Specific Nutrients that aid detoxification: glutathione, enzymes, L-lysine, antioxidants, etc. Many new products are being advertised and marketed as “the newest thing” for detoxification. Check out all ingredients, AND the purity of their sources, very carefully.
• Pure water-normal pH of 7 or slightly above is best
• Diets: Raw/Live Foods, Organic foods, Plant sterols
• Fasting, various types

This list is incomplete…but it will help to educate you on your ACTIVE detoxification journey. And to help you consider how these things might fit into your lifestyle, your health conditions, or meet specific goals that you want to achieve.

I personally recommend that if you are going to do ACTIVE detox that you combine it with PASSIVE detox for the best results, and to reduce your risk of Detoxification Syndrome. SEE the Article on PASSIVE detox.

If I can answer any questions that you have about ACTIVE and PASSIVE detox, and if I can help you create your Detoxification plan…Click Here to Book your Consult.