Another mom & I were chatting about trying a healthy detox...not sure but anyway, here are some helpful tips for realistic detoxification for your body. I'd also recommend BIKRAM yoga. Anyway, enjoy!
A Detox Tune-Up for You
Now
is the season of awakening. In the flowering trees and noisy birds, we
feel spring all around us. Why not feel it inside, too, with a
detoxification program — a cleansing for your body and mind.
Your
body is not unlike your car — an efficient machine that performs
consistently only when it is given proper care. And just like a car
needs a regular change of oil and various filters to eliminate the
waste products that degrade its performance, the body needs to be
cleared of the chemicals and toxins that clog its system.
Many
of these toxins are the destructive side effects of our chemical
inventions, from the preservatives and additives found in foods or the
contaminants in the water supply to the formaldehyde in carpets and
furniture. Your body can process and eliminate some of the hordes of
chemicals that enter, but the overflow gets stored in the liver, lungs,
kidneys, fat cells, intestines, blood stream, and skin — which can
result in chronic illnesses down the road.
Feel Fresh with a Daily Detox
Here is a full day of practices to gently detoxify your body:
1. Begin your day with gentle stretches that warm up your body and awaken your mind.
2. Make
yourself some cleansing lemon tea. Simply heat up filtered water and
squeeze half of a lemon in it. This will cleanse your digestive system.
3. For
your detox diet, choose high fiber and organic foods, and eat more
beans, brown rice, oat bran, vegetables, fruits, and chicken or turkey.
This Super Cleanse Broth will spring you into good health. To make,
simply prepare a broth from: collards, Swiss chard, kale, mustard
greens, cabbage, dandelion, Brussels sprouts, daikon radish,
watercress, seaweed, shitake mushrooms, cilantro, garlic, leeks,
fennel, anise, ginger, and turmeric.
4. Drink
your veggies in juice form! Try a terrific detox juice made with Aloe
vera juice, apples, asparagus, beet greens, cabbage, carrot greens,
celery, cucumbers, and parsley.
5. Soak for 20
minutes in a revitalizing herbal bath. To help draw out toxins, infuse
your bath water with eucalyptus, wintergreen, peppermint, fennel,
cinnamon, and epsom salts.
Herbal Therapy
Whether
steeped into tea or added to your cooking, you can use these potent
cleansing herbs to remove toxic build up and wastes from your body:
• Chrysanthemum flower: Traditionally
used to cleanse the liver, brighten vision, and neutralize toxins - and
studies show that chrysanthemum lowers blood pressure and cholesterol
and balances blood sugar.
• Dandelion: Research
shows that dandelion root enhances the flow of bile, improving liver
conditions such as hepatitis, gallstones, and jaundice.
• Milk thistle:
Extensive research has found that the major component of milk thistle
extract, silymarin, has a protective and a restorative effect on the
liver, stimulating the growth of new liver cells to replace old damaged
cells.
• Hawthorn berry: A famous
cardiovascular tonic that is chock full of antioxidants, hawthorn is
used to cleanse the blood of plaque and other toxins; according to
studies, it helps the body maintain healthy cholesterol and blood
pressure.
• Turmeric: A common spice, turmeric
speeds up the detoxification process in the whole body by increasing
bile production and release, eliminating toxins like heavy metals and
other chemicals.
• Seaweed: The algin in
seaweed absorbs toxins from the digestive system and has been thought
to absorb and remove drugs, chemicals, heavy metals, and radioactive
strontium from the body. Some experts claim that seaweed's active
ingredient, sodium alginate, binds these toxins in the gastrointestinal
tract, preventing their absorption into the body.
Among my
patients, a popular herbal formula is Internal Cleanse, a special
combination of natural herbs to detoxify, calm nerves, clear the mind,
promote emotional balance, and ease digestion. For more information, click here.
I
hope you find the ways to detoxify your whole being! I invite you to
visit often and share your own personal health and longevity tips with
me.
May you stay healthy, live long, and live happy!
-Dr. Mao
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