Detox - why do one?

The beginning of the year is always a good time to talk about detox after the excitement of Christmas holiday eating and drinking has worn off and you find yourself feeling pretty average. However, this year it seems even more relevant in light of all the changes that came about in 2020, and are still upon us now. Working from home, potentially less structure to days and eating times and habits, as well as possibly more alcohol than usual – sometimes you just need a bit of a reset. And a detox is a great way to do this.

How do you know when a detox may be a good idea? You might start to notice things like lower energy levels, headaches, more/different gut issues, weird skin breakouts, upsets to the menstrual cycle, or just feeling generally sluggish and sub-par.

Of course, any changes like this should be properly investigated by a health practitioner in the first instance, however, it may also be a sign that toxins and metabolic wastes have started to accumulate and your liver and other detox organs are under pressure. It might be time to consciously reduce the toxic load and allow the body to do what it does best when its not being bombarded with a whole bunch of toxic chemicals and foods/drinks (which is quite difficult in modern-day society)!

Those who have looked into or tried detoxing in the past will know there are some pretty crazy approaches out there, however, the reality is that the human body is perfectly designed to detoxify and clear wastes all on its own given the right nutrients and conditions. It is already doing it every minute of every day. We just need to get out of the way and let it do its thing!

There are several organs and processes responsible for detoxification and removal of cellular wastes from the body, but one of the most important is the liver. This superstar organ carries out more that 500 essential tasks with one of the most important being to filter the blood coming from the digestive tract before it goes out to the rest of the body. The liver detoxifies not only chemicals and toxic substances, but also hormones (such as oestrogen), and metabolises drugs.

So we want the liver to be in good working order and not overloaded by things like excessive alcohol consumption, medications and drugs, too many ‘bad’ fats and processed foods in the diet, and exposure to environmental chemicals and toxins. Thus, when doing a detox it’s really important that we give the liver a break from these things and support it to do its job properly by providing the nutrients it needs to perform the different phases of detoxification.

How do we do this? As well as through the food and drinks that we choose, reducing exposure to other toxins that we encounter in daily life is really important. This means things like reducing our use of plastics, trying to stop using anything that contains ‘fragrance’ as these contain endocrine-disrupting chemicals, and making sure we are opening doors and windows at home to counteract the indoor pollution from furniture and carpets ‘outgassing’ their nasty chemicals.

In terms of food, trying to source organic, fresh and in-season fruit and vegetables can’t be beaten; along with giving the diet an overhaul to cut out processed foods and sugar, dairy, caffeine and alcohol. A good meal plan with corresponding recipes can help to make this process easier. There are also many herbs and nutrients such as St. Mary’s Thistle and B Vitamins that can support detox and liver function and this can be discussed with your practitioner.