Detox. If there’s a health buzzword of the millennium, that’s it. Fortunately, there are numerous ways to detox your body, with many of them highly effective at removing years of abuse from your system. In most cases, all you need to do is to determine what methods are best for you and let your body do the rest for you.
There are many detox products and treatments available, some of those listed at supplementrelief.com. There is more you can do to support your detox efforts.
These nine proven ways to detox Your body will help.
- Cut your alcohol intake. More than 90 percent of alcohol that you take into your body is metabolized by your liver. It only stands to reason that, as a result, your liver can become badly damaged by progressive use. Starting with fatty liver, you stand the chance of eventually suffering from cirrhosis of the liver and other ailments. Cutting your consumption of alcohol can significantly reduce your chances of these problems.
- Get adequate amounts of quality sleep. This point has been made so many ways over the years, but it bears repeating: Americans simply don’t get enough sleep, or if we do, it’s by getting cat naps at our desks or in a lounge chair. This simply isn’t good enough. That is because sleep is required to adequately rest our brains and give our bodies enough time to complete the natural detoxification that it undertakes after a full day.
- Drink enough water. Water does much more than just quench our thirst. It not only aids in detoxification processes, but it also regulates body temperature, lubricates joints, and aids digestion. When you understand that water aids in the body’s primary mission of renewing cells to provide energy, and that renewing cells requires water, it’s easy to understand why everyone should drink at least 125 ounces per day, more or less depending on your gender.
- Reduce your consumption of sugar and processed foods. Most experts agree that the American intake of sugars and processed foods are at a crisis level. In fact, this high level of consumption is thought to be a prime culprit in the rising levels of obesity, diabetes, heart disease, cancer, and other chronic diseases. It only stands to reason that if we cut back or eliminate these foods from our diets, we will reduce toxicity in our bodies, and become happier and healthier.
While we are on the subject of the sweet stuff, the opposite should also be mentioned: salt. For most people, detoxing means ridding their bodies of excess water. Unfortunately, consuming excessive amounts of salt causes your body to retain water, which is counterproductive. It is always a good idea to monitor how your clothes fit, and since water causes bloating, and you are watching what you eat, the chances are good that you have too much salt in your body.
Further, when you have too much salt in your body and not enough water, your body releases hormones that slow down urination and also slowing down the detoxification process. By contrast, when you reduce the amount of salt in your body and increase your intake of water, you eliminate more water in the form of urine, which takes waste products with it. You can also counterbalance the amount of salt in your body by increasing the potassium-rich foods in your diets, such as spinach, bananas, kidney beans, squash, and potatoes.
- Eat a diet high in antioxidants. Over the past few years, medical science has shown that foods high in antioxidants—compounds that defend the cells in your body from damage—can aid your body’s natural processes of healing and growth. High oxidant levels in the body have also been shown to combat oxidative stress as well as to reduce the risk of some diseases.
- Eat dark chocolate. For all the chocolate lovers in the world, you’re in luck. Finally, medical science has provided proof of what we have been telling our sweet tooth for years: dark chocolate is highly nutritious. It contains more cocoa than regular chocolate in addition to more antioxidants and minerals. Even better, dark chocolate has been cited as providing benefits such as reduced inflammation and lowered rates of heart disease. And, if your doctor has told you that you are at risk for hypertension, tell him or her that you will be having some dark chocolate as they recommended.
- Eat pecans. Pecans are naturally rich in antioxidants and provide healthy fats. They are also particularly high in antioxidants. For example, one study conducted recently and published in Science Direct showed that those who consumed 20 percent of their daily calories from pecans had a significantly higher level of blood antioxidant levels. Pecans also contain a significant number of calories, so enjoy with caution.
- Watch your prebiotics. Detoxing your body means watching your gut, and that has nothing to do with its size. Instead, you should be careful of what you are putting into your system because detoxing is a major function of your body, which includes excretion, aka fiber. Prebiotics include bananas, tomatoes, artichokes, asparagus, onions, garlic, and oats. When you increase your intake of foods such as these, you increase the rate at which your body can handle the process of detoxification.
- Get active. Your body is just like a car. It can be either a Ferrari or an old clunker. And just like a car, the better you take care of it, the better and longer your body will run for you. Unfortunately, many people only consider exercise as a method of losing weight, but it is also helpful in speeding up and maintaining your metabolism. Exercise also reduces the risk of many conditions and diseases such as type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, certain cancers, and heart disease. It also reduces inflammation, which is necessary for the recovery of infections and the healing of wounds. Too much exercise can also be harmful, so be careful, and ask your doctor or a well-informed coach for guidance.
