Toxins are harmful compounds, which exist in our environment. They can accumulate in our body and they can cause disease and different health issues.

Toxins surround us in every moment of our life. You can find them in food, air, water, cosmetics, medicines and more.

A woman exposes herself every day to over two hundred chemicals by 9 am using non-organic makeup! On top of it, CDC (Center for Disease Control) reports that humans are exposed to over 250 chemicals daily. They are everywhere: BPA- bisophenol A found in plastic (bottles, packaging), arsenic- found in homes, tricolsan- antibacterial agent used in soap (huge endocrine disruptor), acrylamide- byproduct of cigarette smoke and frying or baking in high temperatures, fungicides, pesticides, herbicides, phallates – in perfumes and cosmetic and the list goes on.

They accumulate in your body and crate a burden on your detoxification system.

Our detoxifying organs like liver and kidney become overburdened and that creates all sorts of health issues – like estrogen dominance, thyroid issues, gut issues to name the few. We need to take care of our detoxifying organs on a regular basis.

Liver is one of the most important detoxifying organs. We need to learn how to appreciate the liver and help it to detoxify. The liver is responsible for filtering and neutralizing harmful substances in your body. Liver has 500 metabolic jobs, which it cannot perform when overburdened with toxins.

There are two major liver detoxification pathways, which are extremely important. They are called the Phase 1 and Phase 2 detoxification.

Phase 1 converts a toxic chemical into a less harmful chemical. Toxins are broken down into small fragments. During this phase, various chemical reactions take place, like oxidation, reduction, and hydrolysis, and during this process free radicals are produced which, if excessive, can damage the liver cells- so they are actually more toxic than they were originally. We need an adequate amount of antioxidants, like vitamin C, E, and carotenoids, to minimalize the damage, which is caused by free radicals. An inadequate amount of antioxidants and high toxins exposure cause toxic chemicals to be more dangerous.

Phase 2 is called the conjugation pathway. During this phase, liver cells add another substance, like glycine, sulphur or cysteine molecule to a toxic chemical or drug. This process makes it less harmful. The process makes the toxin water-soluble and because of that, they can be removed from the body through urine and bile. For Phase 2 to be efficient, the liver needs sulfur-containing amino acids such as cysteine and taurine. The nutrients glycine, glutamine, choline, and inositol are also required for efficient phase two detoxification.

They are six pathways in phase 2:

• Glutathione conjugation
• Amino acid conjugation
• Methylation
• Sulfation
• Acetylation
• Glucuronidation

For both pathways to work liver need adequate nutrients to work effectively. If we don’t have the right nutrients to support the detoxification, toxins will build up in our body.

Foods that Promote Detoxification

Certain nutrients and foods help us detoxify and helps us eliminate the chemicals, hormones, toxins, and drugs, which entered our body. For instance, we need foods high in vitamins A, C, D3, E, and the entire B complex, in addition to calcium and citrus bioflavonoids for Phase I detoxification.

Food for phase 1:

• Cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower and Brussels sprouts
• Dark leafy greens like kale, chard and mustard greens
• High quality, organic animal proteins from pastured, free-range, wild, grass-fed, antibiotic- and hormone-free animals
• Citrus fruits like lemons, limes, oranges etc.

Phase II detoxification is facilitated by sulfur-containing substances like taurine and cysteine, in addition to nutrients like glycine, glutamine, choline, and inositol. High quality sources of sulfur compounds include:

• Eggs
• Onions, Garlic and Shallots
• Cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, bok choy, arugula, radish, cauliflower, and Brussels sprouts
• High quality, organic animal proteins from pastured, free-range, wild, grass-fed, antibiotic- and hormone-free animals.
• Limonene- find in citrus fruit in the skin and white fluffy part
• Fish oil

Herbs that support liver detox:

• Burdock root
• Milk thistle
• Dandelion
• Turmeric
• Cilantro
• Parsley

So should I detox?

The answer is very much yes!! You should detox not only on daily basis but so couple longer cleanses a year.

You can start with reducing conventional produce, body products, cleaning supplies- switch for organic ones and read the labels! Cleaning up your diet is a huge endeavor. Avoid sugar, unhealthy fat, fried food, and artificial sweeteners as well as refined flours, alcohol, coffee, and vegetable oils. That would be a good start, and then you can go deeper like with this Thriving Hormones Detox I designed for you!

In Health

Angie

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