8 Best Ways to Detox Your Body

The human body is a remarkable machine that possesses an amazing self-healing power. Engaging in a detox program is a life-changing experience. It enables your body to regenerate, rejuvenate and start over. The body detoxes itself naturally every day from toxic waste, through urine, feces, and sweat. However, our toxic lifestyles do not permit complete detoxification, so we store a lot of toxins in our cells.

What is detox?

Detox is a process or period of time in which one abstains from or rids the body of toxic or unhealthy substances. In simple terms, it is a period when you stop taking unhealthy or harmful foods, drinks into your body for a period, in order to improve your health.

When you keep your body on detox then its process is called Detoxification . Basically, detoxification means cleaning the blood. This is performed by removing impurities from the blood in the liver, where toxins are processed for elimination. The body also eliminates toxins through the kidneys, intestines, lungs, lymphatic system, and skin. Abstaining from food allows the liver to focus its energy on accumulated toxins, rather than the ones you ingest every day, at every meal. Fasting does not only accelerate the detox process, it permits numerous health improvements. In this whole process, one refuels his/her body with healthy nutrients.

Best ways to detox the body

Detoxification is a combination of ways. One can detoxify the body naturally through a lot of different ways such as:

Eliminate stimulants, refined sugars, and flours from your diet: There are countless products that are part of our day-to-day and, without realizing it, fill us with toxins that accumulate in the body.

For example, researchers at the Harvard University School of Public Health found that those who ate canned soup showed an increase of more than 1,000% in the concentrations of bisphenol A (BPA) in the urine, which is a toxic compound.

So, the risk of consuming these products includes:

• Development of allergic processes.
• Risk of genetic alterations.

One’s diet should be based on raw fruits and vegetables, high in carbohydrates and low in fat and protein. We also recommend that you increase the consumption of whole grains, such as millet, quinoa, buckwheat, or oatmeal. Raw vegetables give us vitamins and minerals, fibers, enzymes, antioxidants. They are very suitable to promote cell regeneration and help keep our blood clean.

2. Hydrate properly: Water not only quenches your thirst but helps in the regulation of body temperature, lubricates the joints, aids digestion, and nutrient absorption. More importantly, it detoxifies your body by removing waste products and keeps the intestinal cycle healthy. It is recommended 2.7 to 3.7 liters per day.

3. Exercise daily: Exercise accompanied by a healthy diet is the perfect combination to eliminate toxins. Regular exercise is always linked to a longer life by reducing many body conditions and diseases. It is also very suitable for balancing stress and anxiety levels. By reducing inflammation in the body, it helps in the detoxification of the system and for the proper functioning of the body. Thus, it is recommended to do at least 150-300 minutes of moderate exercise a week or 75-150 minutes of intense exercise.

4. Sleep enough hours: It is important to rest and sleep the right number of hours according to your activity and your age. Having proper and quality sleep helps in the natural detoxification system for the body. So, it is recommended to have a sleep of seven to nine hours on a regular basis to promote good health. That way you get the organism is restored, it recovers energy, strength and you feel balanced.

5. Limit the Alcohol: One should limit the consumption of alcohol as more than 90% of alcohol is metabolized in the liver which can lead to severe damage to the liver by causing fat buildup, inflammation, and scarring. While many studies state that low to moderate alcohol consumption is beneficial for heart health. Even limiting or cutting entirely from alcohol is one of the best ways to keep the body’s detoxification system strong.

6. Eat Antioxidant-Rich Food: Antioxidants protect the body cells against the damage caused by molecules called radicals. The body naturally produces these molecules for cellular processes like digestion. But alcohol, smoke, poor diet, and exposure to pollutants result in the excessive production of free radicals. So, eating an antioxidant-rich diet can help the body fight against oxidative stress and other toxins that increase the risk of diseases. Antioxidants include Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin E, Selenium, Lycopene, Lutein, and Zeaxanthin. Even berries, fruits, spices, vegetables, and beverages like coffee have a high number of antioxidants.

7. Intake of Food high in Prebiotics: To keep the detoxification system healthy Gut health is important. Good gut health starts with prebiotics, a fiber that feeds the good bacteria in your gut called probiotics. By this, the good bacteria can produce nutrients beneficial for health called short-chain fatty acids. So, by eating food high with prebiotics one can keep the immune and detoxification system healthy. Some good food sources of prebiotics include tomatoes, bananas, artichokes, onions, garlic, artichoke, and oats.

8. Decrease of salt intake: Consumption of too much salt can cause to retain excess fluid in the body, especially if you have some problem with kidneys or liver or if you don’t drink enough water. This excess fluid which is been built can result in bloating and make clothing uncomfortable. As more consumption of salt than water results in the release of the antidiuretic hormone that prevents from urinating and therefore detoxifying. So, by an increase of water level on the body, the secretion of antidiuretic hormone is reduced, and urination is increased. In this case, even the increase in intake of potassium-rich food such as potatoes, squash, kidney beans, bananas, and spinach also help.

Other than these there are more various ways to help the body in detoxification in daily life as:

• One must eat food containing sulfur such as onions, broccoli, garlic etc.
• Switch to natural cleaning products such as vinegar, baking soda etc.
• Use of natural body care such as deodorants, makeup, moisturizer, shampoos etc.
• Use of Cilantro (coriander) in the dishes.
• Fasting of one to two days.

Benefits of detoxing

Detoxing one’s body is becoming a new trend in the world of fitness. While the word is shrouded with multiple ambiguities, those who have incorporated detoxification as an important component in their fitness routine can’t stop talking about its natural health benefits. Detoxification really has many benefits such as:

• Help in weight Loss: One of the best aspects of detox drinks is that it helps you lose weight naturally. Even it helps to improve liver functioning and benefit the skin. Detox drinks offer a major boost to your metabolism, thus aiding weight loss. Some of the fruit-based detox drinks that can help in weight loss are as follows:

Raspberries: Experts claim that the ketones in raspberries prevent weight gain to a great extent. Raspberries are also rich in Vitamin B and C which are good for the skin as well.

Apple Cider Vinegar: The acetic acid in apple cider vinegar also increases your metabolism and speeds up weight loss. Its enzymes also aid in digestion.

Lemon: A lemon water detox can also help you shed those extra kilos, due to its richness in pectin fiber. This fiber helps you to feel full for a longer period of time.

• Improves digestion: Detox drinks provide your digestive system with healthy nutrients and serve as a great laxative agent to ease your digestive functioning. Detox drinks also facilitate better liver functioning which plays a huge role in digestion as well. Intake of lemon with water helps as the ascorbic acid in lemon is said to aid digestion. Even Mint, with its super high antioxidant powers is one of the best ingredients for soothing an upset stomach. Mint also improves the flow of bile through the stomach which speeds up the digestion process.

• Improves liver function: At a time where many of our lifestyle habits may be working against our liver (read: alcohol, nicotine, caffeinated and carbonated beverages and fatty foods), it becomes more than essential to give your liver a regular dose of detox to ensure its proper functioning. Detox drinks filter out toxins from the food we consume and also help provide digestive juices to disintegrate them from the healthy nutrients.

• Reduces inflammation: Once your liver is cleansed, and instead of having full blown heavy meals, you give your body some rest by intake of these light detox drinks you can reduce the free radicals in the body that may cause inflammation leading to chronic diseases. These ingredients may help prevent inflammation-

Ginger: Mostly consumed with tea, ginger has proven to be very effective against inflammation.

Watermelon: Watermelon fights inflammation and free radical damage while providing abundant vitamin A and vitamin B, both further helping against skin aging.

• Improves skin: By reducing inflammation and cleansing your body of the toxin overload, detox drinks minimize signs of ageing. Environmental pollutants and chemical deposits on your skin leads to wrinkles and dryness detox drinks with vitamin C rich fruits purify your skin cells and gives you rejuvenated and glowing skin. Lemon, raspberries, grapefruit, and several other citrus fruits are rich in vitamin C and work wonders for skin.

Detoxing aims to help the body rid itself of toxins. The human body has many natural pathways to allow detoxification through the liver, sweat, urine, feces, and more. But fast urbanization and exposure to pollutants, heavy metals, preservatives, and pesticides have taken the average toxin consumption by human beings to an all-time high. These toxins get stored in tissues and cells of our bodies and manifest in harmful metabolically, reproductive, and mental health effects. In serious cases, these toxins can also lead to cancerous consequences. Therefore, we must regularly detox our bodies in whatever way is possible.