Six ways to have a gentler detox this summer
11/25/2015 / By mindbodyscience
It’s summertime, and with the most gluttonous holidays behind them, people start to evaluate their current state of health. This is a popular time for people to reach for the “detox in a box” in the hopes that the heaviness, bloating, and generally icky feelings go away. But rather than going that route or doing something radical that could cause too much “shift” in the body, why not employ a more gentler detox that is way more enjoyable? Try these six methods and watch how much better you feel at the end!
Spring water with lemon and cranberry
Spring water is easily the most important factor in a proper detox. It is exceptionally hydrating, mineralizing, and full of oxygen. Drinking 8-10 glasses a day is a nice general recommendation to help flush the system of any unwanted toxins.
Add the juice of 1 lemon and 1-2 ounces of pure cranberry juice to 1 liter of water, and drink 2 of these concoctions a day. If some sweetness is required, use a reputable brand of stevia.
Grounding
Grounding is quite simply based on research that connection to the earth’s electrical energy promotes physical well-being. This can be achieved by touching bare skin (such as your feet and hands) to grass, sand, soil, and even concrete (provided it is not sealed or painted).
Grounding can relieve many health conditions, including poor sleep, energy problems, hormonal issues, stress, inflammation, and gastrointestinal problems. It is one of the cheapest way to gently detox!
Juice
Juicing can help flush many of the body’s systems of toxins and provide the body with plenty of nutrients and enzymes to optimize many different functions in the body. The key to juicing for optimal health is to limit the sugar content and incorporate more vegetables than fruit.
Consider things like green apples, limes, lemons, kale, cucumber, celery, parsley, cilantro, carrot, peppermint, ginger and turmeric. This will keep the juice low in sugar, and will invigorate all of the bodily systems.
Kefir
When attempting to detox the digestive system and liver, it is a good idea to opt for kefir that is not from dairy. Choose coconut or water kefir instead, so the body can more easily digest the beneficial probiotics and enzymes, without the milk proteins that can exacerbate digestive distress.
Kefir can have a remarkable effect on digestion and the liver, and a couple ounces a day is all one needs to typically see some benefits.
Rebounding
Another important part to doing a proper detox is encouraging lymphatic flow. Since it does not have its own pump, lymph needs to be moved manually, that is, from movement of the body.
The easiest low impact way to encourage lymphatic flow is rebounding. For 10-15 minutes a day, one can stimulate the lymphatic system and encourage it to remove toxins from the cells and safely out of the body.
Infrared sauna
Unlike traditional saunas that use air and steam, infrared saunas emit a radiant heat that is absorbed directly into the body. This makes it much more efficient in removing toxins with an estimated 80 percent water and 20 percent waste and toxin removal, as opposed to 97 percent water and 3 percent waste and toxin in a traditional steam sauna. Infrared saunas are non-invasive and can penetrate as much as three inches into the body, which helps eliminate all kinds of toxins.
If the goal this year is to merely survive by indulging then detoxing, then herbal detox kits may be the perfect fit. However, if the goal is to make better overall choices that can detoxify you 24-7, then consider this DIY health program.
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