Cleansing

by Dave Carpenter, N.D., C. Ac, CCI

Looking at customs and traditions of people around the world we find it interesting to note that most cultures cleanse their bodies at least once a year. Americans are often clueless when a cleanse is mentioned and wonder what we’re talking about. Cleansing is simply a way of providing the body relief to cleanse itself of toxins accumulated from the daily activities and lifestyles that we lead. Most of us have never given it a thought.

Let’s look at this a different way. Why do you have the engine oil and filter on your car changed and serviced every 3,000 miles or 3 months? Isn’t it because of the work that the engine does and to preserve that engine’s life. You’ll also make sure that you maintain the fluid levels on your vehicle and put the proper fuel into that vehicle to make it run optimally and to improve the longevity. I think that you’ll find yourself doing the same basic maintenance with your vacuum, your furnace, air conditioner, power tools, machinery, etc.. Why then is it so different with our bodies and why do we take them so much for granted?

Is it just tradition? Do we honestly believe that our bodies will run on any type of fuel we throw down the “hatch” or that we can continually abuse our bodies and yet expect them to serve us without fail forever? The truth is that what we are doing isn’t working. The incident of practically every major disease –cancer, diabetes, heart disease, osteoporosis, arthritis, Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, etc.-is increasing. It’s obvious to me that something we’re doing isn’t working. So let’s see if something as simple as a short cleanse once or twice a year can make a difference?

SO WHO NEEDS TO CLEANSE?

1. Do you experience fatigue or low energy levels?
2. Do you experience brain fog, lack of concentration and /or poor memory?
3. Do you eat fast food, fatty foods, pre-prepared foods or fried foods?
4. Do you drink coffee and sodas during the day to “get you going?”
5. Do you smoke cigarettes?
6. Do you crave or eat sugary snacks and candy or desserts?
7. Do you have less than 2 bowel movements per day?
8. Do you feel sleepy after meals, bloated and / or gassy?
9. Do you experience indigestion after eating?
10. Are you overweight, or do you rarely exercise?
11. Do you experience reoccurring yeast infections?
12. Do you have arthritic aches and pains or stiffness?
13. Do you take any prescription medication, sedatives or stimulants?
14. Do you experience frequent headaches?
15. Do you live with or near polluted air, water and /or other environmental pollution?
16. Do you have bad breath or excessive body odor?
17. Do you experience depression or mood swings? (mental highs and lows)
18. Do you have food allergies or bad skin?
19. Are you showing signs of premature aging?
20. Have you ever used an internal cleansing product and followed a
complete internal cleanings program?

If you answer “yes” to 3 or more of the above –listed question or
answer “no” to question 20, you are a good candidate for an internal
cleansing program and would benefit greatly.

IN A NUTSHELL
Poor Digestion = Toxic Build-up
Toxic Build-up = Dis-Ease!

What Can I Do?

The first step is to drink more good water. I recommend that through this period you drink a minimum of 3/4 of an ounce up to 1 ounce of water for every pound that you weigh every day.

Next, determine just how serious that you want to be with this and how long you want to do it. There are many levels. I suggest that you follow the “80/20″ rule. The 80/20 rule says that you will make sure that 80% of the foods on your plate at any given time are healthy foods like fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds and grains and get several TBS of the good oils like coconut, olive, flax, fish, sunflower and other good EFA’s. The other 20% can be made up of things that fall in the unhealthy foods category. These would include meat, dairy products, eggs, all processed foods (I call these the “white” foods) including processed breads, sugar, flour, prepared foods and candy. You may also want to supplement your diet with greens.

If you really want to do a powerful cleanse do a juice diet with raw fruits, veggies, nuts and seeds and good oils for a few days. Again you may want to add greens to this program.