Heavy Metal Detox
Do you consider yourself to be a health-conscious person who's tried pretty much everything – from eating organic and meditating to taking supplements and doing regular exercise – but still can't seem to get rid of a handful of symptoms, like lack of energy, brain fogginess, headaches, inflammation, digestive issues, anxiety, insomnia or adult acne? If you answered yes to any of the above, you might be in need of a heavy metal detox.
Every day, we're exposed to heavy metals found in the air, plastics, industrial cleaning agents, and thousands of other chemicals constantly being released into the environment. These toxins include mercury, aluminum, copper, cadmium, nickel, arsenic and lead and are some of the greatest threats to our health. Most of us don't know how to appropriately get tested for them (much less find doctors willing to do so), nor are they commonly diagnosed.
Unfortunately, in today’s world, toxic heavy metals can be found in pretty much anything from aluminum foil and food cans to batteries and paint. But one of the most common sources of heavy metals comes from the pesticides and herbicides used on our crops – in other words, our food. These toxins, that are hard to avoid even when we eat organic, can be carried in our bodies for much of our lives, and if we don't remove them, they can actually oxidize, promoting inflammation and causing damage to our central nervous system and organs.
So, how to rid our bodies of these nasty buggers? There are actually a few powerful foods that can help remove these compounds from our cells, and they consist of spirulina, barley grass juice extract powder, cilantro, wild blueberries (only from Maine) and Atlantic dulse (a special type of seaweed). These five foods, taken within 24 hours of each other, have anti-heavy metal superpowers that aid in detoxifying and restoring our bodies.
In the process of clearing these heavy metals, it's also necessary to eat less meat and fatty food, due to the fact that fat absorbs the very metals we’re trying to eliminate. Reducing our intake of fish that contains higher levels of mercury, such as tuna, shark, king mackerel swordfish, is also important, as well as drinking lots of water with lemon, as this combination flushes the system, especially our liver. Drinking aloe vera juice, sitting in an infrared sauna and juice fasting (celery, cucumbers and apples) are also great ways to help flush out toxic metals.
Yet even with all of this information, heavy metal toxicity is still being explored and researched, meaning there will likely be many new findings in the coming years and decades. For now, the best we can do is make an effort to stay informed, educate ourselves and make healthy, balanced lifestyle choices. And by integrating the detoxifiers listed above into our diets, we can take action and promote the healthy lives we all deserve. Here's to the #BEAUTYOFCHANGE!
“Let food by thy medicine and medicine be thy food.” – Hippocrates
