Do these toxins make me look fat? Cleansing Part 2

Why yes, yes they do!  Various studies have shown that toxins slow down the body’s metabolic rate; decrease feelings of fullness, leading to eating more and more calories; and limit our ability to burn fat. When faced with toxicity, our bodies respond by retaining water in an effort to dilute water-soluble toxins, and fat to try to dilute fat-soluble toxins. Your body will store water and fat in an effort to dilute these toxins.  This chart illustrates the whole process of detoxification beautifully.

There is a group of toxins called (big word alert) Organochlorines.  They are found in virtually everyone and are easy to detect and measure so Organochlorines (OC for short) are frequently studied in association with obesity. We cannot get rid of them very well, so the body stores them in our fat cells. As we lose weight, the fat cells release the toxins into the bloodstream. Once these toxins are in the bloodstream, all hell breaks loose.

One of the first things toxins do when your fat cells release them into the blood is slow down your resting metabolic rate. So as you begin to lose weight, those surfacing toxins can begin to work against your weight loss. This can lead to the dreaded plateau. This is why cleansing is important. If you can get rid of these toxins quickly, you can reduce or eliminate this effect.

One study that came out in 2002 looked at five factors that affected RMR (resting metabolic rate) during weight loss in sixteen obese men-all of whom experienced a decrease in their metabolism. Not only were toxic OCs in their blood partly to blame for the lower RMR, but the study also confirmed that of the five factors considered, including fat mass and appetite hormones, the presence of OCs was the most important factor influencing  metabolism. The study further determined that the toxins were affecting the production of the thyroid hormones. Your thyroid plays a major role in your body’s regulation of its metabolic rate, so it’s not surprising that toxins present in the blood can lead to a slower metabolism.

Bottom line: The more fat you have, the more toxins you retain.  Toxins not only lead to weight gain but also sabotage your ability to lose weight.

So how do you cleanse? Well there are lots of different options actually but the 3 most common are: Fasting or Juicing, Nutritional Cleansing and Herbal Cleansing.

• Fasting or Juicing: Many cultures fast periodically for health or spiritual reasons. It is gaining popularity in western society and there are even retreats you can attend to fast in a controlled environment. How fasting works to cleanse is that it takes the burden of digestion off the body, allowing all of the bodies functions to perform better. Enzymes which are usually used for digesting food travel to the intestine and blood stream where they "clean" the system of dead and damaged cells, pollutants and unwanted bacteria. Fasting also gives the major organs a rest so that they can become rejuvenated. Sounds great right? Fasting is not for everyone, especially if you have a highly physically demanding job or blood sugar issues. Most people who fast do so for 3-10 days although there are people who do it for much longer. Please proceed with caution if you do decide to fast.
• Nutritional Cleansing: This is a wonderful way to cleanse the body by flooding it with minerals, vitamins and other nutrients. These nutrients help the fuel the body and nourish it so that it works optimally. When you support the body with the proper nutrition, your liver, kidneys and bowel are able to release and eliminate toxins efficiently.
• Herbal Cleansing: Currently this is the most popular way of cleansing the body. Herbal cleanses are usually sold as kits with products to cleanse the organs and support the bowel. It is very important that if you are going to cleanse your liver you make sure you are not constipated. If the toxins are dumped into the bowel and sit there, they will be reabsorbed. Think of it this way, you wouldn’t sweep out the garage with the garage door closed. Same with the body, you have to make sure that your bowels are functioning normally.   Either deal with the constipation first or buy a herbal cleanse that addresses that issue (2-3 bowel movements a day is ideal!). Herbal Cleanses use formulas of herbs, minerals and amino acids that help the organs of detoxification to increase their output. These kits usually last between 7 - 30 days (30 days is ideal to do the job fully although a 7 day cleanse done every month is also effective).

I am doing a combination of nutritional and herbal cleansing. I make myself a green smoothie most days that is filled with lots of organic veggies and fruit. The base is always leafy greens like kale, spinach, chard, romaine and then I put in whatever else I have on hand (cucumber, celery, beets are a few examples). To make it palatable I put in one apple and/or a pear and the juice of one lemon. Fill the blender with filtered water and blend. I can usually get 3 glasses of smoothie out of that. Not only does it help my body detoxify, it is full of fiber to help bind the toxins my body is releasing on its own.  This is not everyone’s cup of tea and thankfully you don’t have to go this route to cleanse your body of toxins. That is where herbal cleansing products come in.

The herbal cleanse I am doing is called Total Body Rapid Cleanse and it is by the company I work for, Renew Life. Obviously I am biased and think we make the best cleanses out there but go to your health food store and see what’s available. As a general rule, if it is sold on a TV infomercial or by a multi-level marketing company, it is overpriced and underperforming. Not always the case but most often the case. I am choosing to do 6 but more likely 8 weeks of Rapid Cleanse. It is only a 7 day cleanse so I will be doing one per week. We do sell a really good 30 day cleanse called CleanseSMART but I had 3 of the Rapid Cleanse on hand so I will use them up. The other reason is that Rapid Cleanse is a little bit stronger and since I have cleansed before, I feel I can handle it.

This was a mega long post! My apologies but hopefully you find the content interesting. Tomorrow I will cover a few more action steps you can take to help detoxify your body and also what you can expect to feel while cleansing. It ain’t always pretty!