Why Cleanse? Part One

Hi Everyone,

Day one is under my belt and I feel great. I am feeling so optimistic about this coming year and again, I thank you all for the amazing support. I have been rewriting my goals morning and night, walking, drinking my water...I am even being nice to my husband! Miracles can indeed happen!

Today I am going to start talking about CLEANSING. I am a big believer in cleansing. I have seen how it can change people's health in amazing ways. It is a large topic so I am going to break it into 3 posts.

We have all heard about cleansing or detoxing our body (not to be confused with the detox that Lindsay Lohan is forced into bi-weekly). We read about cleansing in magazines, hear ads on the radio and see products line the shelves of our health food store. It seems like cleansing has exploded overnight but this is not true, in fact cultures have cleansed for thousands of years.
Is it necessary to cleanse our bodies? YES!! If you drink alcohol or smoke, you need to cleanse. If you sit in traffic and breath in the fumes from cars, you need to cleanse. If you use plastic, make up, lotions, pharmaceuticals,  or dry cleaning, you need to cleanse. Basically if you live in this day and age, YOU NEED TO CLEANSE.

Our bodies are amazing machines and they cleanse every minute of every day. For example, our kidneys and liver cleanse toxins so that they can be removed from the body via urine and our bowel. If you were to ask a Doctor if you should cleanse, chances are they would say "Your body does it for you" and this is true to a degree. However, our bodies are bombarded with more toxins than ever in history. Cancer rates are through the roof, kids are developing liver disease, our bodies are nutritionally depleted and still most Doctors refuse to acknowledge that this could be in part due to our toxic environment and bodies. Our bodies weren't designed to handle and process the amount and types of toxins it is faced with today.

A study conducted by Mount Sinai School of Medicine and the Environmental Working Group tested volunteers blood and urine and what they found was shocking. There was a total of 167 chemicals found, an average of 91 in each person. Of these toxins, 76 caused cancer, 91 are toxic to the brain and 79 cause birth defects. These industrial toxins were even found in high levels in infants. This is scary stuff. Check out www.toxicnation.ca for studies they are doing on Canadians including our politicians.

Still not convinced? I am going to ask you a series of questions. If you answer yes to any then you should really consider doing a cleanse (whether you have a weight problem or not).

1. Are you constipated? If you are not eliminating regularly you are creating toxins from within your body. You should be having at least 1 but ideally 2-3 bowel movements per day. One movement for every meal is a good goal!
2. Do you eat or drink alot of C.R.A.P? Coffee, Refined Carbohydrates, Alcohol and Processed Foods.
3. Do you work with chemicals, metals, or oils? This includes welders, mechanics, hair dressers etc.
4. Do you eat non-organic fruits and vegetables?
5. Do you feel tired or sluggish especially after eating?
6. Do you suffer from headaches, sore joints or sensitivity to certain smells?
7. Do you have skin issues including acne, eczema or rashes?
8. Do you drink unfiltered tap water?
9. Do you use regular household cleaners or dryclean your clothing?
10. Do you have difficulty losing weight regardless of diet and exercise?

I haven't cleansed in almost 2 years and I can answer YES to 7 of those questions. Today is day 2 of my cleanse and my headache tells me it is working! Tomorrow I am going to explain how toxins can contribute to obesity so that you have a better understanding as to why it is such a big part of my weight loss plan.