Periodic Cleansing With Herbs

We try to lead a healthier lifestyle, but there’s no way to avoid accumulating some toxins in our everyday lives. Many of us use chemicals on the job, or work near factories that emit fumes. Your neighbor might spray his weeds with poison. A popular hair treatment has been recently found to contain questionable amounts of formaldehyde (more on that here). It may be that you’ve been on drugs or medication in the past that have not fully cleared from your body. After all, the most popular pain medications have been proven to be toxic, beyond a doubt.

Toxins are in polar bears now. That makes me think I have a snowball’s chance in #$%@ of not having excess toxins in my body. As your chiropractor, I want you to cleanse because toxins contribute to pain and inflammation and shorten the span of time your adjustment will hold before we need to adjust you again.

At Chiropractic Advantage, my assistant Melissa and I are taking the herbs shown above three times daily for a week to help support the release of environmental toxins from our bodies. Patients seem to agree that detoxifying periodically is a good idea, but they’re afraid–worried that they’ll feel badly or have uncontrollable bowels. Don’t worry. A cleanse can be done at your own pace. If you feel like you are eliminating too much at once, just back off on the herbs until you feel up to it again. Melissa and I are both feeling some symptoms from the cleanse–a little headache, allergy sensations, a metallic taste on the tongue, for example, but we’re doing OK here on day 5 of our 7-day cleanse.

Can you cleanse on your own with green smoothies three times a day? Yes, you can, but these Standard Process herbs we are using are convenient and contain stuff I can’t get into my smoothies that easily: juniper berries, red clover, apple pectin, burdock root, dandelion leaf, black radish root, cayenne pepper, fenugreek, beet leaf, artichoke, and more. Each has a purpose in boosting the function of one or more of our organs of elimination.

What can you expect to feel like after a periodic cleanse? Everyone’s experience is going to be different, but usual reports are feeling more alert, less bloat, more energy. The bigger question is this: if you don’t take steps now to detoxify, what will you expect to feel like in the future?

To your health, Sharon Martinez D.C. or Chiropractic Advantage, Rancho Cucamonga, CA