Body Cleanse Hub

I found this profoundly interesting because it affects me personally all the time and thought I’d pass the info along.  I’ve always been aware that there are hundreds of harmful food additives that get pumped into our food supply all the time, most of the time without our knowledge.  A good body cleanse is a useful way to counter-act these toxins by flushing them out but you can’t beat prevention as a means of treatment!  Avoiding toxins in the first place is the best body cleanse method, by far!

So as I was doing some reading about additives, I was struck by a pretty well-known culprit:  Monosodium Glutamate or “MSG.”  Turns out some of the most notable symptoms for those sensitive to its effects are headaches and an aching in the back of the neck and shoulders.  Sometimes this spreads to the forearms and palms and can cause irritation in addition to nausea, dizziness and a general poor mood or disposition.  Wow!  I notice those symptoms pretty often and usually assume them to be dehydration.  But now I’m concerned that it may be more akin to MSG side effects.

What is MSG?

Many know it as the “chinese restaurant syndrome” because MSG has long been a staple among Asian restaurants as a flavor enhancer.  MSG isn’t a completely man-made poison.  In fact, it’s natural form isn’t quite so harmful, as it bonds with other amino acids, forming a protein molecule.  However, when MSG is synthesized in a lab and sprinkled artificially onto your food, it isn’t bonded but rather a “free” molecule.  This unnatural separation from the protein provides the punch to the taste buds but also floods the body with unbound acids that don’t help to do anything nutritional.   This causes the side effects I mentioned.

The interesting thing about MSG is that everyone’s reaction is unique.  Some people are considered “MSG Sensitive” and their reactions go beyond the aforementioned into the realm of increased anxiety, cramps, skin rashes, confusion, heart palpitations, and even seizures.  Of course, these more extreme reactions are akin to any other food allergy and pertain to a small percentage or people.  Still, the flood of unbound acid molecules into the body over-stimulates the brain enough to warrant caution from anyone.  It simply isn’t nutritious and should be avoided.

As always, check your labels.  MSG is in lots of processed and packaged foods, especially those with high sodium content.  And, of course, always check with your Asian cuisine chef to make sure no artificial MSG is used in your Orange Chicken.

I can always tell when it’s been too long since my last detox.  In truth, I go through periods of laziness and my diet and lifestyle take on uber-toxic proportions.  Living in the modern world, especially in an urban setting, it’s easy to fall into this trap of toxicity and less-than-optimal health practices.  But then I start getting the signals from my body and I acknowledge that it’s time to make a change.  So how does my body let me know that it’s time to detox.

Body Signals Requesting a Detox

For starters, I usually start to feel weak and achy. My muscles are tense, my joints are tight, and no amount of stretching quite takes care of the sense of tightness in my body.

My neck and shoulders get tense and I get mild headaches.  This is usually a sign of dehydration and I try to cut out beverages that aren’t plain water.  It’s amazing how easy it is to avoid drinking plain old water in our culture.  There are literally thousands of beverage options throughout the day, which are all nice and tasty but, let’s face it, humans survived on regular old water for thousands of years before Coca Cola came along.

I’m tired all the time and, usually, depressed.  Now, granted, I go into bouts of depression for lots of reasons ranging from the reduced sunlight in the winter months to reading too much mainstream media, but there is a distinct feeling that accompanies depression caused by an overly-toxic body.   If you pay close enough attention, you begin to learn your own body’s “language” and can discern its cries for attention.  For me, when I go through the period where I don’t want to sleep but I’m tired, where I feel like I need to be productive but I don’t want to do anything, and when I want to be happy but I just feel like crap… I know my body needs a hose-down from the inside-out.

Nothing sounds good to eat, especially healthy food.  When my cravings are all for salty grains or heavy foods, and I just can’t get up the desire to feast on fruit or vegetables, it’s a clear sign that the body is bogged down with too much crap.  Heavy foods are somewhat addictive to the body because they produce opiate-like chemical floods in the brain.  Chocoloate and sugar are major culprits, which is why they make us feel so good when we bite down.  It’s only later that we realize, as with any addiction, that the immediate benefits don’t outweigh the longterm effects of toxicity.   When I get in this “downward spiral” of eating in unhealthy ways, it’s clear that the reward circuits of my brain are overloaded and need to be detoxed.

Where to Go from Here

While I recognize that it’s time to clean things out, I don’t have time in my life right now to do a full-blown Master Cleanse, which requires some serious time and energy set aside to outlast its intense detoxing effects.  Instead, I’ll start by cutting out the more harmful things I’m taking in, like sugary drinks and heavy carbs, in favor of more fruits and veggies.  This way I can ease out of the slump and then, say next week, I can get into a more strict body cleanse.

You’ve done the reading and research and you understand what a body cleanse or detox is all about but there’s something that still rings in your mind.  How do you know you know if a body cleanse is actually something you need.  The good news is you don’t need a doctor or guru to tell you if you’re toxic.  There some easy indicators that you can pick up on for yourself that will suggest the overall health of your body and its toxicity levels.

1. Achey muscles and/or joints. Often a byproduct of dehydration, aches in muscles or joints mean the muscle tissue and fibers are not getting the nutrition they need, and are often overloaded with unnecessary chemicals or “nutrients.”

2.  Frequent headaches. Another dehydration signal and one associated with improper diet and exercise.  Headaches arise from problems in the blood-flow to the brain.  If there is a high level of toxic residue in your blood stream, it can cause frequent headaches.  This can also happen as a side effect when you body cleanse.  If you’ve ever had a caffeine addiction, you’re familiar with the headaches that arise from a sudden change in the blood stream chemicals, or lack thereof.

3.  Low energy or frequently being tired.  Your body’s vitality affects your mood and motivation levels.  When the body is busy trying to deal with an overload of foreign toxins, it tends to pull back on the abundance of life energy you are normally afforded.  A whole body cleanse can free up the body to give you more zest for your day instead of slaving away processing chemicals for you.

4.  Frequent colds or sickness. In a similar vein, a highly toxic bloodstream often results in a reduction of immune system agents that protect you from disease and foreign germs.  When your body is fighting to process toxins, it doesn’t have as many free resources to defend against invading agents.

5.  Coughs or a sore throat.  Mucus is a byproduct of toxic residue that accumulates in your breathing pathways.  An over-abundance of such residue can result in frequent coughing or sore throats.  Smoke-related pollutants are notorious for this effect.

6.  Runny nose or nasal/sinus congestion.  Many sinus problems are related to overall body chemistry.  Allergies and atmospheric pressure are only components of a larger sinus balance in your system.  If you’re toxic, meaning out of balance, your sinuses will let you know.

7.  Dense or yellow urine. You’ve surely noticed a discoloration or varying coloration in your own urine.  If not, you should check.  The more yellow or cloudy your urine is, the more contaminants and pollutants are being expelled from your body.  This means it’s time to take it easy and let things clear up.  You’ll know when they have because the color will begin to get more clear.

8.  Irregular, painful, or messy bowel movements.  Another touchy subject for some, but you can’t deny the overall digestive process we humans go through when we eat to survive.  If your digestive system is clogged up with toxins that it can’t process fast enough, it will malfunction.  If you have these bowel symptoms, it is sometimes best to perform a total cleanse to clear up the contamination.

9.  Acne or oily skin. Your pores are a key part of the body cleanse process, allowing toxins from your bloodstream to seep out through your skin.  This gets them out of the body where they just cause problems.  However, if this is happening in excess, as happens at adolescence when the body is dealing with a whole new set of hormones and chemical agents in the blood, it may mean you are overly toxic and could use a detox.

10.   Lack of food enjoyment or taste.  This one is a it less obvious but a major factor.  If you notice that regular and healthy foods aren’t satisfying your hunger, it may mean you have formed a dependency or addiction to the toxins you get from other, less healthy sources.  If you drink coffee for a morning jolt, but the caffeine is having less and less of an effect, then you’re reached a critical mass of caffeine in your bloodstream and it is having a reduced effect.  To compensate, perform a body cleanse to rid your body of caffeine (and your dependency on it) for a while.  Then, when/if you return to it, it will be a fresh stimulant to the body once again.

All of these symptoms are influential in self-diagnosing a toxic system.  Pay attention to the signals your body is sending.  It is a perfectly-balanced instrument capable of complete auto-pilot in the health department but you can easily throw it off-balance with poor choices.  Let your symptoms guide you to the root problems, which can often be taken care of with a total body cleanse to get you back on track with a healthy, fresh, clean start.