The Detox Dance

It's that time of year again; the time to cleanse, reinvigorate and renew.

Doing cleanses and detoxes through juicing or fasting has become almost common place.  When I started biannual cleanses back in the 90's, it wasn't usual with many people.  Back then, I was dealing with a serious healing crisis, and with the support of a wonderful naturopath went through a 6 month healing that involved several detox cleanses, hydrocolonic therapy, white light therapy and vitamin/mineral therapy. It was intense, expensive and totally worth it.  I completely healed without invasive procedures.  It actually changed my life and put me on the course I presently pursue.

So, why should people periodically detox (if you aren't contending with a healing crisis)?  And what is the best way to do it?

Our human propensity is grounded in habit; the good, the bad, the ugly and beautiful.  We are routine and habit oriented.  Never changing up the way we eat and behave creates a static energy field, and this most often leads to dis-ease.  As I've said in several posts,  we live in a vessel that is constantly working for us, often taxed and on overdrive.  The heart never stops beating, the lymphatic, circulatory and gastrointestinal systems similarly are always at work.  To give them a rest, a break from dealing with breaking down fats and sugars is a way to renew their function.  This sort of change, reinvigorates our metabolism, allows the systems to relinquish stored toxins, provides our spiritual self new impressions and jump starts a heightened awareness, hopefully offsetting the need to ever have to manage a healing crisis.  Cleansing rejuvenates and reinvigorates and is fully sympathetic with the Spring and Autumn seasons.

To the question, what is the best way to do it, well, there are many, many ways.  Back in the '90's it tended to be "hard core".  Juicing juicing juicing.  Water water water.  No morsel of anything with non-liquid texture touched one's lips for 16-30 days.  Kind of rough and kind of exhilarating.  Today, there are all sorts of products and ways to approach it.  What I initially counsel to others and take into account for myself is, who am I right now?  What can I manage?  What is feasible within a budget, and where is my spirit in relation to the endeavor of this type of renewal?

For those going through a healing crisis, jumping into a very intense period of fasting/juicing may not be ideal.  It may be necessary to build the body up first, get the liver filtering optimally before one undertakes a detox.  This requires guidance and support and one should get this from a trusted healthcare partner.

There are a few circumstances to consider when undertaking a detox:  avoiding free-radical conditions and constipation.

Free radicals are molecules with unpaired electrons. In their quest to find another electron, they are very reactive and cause damage to surrounding molecules.  In detoxing, it's important to continue to nourish the body while avoiding a starvation situation.  As soon as the body senses it isn't getting nourished, it goes into lock down to avoid what it perceives as starving/imminent death, releasing an onslaught of free radicals into the blood stream. Free radicals are everywhere, in the air, our bodies, and the materials around us. They cause cellular and molecular deterioration causing age-related illnesses, and are unwanted contributors to heart attacks, stroke and cancers.

Constipation happens when fiber is eliminated from the diet, circumstances which are prime when one is exclusively juicing.  To offset this, maximum hydration is required and use of hydrocolon therapy (colonics) and or use of natural products like psyllium (natural bulk laxative).  Work with a professional to consider the best options for you.

One of the interesting things about cleansing is watching how you handle the stages.  Initially, there can be irritability, headaches, low energy. As the cleanse progresses, it's not uncommon to feel an incredible inner and outer lightness and high energy.  Part of detoxing is listening to the body and providing. If you need to rest or sleep, make the time.  The commitment to the process is an exemplary effort of caring for oneself.  All the time cutting the vegetables, preparing the broths, cleaning the juicer parts.  It's a big investment of time, energy, mental focus/planning and money. It's beautiful when the commitment is strong in oneself; a true sense of self worth and love to oneself is experienced (even if there are periods of grousing about the time consumption!).  Recommitting to one's prayer or meditation practice helps deepen the cleanse experience.  It brings fortitude and a certain internal power and verticality that can offset the challenges and heighten the satisfaction.

photo credit: Lalu Danzker

Ways to approach a detox:

One can gradually move into it, eliminating a meal a day, replacing with juicing and gradually eliminating 2 meals and finally 3.  Have a plan or protocol for yourself, a structure and a way you will emotionally, spiritually and physically approach the effort.  Get some help and support for the plan by a healthcare partner.

Be careful what you juice.  Vegetables should be your primary source of nutrition with inclusion of few fruits.  For those with a big sweet tooth, you will be tempted to do a lot of fruit juicing.  Minimize this.  Also, even if vegetables are your main source of juice, one's stomach lining can get irritated.  Balance the juicing with alkaline broth.  One glass of broth accompanying a glass of fresh juice usually offsets stomach aches.  Alkaline broth can be made with vegetable scraps.  Potato skins, beet tops, spinach/chard stalks, etc.  Avoid salting the broth or using veg high in sodium, like onions.  Add lots of fresh herbs to make it tasty.  You can make a pot-full and strain it into glass containers (old peanut butter jars) for the week.  Try not to drink it cold; the juice tends to be cold and you want to offset the temperature with other.  We are particularly sensitive to "cold" foods when fasting, why we undertake it in the spring, not the winter.  You don't want the intestines to seize up but accept what is received graciously; so warm the broth when possible, drink a lot of herb tea like nettle and hawthorne.

photo credit: Lee van Laer

Go all organic, go seasonal.  You will be tempted to do cantaloupe and watermelon; they're big, you get  a lot of juice at one time, they taste great. But they're not seasonal in April and May (at least not in the northeast).  Tip your hat to disappearing winter and juice a lot of root vegetables in the spring (beets, parsnips, carrots, etc) adding in "new" spring greens like spinach, dandelion, chard.  This is an opportunity to fall in love with bitter greens like arugula; so tangy and delicious.  Organic is a no- brainer even if it's pricey.  The whole idea of a detox is to detox.  You don't want to put into your body low grade foods, taxing your cleanup process with pesticides and unfriendly microbes.  We are trying to decrease and neutralize inflammatory processes, bring more alkaline (vs acidic foods) into the system.  We need high quality vegetables and fruits.  Again, go organic.

For some, it is too stressful not to be able to masticate every day.  Foodies need texture.  Hence, exclusively juicing may not be possible.  There are many good products on the market that provide shakes, even bars to chew on while doing a cleanse.  This process is about wakening to oneself, where one is in the now.  We aren't trying to be perfect or hyper disciplined.  The "discipline" comes from the interest in the process.  If we've committed to eliminating food-food for a period there are going to be challenges.  If you have to masticate something, and there is too much tension and effort around the cleansing commitment, eat something.  If possible make it whole: carrot  or celery sticks, cucumber slices.  Don't complex carb-out with bread or junk. Sometimes a thin soup with vegetable nips the hankering.  Eat a piece of fruit.  Try to stay in the parameter of the things you are juicing (dandelion green salad with a few drops of olive oil and spray of lemon).  There is no guilt or forgiveness necessary.  Take care of yourself.  One of the signs that it's time to move out of the fast is the amount of daydreaming and planning one begins to do in relation to food.  If you find yourself thinking for inordinate amounts of time about what you're first meal is going to be, writing lists of menus for the first week back--- it's time to start shifting out of a cleanse.  When one begins to feel deprived, or is experiencing scarcity in relation to food, this is another cue it's time to back into a more normal dietary pattern.  Denial is not a great place on any level to live.  It undermines what efforts you've made thus far and puts future detoxes at risk.

When we detox, we aren't just eliminating through our gastrointestinal system, but through our skin and respiration as well.  Doing Ayurvedic skin brushing with a medium coarse, dry loofah sponge or brush prior to showering helps this process by stimulating lymph and circulation.  Brush the limbs and the torso several times always toward the heart. Do this before showering.  Finish the shower with a cool rinse.  Do exceptionally good mouth care.  Brush, waterpik, floss, tongue brush, mouthwash; the whole kit-n-caboodle.  Halitosis or bad breath is common during the detoxing period.  As you clean your body, clean your mouth:  with intention and excellence.  In all of this, you'll feel like a million bucks.

Back out of your cleanse the way you went into it:  gradually.  Eat small amounts of complex carbs (1/4 cup cooked per day) after a few days add in some dairy (preferably yogurt). You don't want to shock your sensitized system by going from nothing to a full fledged meal.  By the end of a fast, time has become slower, impressions are received in a much more sublime and quiet way.  Appreciate this.  Take stock in the detox dance you completed.

Magnesium: The “Original Chill Pill”

A young friend of mine last year had a trauma in a foreign country.  She was treated with magnesium (not a sedative, anxiety or muscle relaxant prescription – standard of care in the US) to help calm her shaken self and bring her emotional state back to homeostasis.  Using magnesium for this purpose is not standard of care in this country--- maybe it should be.

Physiology:  The effect on the body and mind

Magnesium helps maintains nerve and muscle function (including the heart), maintains endocrine function (immune health) and keeps our bones strong.  It also aids in regulating our blood glucose levels and the subsequent production of energy.  99% of our magnesium is located in bone, muscles and soft tissue.  It is a Cofactor for over 300 enzymes, oxidizes fatty acids, activates amino acids, synthesizes and breakdowns DNA. In the brain it is key in neurotransmission.  Magnesium is essential for other minerals to be effective, such as calcium, potassium, phosphorous and vitamin B.

Magnesium deficiencies are related to anxiety and depression.  Deficits in magnesium increase physiological stress and stress reduces magnesium; a lose-lose cycle. Magnesium impacts each biological action related to depression, which is linked to systemic inflammation.  Magnesium repletion can be instrumental in reversing irritability, depression, headaches and moodiness.

An insufficient Magnesium level effects other mineral levels in the body.  Without magnesium, calcium cannot be properly used or absorbed by the body. (Read more about how calcium and magnesium work together.)  

Magnesium Requirements

•   14 - 18 years old (boys): 410 mg

•   14 - 18 years old (girls): 360 mg

Adult females: 310 - 320 mg

•   Pregnancy: 350 - 400 mg

•   Breastfeeding women: 310 - 360 mg

Adult males: 400 - 420 mg*

Magnesium’s action

Magnesium acts on the hormonal axis and aids in regulating the stress response in the central nervous system.  It can suppress the release of cortisol and ACTH.  It also acts on the blood brain barrier, preventing stress hormones into the brain.  Hence, it has been called “the original chill pill.”

photo credit:  Lalu  Danzker

Food/Supplement Resources

Most dietary magnesium comes from vegetables, such as dark green, leafy vegetables. Other foods that are good sources of magnesium:

•   Fruits or vegetables (bananas, dried apricots, and avocados)

•   Nuts (almonds and cashews)

•   Peas and beans (legumes), seeds

•   Soy products (soy flour and tofu)

 Whole grains (brown rice and millet)**

Foods grown under industrialized farming conditions are typically grown in depleted or chemical-fertilized soil, further decreasing micronutrients, vitamins and minerals in the foods we ingest.  It’s imperative to have ideal agricultural conditions when trying to get your vitamins from food: organic whenever possible.

Soaking in an Epsom salt bath is another way of absorbing magnesium.  When taking supplements, enteric-coated magnesium supplements are not as effective as non-enteric coated pills; they absorb 67% less effectively.  I use drops.  Two squirts in 3 oz of cranberry or sour cherry juice (low sugar, vitamin rich) makes the mineral taste bearable going down.

How do we deplete Magnesium further from the foods we eat?

•           Dry roasting nuts removes the highly nutritious oils, which contain magnesium.

•           Milling flour from grains strips magnesium from the grain.

•           Sugar in anything uses up magnesium.

•           Fluoridated, softened, and distilled water depletes magnesium.

•           Carbonated beverages and some processed foods, like lunchmeat, contain phosphates that bind to magnesium molecules and flush it out of the body.

•           Alcohol blocks magnesium, especially if you have three or more drinks a day.

•           Coffee works like a diuretic to flush magnesium from of the body.

•           Some foods—like raw or roasted nuts and seeds, soybeans, spinach, and chard—contain compounds called phytic acid and oxalic acid, which can cause magnesium to be eliminated from the body.

According to the Physician’s Desk Reference, these common drugs can create a magnesium deficiency:

•   Common diuretics and cardiac drugs

•   Birth control pills

•   Insulin

•   Digitalis

•   Antibiotics

•   Cortisone

•   Antacids***

In these winter months, when we all are more susceptible to lower immunity and may be struggling with altered moods, consider upping your magnesium intake, “the original chill pill.”  60% of us lack this important component in our diets.  For optimal physiology function and well being, increasing our leafy vegetable intake and taking a supplement gives us the best chance of getting the Magnesium our bodies require.

*http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/002423.htm

**http://www.jigsawhealth.com/resources/magnesium-mineral-deficiency

***http://blog.wellnessfx.com/2013/07/31/three-main-causes-of-magnesium-deficiency-part-2/

Bone Deep

Many years ago, on a March day in a year when spring was visibly transforming the long winter, I dragged myself to my acupuncturist.  I was so fatigued, had no energy, was completely kaput.  I was despairing because part of me so wanted to enjoy the outer transformation underway and I couldn’t, I was feeling so bone weary.  I knew Babs would help me; she is not only a gifted and seasoned acupuncturist and Chinese herbalist, she’s a magnificent all-around healer.

Babs did her magic with her needles while telling me a story. She said, in Five Element Theory (classical Chinese Medicine), it’s believed that a cataclysmic summoning is required on Earth’s part to have Spring arrive.  Just think of it:  from small bulbs and meandering roots, trees and flowers require an extreme awakening and tremendous force to produce their transformative glory.  Where does this energy and force come from?  They get it from all the four and two-leggeds walking on top of the earth.  Hence, why it is a common occurrence that humans feel so wasted by the time Spring is underway.  We are food for Great Mother Nature.

So, it’s not only all those winter carbs we lean on or the post holiday overimbidements we are paying for necessarily.  How do we bolster our flagging selves, enrich our blood, our kidney qi in preparation for this auspicious time of year?

Babs prescription for me was bone broth.  This is something I start to make in January for comfort and continue on in February and March for my kidney qi, wellness and well being.  Bone Broth is a vital adjunct to any diet, especially those struggling with autoimmune disorders, leaky gut, joint and digestive problems.  This is an ancient remedy for what ails you.  The Chinese talked about it many millennia ago, Hippocrates associated it to gut healing, Jewish mothers everywhere have been passing down their chicken soup recipes for hundreds of years.

Benefits of Bone Broth

Many of our modern diseases are rooted in an unbalanced mix of microorganisms in our digestive system, mostly due to SAD (Standard American Diet) -- a diet that is too high in sugars and too low in healthful fats and beneficial bacteria.  Leaky gut is the root of many health problems, especially allergies, autoimmune disorders, and many neurological disorders. The collagen found in bone broth acts like a soothing balm to heal and seal your gut lining.

Bone broth is also a staple remedy for acute illnesses such as cold and flu. Recent studies on cartilage (the abundant base of homemade broth), show it supports the immune system in a variety of ways.  It's a potent normalizer, a biological response modifier, activates macrophages, Natural Killer cells and lymphocytes.  Bone broth contains a variety of valuable nutrients in a form your body can easily absorb. This includes:

Calcium, phosphorus, and other minerals	Components of collagen and cartilage
Silicon and other trace minerals	Components of bone and bone marrow
Glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate	The "conditionally essential" amino acids proline, glycine, and glutamine

Healing benefits of bone broth:

Reduces joint pain and inflammation, thanks to chondroitin sulfate, glucosamine, and other compounds extracted from the boiled down cartilage and collagen.

Inhibits infection caused by inflammation, bacteria and viruses.

Fights inflammation: Amino acids such as glycine, proline, and arginine all have anti-inflammatory effects. Glycine has calming effects, which may help you sleep better, Arginine is effective fighting septis.

Promotes strong, healthy bones: bone broth contains surprisingly low amounts of calcium, magnesium and other trace minerals, but it plays an important role in healthy bone formation because of its abundant collagen. Collagen fibrils provide the latticework for mineral deposition and are the keys to building strong and flexible bones.

Promotes healthy hair and nail growth, thanks to the gelatin in the broth. Feeding collagen fibrils homemade broth can even eliminate cellulite.

How to Make the Most Nourishing Broth

The more gelatinous the broth, the more nourishing it will tend to be. Indeed, the collagen that leaches out of the bones when slow-cooked is one of the key ingredients that make broth so healing. If the broth gets “jiggly” after being refrigerated, it's a sign that it's a well-made broth. To make it as gelatinous as possible, add chicken feet, pig's feet, and/or joint bones.  All of these contain high amounts of collagen and cartilage.

Shank or leg bones, on the other hand, will provide lots of bone marrow. Marrow also provides valuable health benefits.  So ideally, you'll want to use a mixture of bones. You can make bone broth using organic chicken, whole fish or fish bones (including the fish head), pork, or beef bones. If you're using chicken, enjoy the roasted flesh first then throw the carcass into a pot, covering with water. Add a small amount of vinegar to help leach the minerals out of the bones. To ensure the broth is really gelatinous, add some chicken feet when you use the carcass of a roasted chicken, as some of the collagen will have been leached out already during the roasting process. You can also add vegetables of your choice into the pot.

The most important aspect of the broth-making process is to make sure you're getting high-quality bones.  Ideally, you'll want to use organically raised animal bones. It's worth noting that chickens raised in concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) tend to produce chicken stock that doesn't gel, so you'll be missing out on some of the most nourishing ingredients if you use non-organic chicken. People living in the Philadelphia region of Pennsylvania are truly fortunate to be surrounded by lots of conscientious farmers.  Finding connection with these folks ensures good agriculture sourcing.  Many of these small-operation farms raise their livestock according to organic principles even if their farm is not USDA certified organic (the certification is expensive). Talk to them.                                 Sample Beef Broth Recipe

Below is a classic beef stock recipe excerpted from Nourishing Broth, including lamb and venison variations. For more nourishing broth recipes, consider Hilary Boynton and Mary Brackett's new GAPS cookbook,



The Heal Your Gut Cookbook: Nutrient-Dense Recipes for Intestinal Health Using the GAPS Diet.                                                            

•   About 4 pounds organic beef marrow and knuckle bones

•   1 calf, beef, or pig foot

•   3 pounds meaty bones such as short ribs and beef shanks

•   1 small can or jar tomato paste (optional)

•   4 or more quarts cold filtered water

•   1/2 cup vinegar (leaches minerals out of the bones)

•   3 onions, ends removed  (skin may be left on)

•   3 carrots, peeled if not organic

•   3 celery sticks

•   1 bouquet garni made with parsley sprigs, thyme sprigs, and bay leaf, tied together

•   1 tablespoon black peppercorns, or green or white peppercorns, crushed

Directions

1.    Place the knuckle and marrow bones and optional calves foot in a very large pot (or ideally, a crock pot), toss with vinegar and cover with cold water. Let stand for 1/2 to 1 hour. Meanwhile, place the meaty bones in a stainless steel roasting pan. For a particularly aromatic stock, brush the bones with tomato paste. Brown at 350 degrees in the oven, about ½ hour. When well browned, add these bones to the pot. Pour the fat out of the roasting pan, add cold filtered water to the pan, set over a high flame and deglaze the pan. Add this liquid to the pot. Add additional water, if necessary. Bring to a simmer and carefully skim any scum that comes to the top. Afterwards, add the vegetables, bouquet garni, and peppercorns.

2.   Simmer stock for at least 12 and as long as 24 hours. (Again, if you do this in a slow cooker/crock pot, you’ll be able to leave it while you go about your other business).

3. Remove. Strain the stock into a large glass container. Let cool in the refrigerator and remove the congealed fat that rises to the top (use it instead of butter or oil in cooking). Transfer to smaller containers and to the freezer for long-term storage.

Note: The marrow may be removed from the marrow bones a couple of hours into the cooking, and spread on whole grain sourdough bread. If left in the pan for the entire cooking period, the marrow will melt into the broth, resulting in a broth that is cloudy but highly nutritious.

Variation: Lamb Stock

Use lamb bones, especially lamb neck bones and riblets. Ideally, use all the bones left after butchering the lamb. Be sure to add the feet if you have them. This makes a delicious stock.

Variation: Venison Stock

Use venison meat and bones. Be sure to use the feet of the deer and a section of antler if possible. Add 1 cup dried wild mushrooms if desired

much of the above info was gleaned from www.mercola.com, including broth recipe
for more info on the power of bone broth:  http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2014/10/05/bone-broth-recipe.aspx

pH: It's all about Balance

pHˌ pēˈāCH/noun--CHEMISTRY
a figure expressing the acidity or alkalinity of a solution on a logarithmic scale on which 7 is neutral, lower values are more acid, and higher values more alkaline. The pH is equal to -log10 c, where c is the hydrogen ion concentration in moles per liter.

It's almost common knowledge now (I hope), that inflammation in the body is a major reason why we develop disease (ie: cardiac disease, autoimmune, arthritis, chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia, cancer). An inflamed system is an ideal host for illness. In my posts, The Body as an Ecosystem and Our Second Brain, I do an education turn on the healthy/unhealthy microbes in our system and our amazing gut which, in its own way, dictate our moods and health. Hence, the importance of keeping our dietary pH balanced (leaning to alkaline) and our emotional well being optimal.

In one of my early posts, On Fire: the State of Chronic Inflammation, I talk about the acidic / alkalinic connection and there are some great links on that post providing lists of foods which are acidic and conversely, alkaline. At this link, Alkaline food chart by degree | greenopedia, is a another list of foods, organized differently (easier/less easy for some).

Most of this is intuitive, although some of it isn't. For example, you would think citrus fruits are high acid; but they are moderately high alkaline. If you look at the lists, you can probably determine where your pH is approximately, that is--- whether you are more alkaline or acidic dependent on the category of foods you eat often. Animal products, processed foods, even whole foods like barley and rice are acidic. The alkaline foods list will probably list out foods you've never tried or are unfamiliar with (i.e.: amaranth).   Our S.A.D (Standard American Diet), even when not fast food related, is highly acidic. We are walking disease time bombs.

Not to scare you.

As a health-wellness coach, I see lifestyle behaviors (ie: what we like to eat) is the most difficult thing to change long term. What we were raised on, found comfort in as children is a hard thing to pry out of our normally grasping and gasping being. It's embedded in us since forever. But, lucky for us, humans are habituated. And habits can be changed.

It is possible to change one's food preferences.  One can grow fond of (even celebrate with gusto) other foods, learn to be adventuresome in trying the unfamiliar. It is surprising when one makes the intention of having a vegetable at every meal (including breakfast) or diversifying one's meal plate with more than 5 colored fruits and vegetables.  You do this for a month, you've changed your habit. 

A habit sticks when the emotional center of ourselves gets on board. In experiencing this new habit, when resentment and resistance fall away, and happy anticipation takes its place, the new habit is almost guaranteed. One can liken it to initiating an exercise program. Yes, we hate it until we've been doing it awhile and start to reap the rewards of feeling lighter on our feet, more positive energy coursing through ourselves, a sense of elevated aliveness, perhaps even possibly experiencing regular bouts of joy (toxins clearing out of our system). A regular practice (habit) of anything takes 21-30 days to stick.

In a follow up post, I'll address the bag lunch rut and give some suggestions how to transform childhood comfort foods into healthy, life-giving adult comfort foods. Foods that are more anti-inflammatory and have a higher alkaline pH ratio.