Toxin-Proof Your Body

March 11, 2016
Ann Louise Gittleman, PhD, CNS

Ann Louise Gittleman, PhD, CNS

Award-winning nutritionist and New York Times bestselling author.

How to cleanse pollutants from your system.

There certainly have been some scary stories in the news lately. In Flint, Michigan, a group of children were tested for lead due to contaminated water, and nearly 5 percent of them had elevated levels. Lead is a potent neurotoxin and can dramatically lower IQ.

Unfortunately, this isn’t new news.

As worrisome as the news out of Flint is, wrap your mind around the fact that in 2014 in New York, cities outside of New York City showed almost 7 percent with elevated lead, in Pennsylvania it was 8.5 percent – and in a section of Detroit it was 20 percent!!

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report 535,000 American children between the ages of 1 and 5 are infected with lead poisoning. The theory on why is that lead-contaminated soil is tracked into homes on shoes – right where kids of this age play – as well as exposure to chipped lead paint in older homes.

And lead poisoning isn’t by any stretch of the imagination where it ends. Sneaky chemicals seem to be infiltrating our bodies everywhere. Even brand new sofas are soaked in flame-retardant chemicals – a major hormonal disruptor of the immune system.

Since these toxic substances buildup in your body slowly and silently, they don’t get nearly the public attention they so desperately need.

I don’t think there’s any question that our bodies are becoming toxic waste dumps and as the CDC has confirmed – we are all contaminated – 100%.

So, what do we do about it?

Cleansing Your Body Toxin-Free

While we become more aware of ways to prevent these toxins from being able to get into our systems through organic and non-GMO foods as well as supplements, exercise and deep breathing, there are some simple and gentle ways to start to undo the toxic overload.

A great strategy is regular detox baths.

These are therapeutic baths that were recommended by my mentor, the grand dame of alternative medicine, Dr. Hazel Parcells, who lived to the ripe old age of 106. She was an advisor to the Openheim team in the early 40s.

This particular bath has been used for over 25 years by my students, followers and readers. Don’t take more than one bath a day, and don’t mix the formulas. Twice a week would be great – and after it rains or snows!

The salt and soda bath is quite relaxing and very simple to implement.

It is specific for radiation from X-rays, CT scans, fallout, and nuclear plants (think Fukushima). I take this one regularly after an airplane trip as well.

1. Run a tub to the hottest temperature you can manage. Dissolve 1 pound of salt (like Kosher salt) and 1 pound of baking soda in the water, and begin to soak.
2. Sip a glass of warm water mixed with ½ teaspoon of salt and ½ teaspoon of baking soda for internal pH balance to counter the radiation’s acidity.
3. Get out of the bath when the water is cool. Don’t shower for at least four hours.

Sweating

Another fantastic cleansing approach that compliments detox baths is the infrared sauna. Sweating is a marvelous way to especially rid the body of virus and heavy metals. It also targets those nasty fat-storage toxins

The skin is your largest external organ and spending time in a sauna works wonders to relieve the toxic overload on the liver and kidneys.

It’s also good for your heart and your body. Blood flow is improved, while your heart gets a very gentle workout. Besides cardiovascular benefits, sauna therapy can help musculoskeletal pain, arthritis, chronic fatigue, and depression.

Here’s how to best use a sauna:

Start with 5-10 minutes at 135°F. Gradually work your way up to 45 minutes. After a month or so, increase to 145°F. Do not overdo – once or twice per week only.

For more information, check out www.sunlighten.com.

The Colonic Connection

Last, but not least, is colon hydrotherapy. Home enemas and colonic irrigation can play an important role in cleansing the colon of parasites and pathogenic bacteria that upset a healthy microbiome.

Colonic irrigation (sometimes called a high enema) is a procedure whereby a lukewarm water solution is irrigated into the entire length of the large intestine. The procedure, which dislodges and removes toxins over the entire length of the intestine, takes about 45 minutes and is usually performed in a professional office. Please visit I-ACT to find qualified colon hydrotherapists in your area.

For those of you who prefer the do-it-yourself method, home enemas can be effective. Remember, however, that enemas only reach the lower 12 ½ inches of the 5 ½ foot colon, whereas colonic irrigation cleanses the entire length of the colon, up to the ileocecal valve.

A word of caution when preforming an enema on yourself in your home: Use only properly filtered or purchase distilled water and further sterilize it by heating to a rolling boil for at least ten minutes. Sterilize the tubing and enema bag by soaking them in a bath of a comprehensive antiseptic. I like equal parts vinegar and hot water for fifteen minutes.

Rinse thoroughly with sterilized water. This procedure prevents the further introduction of water-borne parasites into your body.

Don’t Forget the Bile

In the meantime, to keep those toxins flushing from the inside out, don’t forget to support the quality and flow of your bile. Your liver dumps all of its toxins into bile – which is the vehicle to remove them from the body with plenty of water soluble fiber.

If you lack fiber, bile and its toxins can become reabsorbed.

I recommend taking Bile Builder, which contains choline, taurine, beet root, pancreatic lipase, ox bile, and collinsonia root – the six key nutrients to build better bile. Start with at least 1 or 2 with each meal if you don’t have a gallbladder and 1 for those of you with a gall bladder who may be constipated, have clay-colored stools, nausea after fatty meals, or who have a bitter taste in their mouths.

Pair this supplement with high fiber foods or psyllium, hemp, chia, or ground up flax – daily.

Happy Spring Cleaning!!

Related Articles and Podcasts

Ann Louise Gittleman, PhD, CNS, is an award-winning New York Times bestselling author of more than thirty books including The Fat Flush Plan series and her latest book, Radical Metabolism. She’s been rewriting the rules of nutrition for more than 40 years and is internationally recognized as a pioneer in the field of diet, detox and women’s health issues. 

For a FREE daily dose of tips and strategies for maintaining healthy weight, conquering insomnia, and much more…check out my Radical Health Tips.

I’d like to meet and greet you on my Facebook groups, so won’t you check us out at the Radical Metabolism RevolutionFat Flush Nation, or my Inner Circle!

9 Comments

  1. Kathleen

    Thank you, Ann Louise for this essential information on how to cleanse our body. With the abundance of toxins all around us, it is such a consolation to know we can go to you for solutions. How generous and loving of you to share your knowledge with us, thank you!

    Reply
  2. Diana Fraser

    Hi Dr. Ann Louise! I recently had surgery on my collarbone and had an MRI and x-rays. I have a bag of Epsom salts. Is this a good thing to use with the baking soda or does it need to be kosher or sea salt? And why? I do have a metallic taste in my mouth and very aching joints and my neck muscles are killing me! Surgery was 3 weeks ago. Thanks!

    Reply
  3. Team ALG

    Dear Diana: The original recipe for ionizing radiation (like X-rays) was sea salt or kosher salt and baking soda. While Epsom salts is very relaxing and you might also use this separately, it was never part of the radiation cleansing protocol. Thanks.

    Reply
  4. Marie

    The radiation bath can be used on a one year old infant after x-rays? What amount of baking soda and salt for baby? How many minutes and days the bath should be taken?

    Reply
    • Team ALG

      For babies you could use 1/4 cup each of the salt and baking soda in a normal size bath tub. If it is in a baby bath reduce it by 1/2. Try to do it for 20 min. once or twice a week after the x ray exposure.

      Reply
      • Marie

        Thanks :-), is one week enough or more than one week is needed?

        Reply
        • Team ALG

          One week is enough, each time an x-ray is taken.

          Reply
  5. Marie

    Do you have any information regarding my comment above?

    Reply
  6. joel

    the salt and soda will neutralize toxins in the bath tap water?
    what is kosher salt?

    Reply

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