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There is no doubt that the obesity rate in this country is on the rise and reaching epidemic levels. Unfortunately as these levels rise so does the rate of chronic diseases like Diabetes type 2, cardiovascular disease, hormone imbalance, cancer even musculoskeletal disorders to name a few. There are so many diet programs to choose from but how do you know what one will work for you or if any will? You see the thing is the so called diets will not work to reduce weight loss especially when we have a toxic system. Before embarking on a weight loss journey we need to prepare our bodies elimination channels. By this I mean we need to get the liver and bowels moving properly to scoop up the toxins that are stored in our system. You may be wondering how we do this. There is research to show there are links between environmental toxins and diseases of the nervous system, fatigue, muscle weakness and even cancers. There are certain chemicals in our environment causing alterations to metabolic processes and influencing our bodies to a continued weight gain without being able to shift it. On a daily basis there are chemicals and toxins we come across and our body is constantly trying to shift them. The most common way we encounter these is through oral consumption. There are many types of toxins including pesticides, drugs, industrial compounds, food additives and heavy metals. We may not even know that the beautiful fresh food we consume has had additives along the way to make it look more palatable or prolong its life. This is not always the case but we need to be more vigilant in what we choose to consume. Because these substances are lipid soluble it means they are attracted to our cell membranes where if left can be transported within our cells where they begin to wreak havoc. And as these are lipid soluble it means they can be easily transported and stored in the fat tissue as well as cross our blood brain barrier where they can cause damage to the neurological system. If the liver is not detoxing properly this is where our issues begin. Basically we need all systems flowing properly to clear these toxic substances out. What do I do you ask. Well the first step is to decrease exposure. This will give the liver and gut a break in processing the new toxins and will then be focussed on removing the stored toxins. We can do this in a simple way by starting with our foods. Including more organic foods, washing our vegetables and fruits, including grass fed organic meats and fish. This way we reduce our exposure to pesticides and food additives, Around the home we can exchange our cleaning products for natural alternatives, and even our personal products we wash ourselves in can be exchanged for a natural alternative inexpensively. Lastly filtering the water, we drink to reduce the chemicals included in our tap water will all go towards a cleaner life.
Fiona Chapman is a Naturopath receiving her bachelor degree in Health Science at Endeavour College, Adelaide. She strives to work with clients developing individual treatments to help the body return to balance with a keen interest in improving health holistically through environment and lifestyle improvements.
Liska DJ, Rountree R. The role of detoxification in the prevention of chronic degenerative diseases: a summary. Adv Nutr Publications. 2002. http://www.optinutri.net/detox_article.html.
Jandacek RJ, Tso P. Factors affecting storage and excretion of toxic lipophilic xenobiotics. Lipids. 2001;36(12):1289-1305.
Clinical approaches to gastrointestinal imbalances. In: Jones DS, ed. Textbook of Functional Medicine; 2005. Chapter 28 http://www.functionalmedicine.org/content_management/files/TOM%20-%20Chapter%2013%20- %20Stress.pdf.