How to Effectively Detoxify the Body and Be Healthy

Even though genes play a vital role in determining the kind of diseases or conditions a person may be prone to, the person's choice of food is also crucial in the development of illnesses and other diseases. Everything that gets into the mouth must be considered carefully because what a person eats--and drinks--will ultimately determine whether he or she is susceptible to serious lifestyle-related diseases such as diabetes, heart ailments and many others.

Aside from drinking plenty of water, eating judiciously, and exercising regularly, people should also consider undergoing detoxification, a process which can eliminate toxins and other harmful substances that have accumulated inside the body. Here are some ways on how you can detoxify.

Eat Plenty Of Fiber

People who do not eat vegetables usually are constipated and they find it difficult to pass stool. Ideally, a person has to move bowels at least once a day so that no fecal matter or waste materials are left inside the gut to rot. It is important to note that these toxins and wastes can get reabsorbed by your body if they are not immediately eliminated.

Fiber is important in helping the colon move the stool. Since fiber attracts water, it makes your stool bigger, denser and easy to move and eliminate. Good sources of fiber are apples, green leafy vegetables, psyllium seed husks and whole grains.

Laxative Tea

Constipated individuals usually drink laxative tea to help them pass their bowel every once in a while. These types of tea, which usually contain the herb senna, also help others detoxify or cleanse their gut. Laxative tea works by stimulating peristalsis, or muscle contractions in the colon that help food particles and other waste materials pass out of the system.

Some individuals use laxative tea to lose weight. Although this might be effective because the food that you eat will immediately be pushed out of your colon, drinking laxative tea regularly might also have adverse effects. In some people, their colon's ability to contract and move is impaired altogether because of too much drinking of laxative tea.

Enemas and Colonic Irrigation

Of all the means of detoxifying, colonic irrigation or enemas might bring very unpleasant experiences. This type of cleansing program usually involves flushing of water into the rectum. Special equipment is used by a colon therapist to infuse water on your colon and stimulate peristalsis. Oftentimes, people who are undergoing such procedure feel abdominal discomfort.

Although both enema and colonic irrigation are done by injecting water inside the gut through the rectum, the former usually cleans the lower portion of the colon, while the latter makes sure that the entire length of the gut is rinsed out.

Raw Food Diet

Another form of cleansing involves eating only raw foods for a certain period of time. The process of detoxification using the raw food diet, however, is much slower. In this kind of diet, you can opt to eat strictly raw foods (raw nuts and sashimi for protein), or modify it a little bit by including baked fish and chicken. However, once you start to eat greasy and starchy foods or dairy products, your detoxification through raw food diet will be jeopardized.

Juice Fasting

You might have heard about Beyonce Knowles losing around 20 pounds after being in a juice diet for just a couple of days. Usually diets like this involve only drinking juice such as lemonade plus plenty of water. Eating solid food is prohibited. The key to making this diet work is by drinking only freshly-squeezed vegetable or fruit juices because they contain all the vitamins and minerals your body needs to survive the day. Using concentrated juice bought in supermarkets, especially those that have sugar added, usually defeats the purpose of cleansing.

Detoxification Products

The easiest and fastest way to detoxify is by using readily available products or supplements that support the internal cleansing process. Although there are many products in the market, make sure that the one you will choose do not only cleanse your gut, but help detoxify your other internal organs as well.