It is shocking to think that our three most important resources for survival are also seriously toxic: Air, Water and Food. Because we usually can’t smell, see or taste the toxins in our environment, we forget that they even exist. Our threatened health and the rise in chronic disease is a powerful reminder that we have created an environment that leaves us swimming in toxins. This past year cancer overtook heart disease as the leading cause of death in the U.S. and ,according to Dr. Mark Merriman , up to 97% of cancers are related to environmental carcinogens. Dr. Merriman identifies 2 classes of dangerous toxins:
- Heavy Metals and Aluminum
- Man-made (such as pesticides, herbicides, industrial and food processing chemicals)
Consider that anything you inhale is delivered immediately to the blood stream. The same is true for products applied to the skin, the largest organ of the body! Fluoride in public drinking water supplies, long heralded as important for dental health, is now recognized as a poison to the body. Combine fluoride with a continual leaching of chemicals and even pharmaceuticals into groundwater and the result is extreme toxicity of our drinking water supply.
Another culprit is the food we consume. Fast food and processed food have become the norm in our country. These foods are not only devoid of nutrients, but are laced with chemical additives, preservatives and “add-in” synthetic vitamins, none of which are recognized by the body as “normal”. Is it any wonder then that auto-immune diseases such as Arthritis, Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis and Scleroderma are on the rise? Even the healthy foods, like fruits and vegetables are highly contaminated. Recent research has also targeted food packaging as a source of carcinogenic chemicals, yet another reason to avoid processed and packaged foods!
So what can we do about cleaning up our environment, food and water? For one, we should be vocal in contacting our Representatives and Congressmen about our dissatisfaction with the chemical toxins allowed in our drinking water and food supplies. As individuals, we should exercise vigilance with what we consume and what products we use on our bodies. Here are 5 important changes you can make today:
- Install a water filtration device at home, or drink spring water (not from plastic bottles,please)
- Eat organic food – yes it is worth the price!!
- Eat more veggies! Fiber in the diet is critical for removing toxins
- Eliminate processed foods and fast foods
- Pay attention to what products you use on your body, starting from the head down
Many health experts now agree that drinking pure, clean water is the first, and most important, step in detoxing the body. Dr. Merriman believes the second most important step in detoxing to be cleansing of the colon. When digestion is poor or sluggish, waste in the colon becomes stagnant allowing toxins to be reabsorbed. What contributes to poor digestion? A diet high in animal and processed foods. The average American consumes 40% of their diet as animal products and another 51% as processed foods….a certain recipe for toxicosis.
With a few simple steps you can make big strides in detoxing your body today. Drink more pure water. Eat more fresh, organic vegetables and fruit. Drink fresh vegetable juices. Read the labels on everything and avoid health and beauty products with sodium laurel sulfate, fluoride and aluminum.
But, stepping inside the Revitalive center I feel instantly calmed. There is something very nurturing about the space. Plus Ted, the resident Pomeranian greets me with such enthusiasm! Kristen gets me started with the colonic. Kristen oozes peacefulness from her pores. She is gentle in her approach and begins the session with Reiki. I feel relaxed even while having a tube filled with water in my colon! Amazing! The colonic is a strange sensation for sure…alternating pressure that borders on intolerable quickly replaced by relief. Throughout, Kristen is gently massaging pressure points and meridians on my feet and legs. When the session is complete I feel an incredible sense of freedom…my spirit feels lighter. I had no idea it was possible to carry so many burdens and emotional stress in the colon. Kristen gives me a healing wheatgrass implant following the colon hydrotherapy…I ponder my life-long SAD style of eating as I “hold” the implant…and feel a sense of gratitiude for finally waking up to taking better care of my body, and for finding people like Kristen and Anna to guide that process.
snuggled at my feet for part of it. Then my meals for the day are packed up and I head home to process…which really translates to ‘take my poor crazed dog for a long walk in the snow’. By 2:00 I am really hungry and never thought I could enjoy a salad as much as I enjoy this one. Must be the goddess dressing. By 2:30 I need a little nap. Detoxing is hard work.
I am about to embark on my first “professional” detox cleanse. The process will be facilitated and guided by the expert knowledge of Anna Forkan and Kristen Overlock of the REVITALIVE HEALTH AND WELLNESS CENTER in Newburyport, Ma. I have “cleansed” before on my own using the familiar methods; fasting, bentonite clay and psyllium, detox “teas” and supplements, etc., but this program will integrate dietary support (all meals are provided for the seven days), nutritional microscopy and colon cleansing as well as far-infrared sauna, ionizing foot bath, rebounder exercise and the one-on-one attention of two dedicated professionals. The program is tailored to my individual needs and will focus specifically on liver cleansing/flush.
9:00 am – I meet with Anna at Revitalive to discuss the particulars of my program and have the blood microscopy completed. The microscopy looks pretty good with the exception of some clumping of the red cells (pH imbalance) and some fibrin stands (protein and possibly difficulty digesting). There are also a few patches of heavy metal toxins…these should chelate out during the detox. All those cups of green tea I consume in a day are likely contributing to my acidic pH! I enjoy a wonderful and stimulating dialog with Anna about her views on diet and nutrition and find they are very much in line with my own… really exciting! Anna packs up my meals for the day: A green smoothie (greens, bananas, blueberries, cacao nibs, hemp, coconut water, green powder,cinnamon)..it’s delish!, a large green juice, a salad with sauerkraut, and a green soup for dinner (dinner should always be a small,light meal). This may not be so painful afterall. I’m also given some MSM, enzymes, malic acid for the liver flush (better than apple juice as it has no sugar), probiotics and blue/green algae for daily consumption..along with a wheatgrass shot. And I get to take home a skin brush and enema bag, too!
2:00 pm.- I enjoy some green juice and salad…very satisfying. I am trying to get some work done on the computer and there is a blizzard outside so I can’t take the dog out and she is beginning to be very annoying. I’m also struggling with downloads and feeling agitated..is my impatience related to the detox?