Cleanse.
The fact that you are reading this means you are above average when it comes to being mindful of your health. Sometimes when you are doing ‘everything’ right - you nourish and move your body, and you get adjusted regularly (!!), the last box to check off is taking a look at your daily exposure to toxins in your environment.
While your body can process an astonishing number of things, these days you are also exposed to an astonishing number of chemicals (and the list is growing every single day).
So bad news first:
You’re assaulted with toxins all day, every day. The chemicals you’re regularly exposed to cause Nervous System stress + inflammation in your body and cause a very real risk to your health.
Your toxic load is always building from exposure through:
Food
Water
Air
Technology
Personal care products
Cleaning products
Furniture, carpet, clothes
Scented products
This list could keep going but you know this already I’m guessing.
The good news:
You have more of a say than you realize.
Toxic Load
The total amount of chemical stressors on your system at any one time.
Think of toxic load like a glass of water - it takes a certain amount to fill the glass, and then, after a certain point, you put more in, and it overflows
When your detoxification system becomes overwhelmed and overloaded, you start developing symptoms and get sick, but it may take years of accumulated stress and toxins to get to that point.
Here are a few signs that your chemical load is too high:
Fatigue
If you’re getting enough sleep at night but find you still have to fight to stay awake during the day your fatigue might be from exposure to hormone-disrupting chemicals in your life that are sapping your energy.
Bad Breath
If you have good oral hygiene but still find your breath is bad your liver may be struggling with chemical breakdown. Put down the breath mints and keep reading.
Scent Sensitivity
If you find you have a strong reaction to smells, such as perfumes, then you might be sensitive to chemicals and/or your body may have a high toxic load.
Skin Problems
If you suffer from rashes, acne, other skin issues, and/or puffy eyes are indications of chemical stress.
Your gut lining is inflamed
Toxins cause inflammation, resulting in symptoms like fatigue, sluggishness, food sensitivities, and diarrhea.
Your bowels are too slow
Constipation is a big sign that your chemical stress may be too high.
You take a lot of things
Do you ingest caffeine, alcohol, prescription or over-the-counter drugs, herbal remedies, and/or nutritional supplements? The more you take, the more likely that your toxic load is too high.
(This is a great place to note that we have 3 incredible Naturopaths at Vibrant Living to help you make sure you have your supplements dialled in)
Unusual Weight Loss/Gain
If nothing you do budges the scale in either direction take a look at endocrine-disrupting chemicals all around you, especially in toiletries, cleaners and things like plastic containers.
Cognitive Issues
Fuzzy thinking, brain fog, a head that feels heavy could be from chemical stressors overwhelming your natural cleansing systems.
Sleep Deprivation And Insomnia
When you’re suffering from chemical overload, your cortisol levels may become extremely high in the evening and low in the morning. As a result, you might feel energetic at night and fully awake, affectionately (not really) referred to as ‘wired and tired’.
Unstable Mood And Behavior
Believe it or not, mood swings could be an early manifestation of a toxic overload. All those tempers, irritability, misplaced anger, and other signs of unstable behaviour are some of the effects of toxic overload. In TCM imbalance in the liver, the master cleaner for your body, relates to anger.
Persistent Headaches
Persistent headaches are also some of the most common signs, you may notice that certain smells even give you an instant headache (one reason we are scent-free around here).
Unpleasant Body Odour
Unpleasant odours, how can we be delicate here, in the Bain de Toilette, as well as bad breath, or overall body odour are some of the most common consequences of toxic overload.
Inexplicable Body Aches
If you’ve been suffering from inexplicable muscle aches, strains, and tension excessive chemical stress in your body could cause stimulation in your nerve receptors.
If you’re curious take the quiz below to guestimate your Toxic Load Level:
Ok so let’s get back to the good news part and a few things you can do to lower your chemical stress, including your simple habit for the week:
Eat organic as much as possible.
Use green cleaning products.
Drink filtered water.
Improve the quality of your air.
Invest in an air purifier and houseplants.
Use glass instead of plastic.
Choose natural, organic cosmetic and beauty products.
And your mission (should you choose to accept it) is to start dry brushing this week.
Now you can buy a dry brush that will last you a lifetime, however, if you want to try the technique out first simply use an air-dried face cloth.
It’s incredibly simple - you can add a bit of oil to your brush and do it after your shower or just use the brush and do it before you shower. It’s best to do in the morning as it can energize your system (not great for just before bed though I’ve done it at night and not noticed any issue).
Not only does it help your body cleanse through your largest organ and stimulate lymphatic drainage it also gives you healthy, glowing skin. #addedbonus
Then the only thing to remember is you want to rub in long strokes towards your heart. Don’t forget the soles of your feet too.
“Week 6 help your body naturally cleanse with simple, effective dry brushing.”
And this week for your viewing pleasure we have a workshop all about reducing the chemical load in your body. You can dry brush as you watch!
