With Spring in the air, its the perfect time for all of us to do some spring cleaning in the house as well as for the body. But with all the different cleanses available out there, it is quite confusing to pick one that will be the best one for you, so how do you decide on what cleanse you should do? Here are a few simple guidelines that will be helpful in making that decision as well, clarify what it is that you are cleansing.
What Are You Cleansing And Why?
With all the information that is available out these days, its easy to get caught up in the hype of doing a detox or a cleanse for the body, since everyone else is doing it. So it is first important to identify why you want to do a cleanse. In general, the reason to do a cleanse in the spring and winter are to eliminate toxins from the body that we accumulate with what we eat and what we are exposed to in terms of the environment, some more so than others.
Your naturopathic doctor may recommend doing a cleanse for various reasons – for weight loss, improving digestion, increasing energy levels, to improve various skin conditions, detoxifying heavy metals, among others. Most of the time when you walk into a health food store, the various cleanses from the various companies, all targeting to be better than the other, at all price ranges are available. These days you even see very specific cleanses, targeting / marketing a specific organ cleanse.
The question is: which one do you need?
THE SIMPLE ANSWER TO THIS QUESTION – TALK TO YOUR NATUROPATHIC DOCTOR BEFORE DOING ANY CLEANSES AS THE Y ARE VERY KNOWLEDGEABLE AND KNOW YOUR HEALTH HISTORY.
Although different cleanses maybe beneficial over a short period of time, they might be harmful long term because of what they contain and how they affect the body. For instance, your liver goes through more that one phase of detoxification, and if the liver cleanse you purchase over the counter only does part of the cleanses, the metabolites, which are produced from the toxins in the liver may not be cleared completely and will create other health symptoms and problems, due to improper clearing and lingering around in the system longer than they should. So its important to first find out what needs cleansing before cleansing it.
What types of cleanses / fasts are safe and natural to do without harming the body?
Various simple cleanses or fasts are available that are safe to do and very beneficial for the body. Water fast or juice fasting may be quite beneficial for the body and the mind, done under proper supervision. The simplest cleanse that I like is having lime with warm water every morning before breakfast. This is great for gentle liver cleansing as well, stimulating the bowels, and also great for alkalinizing the body. You can add a pinch of cayenne pepper and 1 tsp of maple syrup for greater benefits and it is quite inexpensive.
Should I be doing enemas and colonic irrigation often?
I do not recommend doing enemas or frequent colonic irrigation or hydrotherapy unless you are severely constipated and have not had a bowel movement in days ( 4 or more) or weeks. In this case, this method of cleansing will be helpful for a short period of time only. However, if you are suffering from chronic constipation, it would be important to find out what might be causing first and then treating it, and colonic irrigation maybe helpful over a short period of time only, but if done frequently may affect the bowel motility.
By: Sushma Shah, Toronto Naturopathic Doctor, at the Nature’s Intentions Naturopathic Clinic.