Detox is a way to lighten up your load – mentally, emotionally and physically.

Many people choose to detox for the simple reason of eliminating toxins which have accumulated from improper digestion, toxic environments, pesticides, chemicals, alcohol and western medications.

When toxins sit in the body, it impairs the proper functioning of the cellular intelligence – leading us to more & more toxic choices in life. Once the body has cleansed, the natural living wisdom of our body will no longer be attracted to foods and substances which are non-beneficial.

Of course, one 10 day long detox can do wonders for you, however, don’t necessarily expect it to be able to remove two or three decades of abuse in one go. Detoxing can be a long and slow journey,  balancing a combination of strong concentrated efforts of a full detox program, with half-detox of careful diet and herbs and a lifetime of good eating habits and good digestion ( see Agni – digestive fire ). How you choose to approach a detox is entirely up to you and i can attempt to guide you in a few ways here.

  There many different ways to detox and I hope to give you the basic outlines so you can choose the right detox for you.

This takes into consideration your circumstances in life- ie. working and at home or away from regular responsibilities; your dedication;  your constitution – Vata, Pitta or Kapha; the level of toxins in your system;  and your reason for wanting to detox.

How you know you need to detox

• There is a dullness and heaviness in your mind and emotions and general energetic state
• The breath smells bad upon awakening and even throughout the day
• Food becomes less interesting or tasty
• There is an accumulation of excess weight
• There is a thick coating on your tongue
• There is a bad smell after sweating
• Elimination is not regular- ie. At least first thing in the morning every day
• Skin is lacking vitality or heavy pore elimination especially on the nose

There are  many stages of a detox. And we need to start and then move from where we are. Assess which category you are in right now :

1. You are eating junk and processed food; fried and fatty foods; sugar, sweets and snacks and soda drinks

2. You are already eating healthy – with only occasional processed carbohydrates (such as pasta,  breads , white rice or processed cereals) , sugars  or fried foods etc. You eat meat on occasion and have plenty of vegetables or fruits

3. You are eating healthy vegetarian diet and eating at least 60% vegetables and fruit based diet.

Advise for the category

1. Changing to whole foods with majority of vegetables will be a sufficient detox for a period of time before any deeper detoxing is advised. Take at least 5-7 days eating as in category 1 along with detox herbs.
2. Change the diet to category 3 eating habits with herbs for a few days before starting a full detox
3. You are ready to start a full detox when you like

How to prepare for a detox

 Start by cleaning up your immediate environment.

As you are about to do an internal house cleaning – prepare your outer space to make it easier for you whilst fasting.

• Get rid of all unhealthy foods in your cupboards a fridge and clear any clutter from your home. This could indeed be a big job for some, but you will feel so much better and make it so much easier to detox in a fresh environment.

• Detoxing is not just from food it is from all unhealthy environmental distractions that take us away from regenerating ourselves – put away music collections, books and movies that are not with a healing vibration and have positive music and books available to you – choose uplifting books from your friends shelves or the library – on a theme you are interested in – self help, healing, health and yoga for example.

• Prepare by tell your friends and family your intentions and ask their support that for this period of time you require more time alone ( not be called up for gossip or chit chat) or invites to go out ‘just for a little coffee’ .

• Find out what classes are going on at the local wellness center or get some home movies for yoga pilates or tai chi.

• Find the nearest steam room or infra red sauna to you and perhaps some references for good massage or healing therapists. If there is no steam room available – then hot- cold – hot – cold showers will do and self massage is explained here on the site under Abhyanga- Ayurvedic home therapies.

• Look for a colon therapist and make sure you have sessions pre-booked for the time you need. If this is out of the budget, then it is possible to rent a colonic board or  find a large enema bag and any equipment needed to use it in your own bathroom – ie a convenient hook !

• If you are with a work schedule-  reduce your hours as much as possible.

• Find your local organic food market and invest in a juicer.

Now you are really ready to start.

Affirming your intentions is a key to your success; this is not just a physical process.  Detoxing can remove baggage from our unconscious emotional past. Call the miracles in! And leave the past behind you to embrace the New You !

DETOX   PROTOCOL

There are many ways to Detox, and this is but a simple outline.

We all have toxins in our bodies, in various degrees, and it is wise to chose the right Detox program for you, to enable toxins  to leave gently yet effectively. So it is important to assess the level of toxins you may have, so you may chose the most beneficial Detox program.

Often there are different programs to choose from. This usually would be

1. A Raw Food Diet
2. A Juice Fast
3. A Full Detox

Each program will be accompanied  with appropriate levels of

–  Detox herbs, which expel accumulated toxic matter in the intestines (mucoid plaque), as well as heavy metals and other toxins out of the deeper organs.

– A clay or charcoal toxin absorber

– A Psylium shake of soluble fibre to promote removal of stuck matter in the intestines as well as provide necessary material for healthy bacteria in the gut

– Active Probiotics to replenish healthy flora for intestinal health

– Nutritional Support to provide all the vital minerals and minerals needed to support the optimal regeneration of all the tissues of the body, specifically the intestines, organs, blood and skin.

One way to gauge which detox is for you, is to take look at your regular diet, and see what category you would be in

1. You are eating junk and processed food;  fried and fatty foods; sugar, sweets, snacks and soda drinks
2. You are eating fairly healthy – yet regularly eat processed carbohydrates such as pasta, breads, white rice or processed cereals, with occasional sugars or fried foods.  Meat is a regular part of your diet  and you have above 20%  of vegetables or fruits
3. You are eating healthy vegetarian diet, possibly gluten free, and eating at least 60% vegetables and fruit based diet.

For those that are in category 1, it is advisable to start with the detox herbs whilst changing to a vegetable based diet for a few days before assessing whether you are ready to do a raw detox or a juice fast . If you have time, a full detox program can be undertaken by doing a few days in each stage, both entering and exiting the fast.

For those who are in category 2, you may wish to start your detox with a Raw diet and within 2 or 3 days assess whether you wish to continue into the Juice Fast or the full Detox program.

For those who eat within the category 3, you are ready to enter either the Juice Fast or Full Fast, with herbs, clay and psylium.

HOW  TO  DETOX

There are many protocols and all have their benefits, so it is good to understand the basic outlines and go from there. As explained above, there are the basic components of Detox herbs, Psylium husk, Clay or Charcoal , Probiotics  and Nutritional Support.

Whilst following a strict program can definitely be ideal for most, having an idea of how these elements combine can allow for an educated flexibility when necessary.

Detox Herbs should be taken alone, at least 2 hours after a meal or psylium shake, or at least  45 minutes beforehand. They should also be taken 1 hour away from the clay or charcoal which will absorb their potencies. We suggest 3 capsules, 3 times a day whilst eating, and increasing this to 3 capsules, 5 times a day when in full fast. Doses may vary according to toxicity and weight of the individual.

Nutritional Herbs may be taken with the Detox herbs at those times, or  if that’s a lot, they may be taken by themselves with juices or light meals.  Follow the guidelines about being away from the psylium and the  clay or charcoal. We suggest 2 capsules, 3 times a day will be sufficient whilst eating raw or taking many juices, and as much as 3 capsules 5 times a day is great whilst in full fast.

Note :All capsules, or nutrition must be taken away from the charcoal/ clay and psylium drinks as they will absorb their beneficial properties

Clay or Charcoal also needs to be taken at least 1 hour away from the herbs and  juices, (before and after), and 1 &1/2 hour after the psylium shake or light foods. Take 1 teaspoon of rehydrated Bentonite clay mixed well in a glass of large water; or 2 capsules of charcoal with a glass of water.

We recommend  a variance to the regular system  by taking the liquid Probiotics with the Psylium shake. This may  for all the Psylium drinks, or just half of them, whilst the regular clay and psylium shake may be taken at alternating drinks . Add 1 teaspoon of the liquid Probiotics in a large glass of room temperature pure water and stir in 2 teaspoons of the ground psylium husks powder. Drink within 2 minutes and follow by another glass of water. This should be taken at least 45 minutes after taking any other herbs or juice, or 1&1/2 hour after a light meal.

The flora of the intestines is the key to healthy digestion, which leads to healthy body tissues, vWe are only 10% our own DNA !  90% of what we define as our body is microbes and bacteria mainly within our intestines. We are indeed a living eco system. However, we need to balance the ‘good’ and ‘bad’ intestinal flora. Sugars, including processed carbohydrates , feed the ‘bad’ bacteria etc, whilst fibre encourages the growth of the beneficial microbes and bacteria.   Psylium is one of the most soluble forms of fibre, making it an ideal ‘pre-biotic’, (i.e. food for beneficial bacteria etc ) , encouraging the growth of healthy bacteria. However, because many of us have seriously imbalanced and unhealthy intestinal microbes and bacteria, we would benefit  to take the living liquid Probiotics with its nurturer, the psylium. This way, the Probiotics multiply rapidly in its psylium carrier and create a whole volume of living matter which is able to move more fully through each pocket and turn of the intestines. It is said that the small intestines surface area is almost the size of a football field and large intestines, that of a tennis court. This is huge area to cover with essential Probiotics and the help of the bulking quality of the psylium does wonders to ‘push’ the living flora into a greater area.

The way I prefer to advise  the best fasting program is to exercise your will power and  start by yourself before entering a Detox Centre.  One may start taking the detox herbs as early as 21 days before undertaking a full detox program. Depending upon which diet category (mentioned above) you are in,  simultaneously start reducing the intake of foods to 100% vegetarian and then raw food, whilst reducing the quantity and amount of meals a day. Start by adding a psylium drink as a ‘snack’ between meals , leading up to replacing one of the meals, either breakfast or dinner with a psylium shake. One may take juices between meals to reduce the size of the meals and then eventually perhaps replacing a meal .

Suggested Detox Program.

This is only a suggestion, and may be moved round to suit already existing schedule.

Details  on Doses

1. Full fast : 3 caps of  each 5 x a day
2. Juice fast : 3 caps x 5 x day for DETOX and 2 caps x 5 x day for  NUTRITIONAL.
3. Raw fast : 3 caps x 5 x day DETOX or 4 capsules 3 x day; and either 2 caps x 5 x day or 3 capsule 3 x day NUTRITIONAL

This may vary according to body weight and levels of toxicity

See indicators of high toxicity below for gauging doses

• The breath smells bad upon awakening and even throughout the day
• There is a dullness and heaviness in your mind and emotions and general energetic state
• Food becomes less interesting or tasty
• There is an accumulation of excess weight
• There is a thick coating on your tongue
• There is a bad smell after sweating
• Elimination is not regular- i.e. At least first thing in the morning every day
• Skin is lacking vitality or heavy pore elimination especially on the nose

Additional options

-Parasite/ Candida Program with additional herbs and Herbal Colonic

-Weight Loss Herbs

-IBS program with herbal colonics and additional measures

– Support with regaining the appetite afterwards, and with Elimination post-fast

– Flushing the digestive tract before and after the fast