{"id":1757,"date":"2014-06-04T01:25:29","date_gmt":"2014-06-04T01:25:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.vivehealth.com.au\/blog\/?p=1757"},"modified":"2014-09-25T22:20:49","modified_gmt":"2014-09-25T22:20:49","slug":"detox-detox","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.vivehealth.com.au\/blog\/2014\/06\/04\/detox-detox\/","title":{"rendered":"To Detox or not to Detox?"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Megan Crockart<\/em><\/p>\n

I\u2019ve had clients uncertain as to whether they should do a detox or not.\u00a0 Some clients want to lose some weight and don\u2019t know where to start first. \u00a0In most cases I feel a detox is a great way to start weight loss \u00a0A detox program is also beneficial if you are not feeling as healthy and as vibrant as you usually do.\"Diet<\/a><\/p>\n

What is a toxin?<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cA toxin is basically any substance that creates irritating and\/or harmful effects in the body, undermining its health or stressing the biochemical or organ functions or actually damaging the tissues and organs.\u201d (Haas, E 2006) \u00a0A toxin can come from internal and external factors including drugs (recreational and prescribed), poor digestion (\u201cleaky gut syndrome\u201d) thought patterns and negative emotions\/stress, environmental exposure to pollutants, dietary choices and even water. \u00a0Generally our bodies deal with exposure to toxins on a daily basis but it is beneficial to help your body \u201cdetoxify\u201d or eliminate more effectively these toxins.<\/p>\n

What is detoxification?<\/strong><\/p>\n

It is the process of clearing toxins from our body either by neutralising or transforming toxins and eliminating them properly. \u00a0Detoxification therapy is one of the oldest known medical treatments and even better, it\u2019s a completely natural process. \u00a0Simply reducing the exposure to toxins by changing what you eat is a form of detoxification.<\/p>\n

Most people are familiar with the term \u201cliver detox\u201d as this is because all levels of detoxification involve the liver. \u00a0It is the main organ that neutralises toxins and does so in two phases known as Phase I and Phase II pathways. \u00a0Phase I is activation of the liver cells to produce enzymes to help break down fat soluble substances (most chemicals and toxins are fat soluble rather than water soluble and can\u2019t be as easily eliminated). \u00a0Phase II is the combination or conjugation step which occurs once the fat soluble substances have been activated in Phase I are then attached to other molecules which render them water soluble and easier to transport out of the body. The liver is not the only organ involved, also importantly involved is the digestive tract and colon, which are responsible in proper elimination. \u00a0The skin and kidneys also play a role in helping in the elimination process.<\/p>\n

There are so many benefits from doing a detox\/cleanse including:<\/p>\n