Detox for beginners – 8 easy tips
Naturopath and Kombucha City founder Gail Matthew shares why detoxing boosts your health and gives some suggestions to get you started.
Our body has an amazing natural detoxification system, with the liver, colon, kidneys, lungs and the skin all working together to get rid of toxins.
However, the toxins we are exposed to every day from our food, water and the products we use are greater than any other generation in history and, if left to build up, they can overwhelm those organs, leaving us feeling unwell or at risk of disease.
That’s why it’s good to give our bodies regular breaks from toxins. But that doesn’t have to mean fasting or just drinking juice for three days. Rather than a restrictive, possibly dangerous, detox, it’s better to take a few simple and achievable steps to support your body to get rid of the nasties you don’t need.
Try following the suggestions below for two weeks – or if that seems too hard, even a week of focusing on reducing your toxic load will make a difference.
- Ban booze – why not give Dry July a go and cut out alcohol completely. If you can’t do the whole month, commit to one or two weeks. Stopping drinking gives your liver a chance to recover which will have a big impact on the way you feel. Even one glass of wine every day puts a strain on your liver. Check out our non-alcoholic cocktail recipes. Or just drink our yummy kombucha by itself. Tip it into a wine or cocktail glass and you can still enjoy drinks with friends or family.
- Exercise every day – every system in our body works better with movement, including our digestive system. The good news is that you don’t have to do intense cardio exercise to boost your body’s ability to detoxify. Look to increase your step count rather than getting your heart rate up. Aim for a minimum of 5000 steps a day. If you already achieve that easily, push yourself to increase your daily steps to 7000. Most phones come with a step counter or there are several good free apps you can download.
- Stay hydrated by drinking plenty of water. Your kidneys need water to work on removing toxins and your bowel needs water to function effectively. Support these amazing organs by keeping your fluids up.
- Introduce green tea into your diet. It is rich in antioxidants and acts as a natural flush for your system. It will boost your immunity and help protect your liver. If you don’t normally drink green tea, don’t go overboard. Start with one cup a day.
- Improve your bowel health by adding fibre and fermented foods to your diet. Increasing your consumption of food and drinks such as kombucha, cultured yoghurt, sauerkraut, kimchi and miso will increase the good bacteria in your gut, which will improve bowel function and support detoxification.
- Consider a supplement to support your body. If you can afford it and want to give your body some extra detox support, Vitamin C is important for removing toxins. Or you could try an over-the-counter liver support supplement short term to give your liver a boost.
- Go natural. Try to keep personal care products as natural as possible as toxins are absorbed through our skin. Think about the washing powder and make-up and skincare you use. Be aware of what’s in your cosmetics and look for those that contain as fewer chemicals as possible. If you are going to buy one natural product, make it lipstick. Whatever you put on your lips, you eat, so keep it as toxin-free as possible.
- Rinse your dishes after you have washed them – when we put dishes straight from soapy water into the drying rack, there is likely to be residual soap that stays on plates and cutlery. That can end up contaminating the food we eat off them or with them.
Once your two weeks is up, you might find that it’s easy to maintain some of these good habits. Many people report that regular detoxing improves their immune system and their digestive health, helps them sleep better, gives them more energy and boosts their mood. What’s not to like about that?
