Inner cleansing: every day, toxins imperil your health and fitness. But it's easy to detoxify—no rubber hose required - Health

Admit it: Someone mentions detox and you think of over-the-hill TV stars limping into the Betty Ford Clinic, or grotesque procedures involving gallons of soapy water--or, worse, both. In fact, detoxification is about utilizing simple, noninvasive methods to transform inner toxins left behind by pollution or natural functions such as protein metabolism. Clearing out excess waste and dead cells can revitalize your body's healing capacities while increasing energy and improving both daily routines and fitness performance.

You don't have to breathe freeway fumes for hours a day to become saturated with toxins. Most of us are already fully loaded, says Elson Haas, M.D., author of The Detox Diet and founder of the Preventive Medical Center of Marin in San Rafael, Calif.

"A toxin is any element the body doesn't have a use for, like lead and mercury and hydrocarbons, and more mundane things like food colorings and hydrogenated fats," Haas explains. "These toxins are in just about everything we come into contact with: polluted air and water, pesticides in foods, and chemicals in shampoos and medications. We store them in fat cells, in the brain and in the nervous system."

TOXIC SYMPTOMS

Accumulating these inner poisons can lead to a wide range of symptoms such as sluggishness, fatigue, slow metabolism, poor digestion, skin disorders, headache or persistent coughing. (All of which, of course, do nothing to enhance your fitness regimen.) It may also increase your risk of arthritis, heart disease or cancer.

The quickest, safest means of minimizing your toxin load is to reduce your junk intake, says Martin Dayton, M.D., D.O., of Sunny Isles Beach, Fla. With a healthy diet, the proficiency of the organs directly involved in detoxification--the liver, the intestinal tract and the kidneys--is a given. Avoiding tobacco and excessive caffeine, alcohol, saturated fats, dairy products and refined sugars helps maintain your body's filtering system. And increasing your fiber consumption with grains, fruits and vegetables (as pesticide-free as possible) promotes more regular elimination.

Inner cleansing can also be facilitated by avoiding food, at least for short periods of time with the proper precautions. During a fast, solid foods are abandoned for one to three days or more in favor of fruit juice, herbal tea and vegetable broth. Proponents argue that fasting reduces the stress of digestion, better enabling the body to heal itself. Consult your physician before beginning any fast.

Haas advocates the use of supplements during a prolonged juice fast. Miso, a paste of fermented soybean, replenishes essential nutrients while supporting colon function and intestinal bacteria, both important in detoxification. Spirulina, an algae powder, provides additional protein and may aid those who experience fatigue during fasting. It's best to begin a fast on Friday so your body can adjust over a leisurely weekend rather than at the office.

FLOOD CONTROL

There are more extreme forms of cleansing, of course. Colonic irrigations rinse out the intestines using vast amounts of water, and some brave souls perform regular enemas using water, herbs or even diluted coffee. Haas warns against doing these more than two or three times a year, while other experts discount them entirely.

"Colonics are unnecessary, and the procedure itself may cause infection or perforation," says Andrew Weil, M.D., author of Natural Health, Natural Medicine. "Since your colon constantly sheds its lining, there's no chance for toxins to build up on it. Regular bowel movements from eating a proper diet, drinking plenty of fluids and enjoying daily activity will clean you out naturally."

A problem with artificially inducing natural functions is that your body will get lazy and stop doing the work on its own. That's one reason Weil also discourages using irritant herbal laxatives such as cascara sagrada and senna, though he says milder herbs such as psyllium and triphala can be used without leading to dependence or internal damage.

Massage, particularly lymphatic massages offered by certified therapists, increases the flow of blood and lymphatic fluid, both of which transport toxins away from cells. It won't scrub your insides clean, but it may help and it feels good. In addition to massage, spas offer various body scrubs that remove dead skin and unclog pores, making it easier to sweat out toxins.

And sweating, it turns out, is one of the best ways to detoxify. "A good workout stimulates perspiration, a great means of elimination through the skin," says Dayton. "And any regular exercise regimen also improves metabolism." Because exercise does boost the production of natural toxins, he adds, it's important to stay properly hydrated during and after a workout.

"Water is always a primary part of any type of detox program, because it helps dilute and eliminate accumulated toxins," says Dayton, who suggests that you keep drinking eight to 10 glasses per day of clean, filtered water during any cleansing cycle. If an injury keeps you from exercising, you can still stimulate your sweat glands with daily saunas (unless you have high blood pressure), but you'll need twice as much water and some mineral supplements after steam-cleaning yourself.