The Herbal Pathway

We see countless posts within social media about doing a cleanse, whether it’s a Liver Cleanse, Skin Clean, Juice Cleanse and so on. They claim to be extremely beneficial for your health by clearing up your skin and ridding the body of toxins. Trouble is most people who rely on “Dr. Facebook” or “Dr. Google” approach cleanses as a quick fix to either do repair from a weekend of excessive behaviour or to lose weight without understanding fully what a Cleanse does.

Do You Need A Cleanse?

• Unexplained tiredness
• Severe Menstrual Cramps
• Puffy Eyes
• Acne/Eczema/Psoriasis
• Bloating
• Insomnia
• Constipation
• Brain Fog
• Gaining Weight in the mid section

There are so many “cleanses” out there how do you pick? What is the reason your are doing a cleanse? Cleanses are meant to eliminate certain foods and drinks, to rid the body of toxins and give your digestion system a time out to heal.

All too often our Standard North American Diet (SAD) involves consuming foods and drinks that are high in sugar, high acid and full of toxins. Just imagine, the skin in your digestive track is paper thin what are these foods doing to it!

Benefits Of A Cleanse:

• Improve Digestion
• Lose Weight
• Eliminate Toxins
• Control Cravings
• Improve Mood and Emotional Health
• Boost Your Energy
• Clear Up Skin Conditions

The basis of good health involves three very important steps:

1. Digestion
2. Absorption
3. Elimination

If one of those steps is suffering, then your body’s natural function is thrown off and you may either get sick, constipated, gain weight or have bad skin. All too often it takes getting sick in order for someone to realize they need to clean up – and they head straight for a cleanse. In theory that’s a good idea depending on which cleanse you choose of course, however, if you aren’t careful you may get even sicker.

When we eat foods full of toxins and drink alcohol and coffee our body becomes used to it, BUT medically speaking you are in a constant state of “SHOCK”. This is because these toxins are foreign and your body doesn’t recognize them, so your system is in a constant “fight” mode trying to deal with them. Instantly adding herbs or only doing a juice cleanse can shock your body even more. Anytime you start to rid your body of toxins, everything still must be filtered through your Liver and Kidneys. If your entire LARGE toxic load is trying to leave all at once, your organs become over burdened and will recycle the toxins back into your blood stream. This is why some people who jump into cleanses get sick.

The best plan is to visit us at The Herbal Pathway! Speak to our Registered Nutritionists and let them know the state of your current lifestyle. Things like how much coffee do you drink, are you eating lots of sugar, drinking alcohol or stressed out! They will be able recommend a cleanse best suited for you at the time.

Cleanses are timed for the reason mentioned above (SHOCK) so you may be given a cleanse that takes anywhere from 3 weeks to 3 months. Before you begin ask yourself, are you ready to give up the foods and drinks for an extended period of time? Do you have a function to attend? Are you going away? It’s always best to plan a period of time where you don’t have to interrupt your cleanse.

There are so many versions of a cleanse.

• Tea
• Herbs
• Supplements
• Tinctures
• Entire Protocols

These are all versions you should discuss with a professional.

As always, if you are seeking medical attention for any conditions you should tell your MD or ND your plans to do a cleanse prior to beginning.