As we start into the holidays (aka junk-food-indulgence season), you might want to consider the benefits a safe detoxification can give your body. Research says a cleansed internal system tends to be less prone to the addictive draw of sweets and other junky foods. In other words, detoxing before (rather than after) the holidays can be a great protection to your body.


Detoxification is what our body does naturally to neutralize, transform, or get rid of unwanted materials or toxins. And a foremost researcher on the subject, Dr. Frank Lipman, says the wisest way to manage our body is to decrease the amount of toxins we injest while at the same time support our body’s detoxification and elimination systems with the nutrients it needs to function properly. Obvious, right? You’d think.

But he reminds us that while we are very aware of our external cleanliness—teeth brushing, bathing, hair-washing, hand washing, etc., which helps us look and smell clean and feel better—our internal cleansing just doesn’t get the same attention.


That’s because it’s often hard to know when our internal cleansing mechanisms aren’t functioning well. A specific “for instance” would be having an accurate fix on how well our liver (one of the main detoxification organs) is working. Along with the intestinal tract, kidneys, lungs, lymphatic system and skin, it’s KEY to keeping our system clean and healthy. But it can limp along for a good long while before symptoms show up. And then they can still easily go unnoticed.

All this said, here’s the deal: Thanks to today’s sad diet, we can safely assume we just AREN’T internally detoxified. We’re laboring under a heavy burden, internally, when it comes to trying to maintain health and vigor. So as mentioned above, maybe this is a good time of year to consider a thorough and safe detoxification.

With this plan in mind, and knowing that commercial detoxification programs cost big bucks, I went looking for simple and effective things we could do, involving items found in our own kitchens and bathrooms. A favorite site, www.care2.com had some good suggestions:


First of all, baths are always a good way to detox because hot water draws toxins out of the body to the skin’s surface, and while the water cools it pulls toxins from the skin. Epsom salts boost detoxification by causing you to sweat. Other salts you can use—all highly alkaline and cleansing—include sea salt, baking soda, clay, and Dead Sea salts.

Here are good recipes for a couple homemade detoxification salt soaks. They take just 2 or 3 minutes to prepare and their shelf life is indefinite. You’ll notice how the minerals make your bath water feel silky and leave your skin not just cleansed, but soft.




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And then there’s detoxifying drinks. I’ll close with an idea and a proven recipe for one. The idea: why not consider make batches of these salt soaks and this drink and giving them as gifts this year? What a nice shift from the typical holiday junk-food-indulgence we tend to default to!

And now this tried and true detoxification drink. It’s been around for decades. I make a couple quarts of this at a time and keep it refrigerated.




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