Detox now

What better time than the New Year to embark on a quick cleansing programme from the inside out. It will restore your vitality and replenish your energy levels after all that festive partying.

The idea of a detox or an inner cleanse is to encourage your body to rid itself of chemicals and toxic by-products that often accumulate in the tissues as a result of an excessively rich diet, too much alcohol, artificial additives in processed foods as well as pollutants in the air.

Your body has a finely tuned way of dealing with all this.  Put simply, when it’s working well, it takes everything in, sorts out and uses what it needs, and does its best to get rid of everything it doesn’t.  Trouble starts when the natural elimination channels (mostly the liver, gut, kidneys and lungs) get blocked, and so-called ‘toxic overload’ results, causing physical symptoms that make it difficult for you to hide what’s going on inside.

Fortunately there are plenty of herbs that can help to boost the body’s natural self-cleansing mechanisms and reduce strain on the digestive system and organs so you will soon recover that inner and outer glow. 

To detox your digestive tract, try artichoke, a herb that cleanses and can even regenerate liver tissue, as well as stimulating the gall bladder to encourage it to produce more fat-busting bile.

Milk thistle protects the liver too, by shielding it from excessive amounts of toxins so that it can continue its vitally important job of processing nutrients from the food you eat.  This herb is also a powerful antioxidant.  You should aim for a daily dose of up to 200mg of an extract standardised containing at least 70 per cent of the plant’s active ingredient, silymarin.

Refreshing fennel relieves tension in the digestive tract to release trapped wind, and ease symptoms of indigestion, while burdock and wild pansy gently purify and revive sluggish channels of elimination.  Dandelion is a cooling natural diuretic that can help your body flush out water-soluble toxins.

Goldenseal can help to strengthen the immune system while you are detoxing but – unlike echinacea which is also great for boosting your immunity – should only be taken for a short period when you are feeling especially run down, or are about to start on a detox.

If you are planning on restricting your diet (and especially if you’re not keen on vegetables) as you clean from within, you may want to consider taking aquatic algae like kelp or spirulina.  Both are said to boost energy while providing modest levels of nutrients including iodine, folic acid and carotenoids. 

Lastly, liquorice can help to relieve fatigue, and soothe irritated, inflamed tissue.  It stimulates the adrenal glands to bolster levels of a virus fighter called ‘interferon’, and can have a mild laxative effect that will help you to stay regular, or re-establish regularity if your digestive system has been upset.

Try these

• Choose your time Do not start any detox programme unless you plan to stick with it for at least ten days, and approach it in a positive frame of mind – otherwise you’ll give up before you’ve had the chance to see the benefits.
• Juice it up Kick start your inner cleansing with a long weekend of tasty organic juice and sparkling mineral water to aid digestion.
• Eat an apple a day Apples are rich in pectins, a soluble fibre that helps to lower cholesterol levels.  They also help to cancel out the damage caused by eating too many fatty foods.
• Fresh is best Make the most of the nutrients your detox diet provides by avoiding processed foods as much as possible, and eating most of your fruit and veg raw.
• Wash it out The more water you drink, the easier it will be for your body to flush away any toxins you’ve been storing.

Watch point

If you are pregnant or breastfeeding consult a herbalist or doctor before going on a detox.