Give your body a break and detoxify!

 

Published November 17, 2001 in the North Island Weekender

 

Martha came into me complaining of feeling toxic. For her this meant she was tired all the time, she had frequent headaches, bad breath, malodorous bowel movements, gas, and bloating and poor skin.  She had lived most of her life in the North Island and she wondered why she would be feeling so toxic. Her diet had always been poor, eating at fast food restaurants several times a week and she ate a lot of pasta at home. She drank two cups of coffee and one or two soft drinks every day. She didn’t drink alcohol nor did she smoke.
Does this sound like you? This is a very common picture I see in the office. The word detoxify conjures up images of alcohol detox, but in this day and age of chemicals, pesticides, chlorine and exposure to heavy metals such as mercury, lead and cadmium, detoxification means a way of assisting the body’s organ to get rid of these toxic agents.
Where are all these toxins coming from? Well if you are not eating organically raised fruits, vegetables and meats then you are ingesting pesticides, heavy metals, growth hormones and antibiotics on a daily basis. Did you know that human waste is made into sludge and used as fertilizer? The only problem with this is that the main elimination pathway for heavy metalsin humans is through the intestines and all these heavy metals end up back on the fields as fertilizer and that is where you are getting mercury, lead, cadmium and aluminum to name a few.
Most of us have felt that the body can deal with these toxins: garbage in and garbage out, after all what is the liver for? However the liver as the main detoxification organ is already overloaded with over 400 biochemical pathways already, and when we stress the liver with too many toxins, something gives, and these toxic agents don’t get excreted but store in the fat cells, brain cells, heart muscle cells and the bones of the body. We have seen patients go through cleansing reactions as they dump out these toxins through the bowel, the skin and the kidney.
10% of women of childbearing age have levels of mercury in their bodies that exceeds levels that the Environmental Protection Agency considers safe. Newborns of these women are at an increase risk of developing neurological problems due to exposure to mercury in the womb. Autistic and ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) children often have high levels of mercury, lead or cadmium as found on a hair analysis.
Where are we getting this mercury? A major source of mercury is eating large fish such as halibut and tuna as these fish live longer and accumulate mercury from the oceans around the world. Mercury in amalgams is toxic and so is the mercury found in all vaccinations! Vaccinations also contain formaldehyde, aluminum and 2 red dyes!
The rate of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) is four times higher in New Zealand than anywhere else in the world due to the use of sheepskins as bedding for babies. The sheepskins are treated with arsenic, antimony and phosphorous. When urine contacts these agents’ molds grow and they emit toxic gases. If the child survives without getting SIDS it is speculated that these children may go on to develop Autism and ADHD.
The bottom line is that these heavy metals and chemicals are neurotoxic. That is they will destroy nerves cells also resulting in neurological diseases such as Parkinson’s Disease, Alzheimer’s Disease and ALS.
Although we on the North Island live in a fairly pollution free environment as compared to larger North American cities, we are exposed to these toxic agents just the same. In a future article I will go on to discuss what I did with Martha in determining her heavy metal status and assisting her body to detoxify. The good news is there is something you can do to assist your body all you need is the desire to do so!

Dr. Pincott has been practicing naturopathic medicine since 1985 and is currently practicing in Campbell River. She can be reached at (250) 286-3655 or www.DrPincott.com