Integrative Health Blog

Spring! Time to Detox and Restore Balance to the Body

Posted by on Mon, Apr 17, 2023

Winter is over! Transitioning from winter to spring is good news for the body. Seasonal changes can have many effects on us. Following the rhythm of the seasons our body has specific needs, and we should listen!

In winter, we want to be inside, stay warm and eat heavier, comforting foods. Changes in temperature, metabolism, sunlight exposure, and many other body processes occur in the long winter months. During the cold season we were exposed to less sunlight which is needed for serotonin and vitamin D production. Inadequate vitamin D and serotonin levels make us more susceptible to mild states of anxiety and low mood.  

Unfortunately, the mechanism for detoxification (which is happening in the liver) is slow during the winter time as well.  Toxin accumulation happens through the food that we eat, the air that we breathe, and medications. Some toxins stay in the body longer and can lead to chronic diseases. Many cases of fatigue, brain fog, and mood disorders are associated with an excess amount of toxins.   

Detoxification is Natural in Spring  

Spring is the time that the body is more active and ready to get rid of toxins.

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Tags: holistic nutrition, detoxification

Detoxing from the Salon

Posted by on Tue, Dec 03, 2019

Looking our best sometimes means a little extra makeup and a monthly trip to the hair salon for a touch up of our “new growth”. But with all of the talk about chemicals found in our personal care products, how can we continue to look fabulous and at the same time, make sure we are not being harmed by our choices?

Beginning in the 1940’s, the US has introduced a few thousand new chemical products into the market each year. This equates to about 85,000 chemicals that our great grandparents were never exposed to and that our bodies now have to process. Such chemicals can be found in the foods we eat, the inside and outside environment in which we live, and the personal care products that we place on our bodies.

When we were young and invincible, our outward appearance often mattered most. We didn’t think about the long term consequences of our shampoo or lipstick - just as long as it did the job that it was marketed to do. As our bodies begin to age, however, could these same products be causing us harm? As it turns out, our increasing waist size, minor unexplained aches and pains, gastrointestinal problems and progressively aging skin changes can, in fact, be related to the same chemicals that once made us look gorgeous.

Over time, if we do not regularly and safely remove them from our body, these cumulative toxin exposures can impact the development of many chronic diseases.

So let’s be smart and learn to detoxify.

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Tags: detoxification, toxins

Top Detoxification Therapies for Cleansing and Rejuvenation

Posted by on Wed, Jan 02, 2019

Integrative medicine recognizes detoxification as the first important step in restoring the body to a natural, balanced, healthy state. While the amazing human body naturally removes most of the harmful things we may encounter- the toxic load may accumulate over years of eating less-than-nutritious processed food, drinking alcohol, using personal care products or cleaning products full of chemicals, and exposure to pollutants. This burden of potentially harmful substances can take its toll on an otherwise healthy person.  

National Integrated Health Associates has devoted an entire area to detoxification at the integrative medical and dental center in Washington, D.C.  The Detoxification & Rejuvenation Center has state-of-the-art detoxification therapies that can be used to enhance your natural detoxification and promote health and overall well-being.

Colon Hydrotherapy

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Tags: detoxification

Chlorella, a Natural Superfood with Amazing Benefits

Posted by on Thu, Dec 13, 2018

Chlorella is the near-perfect food for natural detoxification

Chlorella is a single cell algae, grown in fresh water, and has been around since ancient times. Chlorella is a natural chelator, meaning it has the ability to bind and remove heavy metals from the body.  It is helpful as a food-based green drink for detoxing heavy metals (such as mercury, lead, cadmium), toxic chemicals, mold, Lyme and other toxins from the body. Chlorella also has a high protein content, is rich in vitamins and minerals and is a good source of essential amino acids, which help to promote health.

What Makes Chlorella a Superfood 

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Tags: chlorella, detoxification, heavy metal detoxification

The Importance of Detoxification in Chronic Illness

Posted by on Mon, Jul 09, 2018

"Detoxification is the foundation of all Integrative Medical treatment. Without good detoxification, healing from any chronic illness is impossible.” Dietrich Klinghardt MD, PhD.

The quote by Dr. Klinghardt, one of the world’s most accomplished Holistic Physicians and the teacher of teachers, is critical information for understanding the role of detoxification in not only treating chronic conditions such as cancer, heart disease, respiratory diseases, brain and nervous system degeneration, autism, autoimmune diseases, chronic fatigue conditions and pain syndromes – but also the prevention of these chronic health issues and other diseases of aging. Unfortunately, these conditions are becoming more common and are now seen at earlier ages. 

We live in a toxic world, some of which is created by environmental factors, modern living and technological advances, but many people are unaware of the science and trends. Startling statistics in a recent study show that for the past two years the life expectancy of Americans has  decreased, and the average IQ of children has been declining for years.

Could this possibly be due to environmental factors? Is this how modern living is affecting our health? What now?

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Tags: detoxification

Feeling Heavy After the Holidays? How Colon Hydrotherapy Can Help

Posted by on Wed, Jan 10, 2018

Many of the clients for colon hydrotherapy are surprised to learn that within the human body, there exists a series of organs that when stretched out, measure longer than a car!

Indeed, 30 feet of gastrointestinal (GI) tract runs through every adult. Every time you eat food, it goes through the tract, starting at the esophagus and then moving through the stomach, intestines, and colon, before it exits the body. The tract serves as the processor for all that you eat and drink-both the good AND the bad.

When we partake in some well-deserved overindulgence, toxins from bad food, beverages, and other consumables may accumulate in our digestive system and cause all sorts of discomfort. Digestive issues are common in this day and age and almost everybody is liable to feel them at one point or another. That’s where colon hydrotherapy can help!

Why Colon Hydrotherapy  (video!)

 

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Tags: detoxification, colon hydrotherapy

Upgrade Your Health with Integrative Spa Therapies

Posted by on Sat, Jul 22, 2017

Upgrade Your Health with Integrative Spa Therapies

Most of us are constantly bombarded with an increasing amount of toxins from a variety of sources:

  • We swallow toxins in food that is not organic and filled with pesticides and mercury from amalgam fillings.
  • We drink toxins in water that is unclean, soda and alcohol that is full of sugar and coffee that triggers dehydration.
  • We inhale toxins from car exhaust, airplane fumes and household cleaning products that contain harmful ingredients.
  • We absorb toxins through our skin from mold or chemicals in our home/office, clothes that have been washed in commercial toxic cleansers, and electromagnetic radiation from wireless devices.

Even if you change your lifestyle going forward with improvements in diet, hydration and digestion, your body still has to rid itself of toxins it has accumulated over many years in order to function optimally! Your body is a marvelous machine and can eliminate much of the "bad stuff" or toxins you encounter in day to day living. But, unfortunately, your body is not invincible and cannot always rely on your own natural mechanisms to remove toxic build-up from your body.

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Tags: detoxification

Upgrade Your Health with Integrative Home Strategies

Posted by on Mon, Jun 19, 2017

We live in a toxic world.

Through hundreds of thousands of years, our bodies have developed systems to handle these toxins. These systems have relied on the ability to eat foods that helped us eliminate toxins, drink water that helped to flush them out, and as hunter gatherers move away from these toxins when all else had failed.

In our modern world, we are faced with keeping our bodies clean and functional without the advantages of nutrient dense foods, healthy mineral rich water, and it is impractical to be able to relocate at will.

These changes may increase the burden on the body to stay clean, functional and avoid disease. Finding ways to adapt are more important than ever before if we are to maintain our health.

To add insult to injury, our environment has changed dramatically. Many new stressors have been introduced to our environments so quickly that our bodies have not had a chance to adapt.

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Tags: detoxification

Simple Steps to Detoxify for Spring

Posted by on Tue, May 16, 2017

Our society is increasingly exposed to toxins that are a significant contributor to the rise in chronic illness and disease.

Unfortunately, the rate of toxicity in our society is much higher than it was when our parents were growing up. This means that we need to be more vigilant and diligent in terms of detoxifying our bodies and leading a healthy lifestyle.

Toxins in our environment include:

  • foods grown with pesticides
  • poor quality water
  • exhaust fumes from autos & airplanes
  • electromagnetic radiation from phones, computers & wireless devices
  • commercial household cleansers
  • mold and chemicals in our homes
  • personal care products (cosmetics, shampoo, deodorant) that contain harmful ingredients such as aluminum
  • mercury amalgam fillings

How do you know if you need to cleanse or detoxify your body?

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Tags: detoxification, health coach

Ask the Wellness Coach: How Do I Know if I Need to Detoxify?

Posted by on Tue, Sep 13, 2016

This is a very good question and there are several schools of thought on this subject. The truth is that there is no easy answer.

Some argue that we are living in an increasingly toxic world, a world where the body’s ability to stay ahead of toxins has been overwhelmed by harmful exposures to a host of new and unfamiliar chemical compounds. Others maintain that the body has the ability to handle detoxification and intervention is unnecessary and even harmful. To some extent, both of these statements are true; however, there can be mitigating circumstances where detoxification is essential.

So when is detoxification essential?

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Tags: detoxification