Why bother cleansing, when your body does it naturally?

I came across this article this morning and while most of it was interesting, I don't necessarily agree with the last part.

Our body does naturally cleanse itself, it's a beautiful temple that we live in. However, when people keep putting processsed foods, alchohol, cigarettes, caffeine, sugar (which create yeast), etc. into their body, the body does not have time to cleanse itself because our first priority is to break down the bad stuff that we put into our body. (I am not here to judge people, but we should know by now that putting these things in our bodies makes the body do extra work. I know, because I consume a few on occasion.)

Once our body can break down these items, then it can get to work cleansing. But if it is on a 24 hour cycle, which I know very well, then the body never gets a chance to cleanse.

Then the story goes on to say that the body will cleanse itself if we live healthy lifestyles, which I believe true. But most people do not live healthy lifestyles, so for someone to cleanse for three days is at least a step in the right direction. Hopefully, when a person cleanses, they will see the positive benefits, and may change their consumption habits from 1-360 degrees.

And about the gentlemen gaining the five pounds back. The the pain it takes to keep weight off must not have been worth the pleasure that he gets from eating.

Bottom line - Use cleansing as a short chance to rest your body and see if you really can live without the foods that cause you grief.

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Maybe not harmful, but not helpful, either

Critics of such cleansing programs say they might not be dangerous in the short term (though still others say three days isn’t enough time off normal eating to be effective) but they aren’t actually helpful either.

Lisa Sasson of the New York University School of Public Health says the programs do little more than “making very expensive urine” and that “our body naturally cleanses itself.”

She says such programs can actually be dangerous if people eat unhealthy foods most of the time and think drinking juice for three days negates the bad effects of junk. Instead, she said, our organs will do all the cleansing we need if we eat healthy diets and have active lifestyles.

For his part, Berman says he lost five pounds on the cleanse, but after going back to his regular eating habits he gained the weight back in a week.
(By Sarah E. White for CalorieLab Calorie Counter News)

Detoxification Stages

Detoxification Stages

Here is an overview of the detoxification stages during a juice fast. The time periods are a general estimation.

Stage 1 (Day 1 To Day 2)On the first day of fasting, the blood sugar level drops below 70 mg/dl. To restore the blood to the normal glucose level, liver glycogen is converted to glucose and released into the blood. This reserve is enough for half a day. The body then reduces the basal metabolic rate (BMR). The rate of internal chemical activity in resting tissue is lowered to conserve energy. The heart slows and blood pressure is reduced. Glycogen is pulled from the muscle causing some weakness. The first wave of cleansing is usually the worst.
Headaches, dizziness, nausea, bad breath, glazed eyes and a heavily coated tongue are signs of the first stage of cleansing. Hunger can be the most intense in this period unless the enema is used which quickly assists the body into the fasting state by ending digestion in the colon.

Stage 2 (Day 3 To Day 7)Fats, composed of transformed fatty acids, are broken down to release glycerol from the gliceride molecules and are converted to glucose. The skin may become oily as rancid oils are purged from the body. People with problem-free skin may have a few days of pimples or even a boil. A pallid complexion is also a sign of waste in the blood. Ketones are formed by the incomplete oxidation of fats. It is suspected that the ketones in the blood suppress the appetite by affecting the food-satiety center in the hypothalamus. You may feel hungry for the first few days of the fast. This effect is temporary. The desire to eat will disappear. Lack of hunger may last 40 to 60 days, depending on whether you are on water or juice.
The body embraces the fast and the digestive system is able to take a much-needed rest, focusing all of its energies on cleansing and healing. White blood cell and immune system activity increases. You may feel pain in your lungs. The cleansing organs and the lungs are in the process of being repaired. Periodically, the lymphatic system expels mucoid matter through the nose or throat. The volume excreted of this yellow-colored mucus can be shocking. The sinuses go through periods of being clogged, then will totally clear. The breath is still foul and the tongue coated. Within the intestine, the colon is being repaired and impacted feces on the intestinal wall start to loosen.

Stage 3 (Day 8 to Day 15)On the latter part of an extended fast, you can experience enhanced energy, clear-mindedness and feel better than you have felt since childhood. On the downside, old injuries may become irritated and painful. This is a result of the body’s increased ability to heal during fasting. If you had broken your arm 10 years before, there is scar tissue around the break. At the time of the break, the body’s ability to heal was directly related to lifestyle. If you lived on a junk-food diet, the body’s natural healing ability was compromised.
During fasting, the body’s healing process is at optimum efficiency. As the body scours for dead or damaged tissue, the lymphocytes enter the older, damaged tissue secreting substances to dissolve the damaged cells. These substances irritate the nerves in the surrounding region and cause a reoccurrence of aches from previously injured areas that may have disappeared years earlier. The pain is good as the body is completing the healing process. The muscles may become tight and sore due to toxin irritation. The legs can be the worst affected, as toxins accumulate in the legs. Cankers are common in this stage due to the excessive bacteria in the mouth. Daily gargling with salt and water will prevent or heal cankers.

Stage 4 (Day 16 to Day 30)The body is completely adapted to the fasting process. There is more energy and clarity of mind. Cleansing periods can be short with many days of feeling good in between. There are days when the tongue is pink and the breath is fresh. The healing work of the organs is being completed. After the detoxification mechanisms have removed the causative agent or render it harmless, the body works at maximum capacity in tissue proliferation to replace damaged tissue. While a short fast will reduce the symptoms, a longer fast can completely heal. Homeostatic balance is at optimum levels. The lymphatic system is clean except for a rare discharge of mucus through the nose or throat. After day 20, the mind is affected. Heightened clarity and emotional balance are felt at this time. Memory and concentration improve.

Stage 5 (Breaking the Fast)The sticky, toxic, mucoid coating on the intestinal wall is loose, and the first meal frees it from the intestinal wall. Toxins enter the blood through the colon. The gallbladder dumps its waste in a heavy discharge of bile. This can cause an instant bowel movement upon eating followed by intense diarrhea. If the symptoms are too uncomfortable, an enema will help.

Looney Tunes

Do you remember watching cartoons as a kid? And the episode where two people (maybe even animals who talked like people) were stranded out in the desert. And one of them is so hungry, when they look at the other person, that person looks like a hot dog...like a mirage?

Those are the flashes that I get while cleansing. Just yesterday, I was listening to a 9/11 conspiracy theorist, Jesse Ventura. My mind drifted to the rubble and the photos of the scrap metal and the "waffle." I believe they called it a waffle. This image was very prominenent in the clean up of the World Trade Center.

Back to the story, I thought of this, and it triggered the crispy waffles that I made last Sunday and gave me a huge craving.

This was only 3 hours after I woke up on Day 1!

That is how nutty cleanses/fasting can be and how we live our life based on past patterns. I love to cleanse because it breaks those old patterns of thought, of eating, of drinking, that aren't necessarily right, but how we have lived our life.

Take the power, go on then!

Cleanse for purpose and focus

Yesterday evening I was driving home from a social event at the high school (where I didn't have any cake, thank you very much), and I got a flash in my mind about how great it would be to go home, have a few beers or wine and make something tasty and interesting from dinner. It didn't take me long to realize that 1. This would go against my cleanse and 2. That is just a distraction from issues I am dealing with in my personal life.

I could imagine a lot of people, like myself, see the evening hour as a time to switch off. To say, "Okay, that day is done, now let me have a beer, watch some soccer and forget about until......TOMORROW." At that time, I run the same pattern.

But last night was different. Without an easy out, or an alternate way to forget about my purpose and struggles, I got home and got to work. A very productive night.

Amen to food and drink. I believe it is a zest of life. I love to create a spectacular meal that gives enjoyment, flavor, purpose, relaxation and happiness. But let's be frank, it is a good excuse to focus on something else.

When food becomes an accompaniment to our life and not a master, we enjoy it more and our life becomes more productive.

Live well, eat well.

Cleansing vs. Fasting

Trying to google "Cleansing and Fasting" and all I get is a boatload of crap and websites trying to sell fad diets.

Last time I cleansed, I used the Arbonne Cleanse. And that really helped to move things along and excrete it outside of my body. By the second day, I felt a lightness in my body and especially the intestinal area.

This time, I am not drinking any product. I do not feel the lightnes that came with the other product. Nor are things "moving " out of me.

As we know, to cleanse is to 1. Allow to body to not have to digest and just do the elimination work and 2. Get the toxins stirred up and released from your body.

I will discuss more later, but my hypothesis is that the body will do the same as the product will, but the product speeds up the process by 4 times the rate that the natural body does.

Cleansing again - Am I strong enough

So I am cleansing again for 2.5 days. But this time, there is nothing at stake. No bets, no rewards, just pure discipline. I am experimenting to see if I...or others need massive leverage to complete a cleanse. (for example - burrito in the fridge, coffee cake, oreo scones, bagels, tortilla chips, cake, coffee, power bar, beer, wine..just to name a few)

So far, I am on day 2, and have had massive temptations and cravings, yet, have stayed diligent to my cause.

But tomorrow may be tough. I usually end the week with a Starbucks coffee. So everytime I get a craving tonight and tomorrow, I wil do a power move/pattern interrupt to change my thinking.

This is the same technique that Tony Robbins teaches that can help people to stop smoking, overeating, etc.

The only trouble I have, is remembering to do a pattern interrupt.

I can do this until tomorrow.