The Caribbean Premier League dubbed ‘the biggest party in sports’ was won by the Amazon Warriors for the first time since its inception and Guyanese fittingly celebrated. In the 592 and the diaspora, there was lots of euphoria, parties, food, Guyana’s world renowned beers and rum and late night celebrations.
Now it is back to regular programming and if you overindulged while celebrating the win, you may be thinking of detoxing your system. Detox diets often involve the use of laxatives, diuretics, vitamins, minerals, teas, and other foods thought to have detoxing properties.
The term “toxin” in the context of detox diets is loosely defined. It typically includes pollutants, synthetic chemicals, heavy metals, and processed foods, which can negatively affect health.
However, popular detox diets rarely identify the specific toxins they aim to remove or the mechanism by which they supposedly eliminate them.
The truth is that you don’t need a specific detox, because your body has a sophisticated way of eliminating toxins that involves the liver, kidneys, digestive system, skin, and lungs. Still, only when these organs are healthy can they effectively eliminate unwanted substances.
So while detox diets don’t do anything that your body can’t naturally do on its own, you can optimize your body’s natural detoxification system by doing the following:
Limit alcohol
Your liver metabolizes more than 90% of the alcohol you consume. Liver enzymes metabolize alcohol to acetaldehyde, a known cancer-causing chemical. Recognizing acetaldehyde as a toxin, your liver converts it to a harmless substance called acetate, which it eliminates from your body.
While observational studies have shown that low to moderate alcohol consumption benefits heart health, excessive drinking may cause many health problems.
Excessive drinking can severely damage your liver function by causing fat buildup, inflammation, and scarring. When this happens, your liver cannot function adequately and perform its necessary tasks — including filtering waste and other toxins from your body.
Limiting or abstaining entirely from alcohol is one of the best ways to keep your body’s detoxification system running strong.
Focus on sleep
Ensuring adequate quality sleep each night is a must to support your body’s health and natural detoxification system.
Sleeping allows your brain to reorganize and recharge itself, as well as remove toxic waste byproducts that accumulate throughout the day. One of those waste products is a protein called beta-amyloid, which contributes to the development of Alzheimer’s disease.
With sleep deprivation, your body does not have time to perform those functions, so toxins can build up and affect several aspects of health.
Poor sleep has links to short and long-term health consequences, such as stress, anxiety, high blood pressure, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and obesity. You should regularly sleep 6 to 8 hours per night to help promote good health.
If you have difficulties falling or staying asleep at night, lifestyle changes like sticking to a sleep schedule and limiting blue light before bed are useful for improving sleep.
Drink more water
Water does so much more than quench your thirst. It regulates your body temperature, lubricates joints, aids digestion and nutrient absorption, and detoxifies your body by removing waste products.
Your body’s cells must continuously repair themselves to function optimally and break down nutrients for your body to use as energy. However, these processes release wastes in the form of urea and carbon dioxide, which can cause harm if they build up in your blood. Water transports these waste products, efficiently removing them through urination, breathing, or sweating. So staying properly hydrated is important for detoxification.
The adequate daily water intake is 3.7 litres for men and 2.7 litres for women. You may need more or less depending on your diet, where you live, and your activity level.
