Getting rid of toxins - mindfully and naturally

There are a few things we do with money - Earn, Save, Invest and Give. Without Saving, there is nothing to invest and give. You can quadruple your earnings, but if you quadruple you spend proportionally, you will end up broke still. Health is no different - we can feed our bodies healthy foods all day long and that is important and essential but eliminating Toxins is equally important too, to assist with continuous natural healing processes. If you are mentally and financially tied up paying off debt, you never build true wealth. Similarly, if your body is tied up fighting toxins all day long, it has a hard time building true health. 

There are plenty of toxin sources around us that we do not notice. Our brains are tuned to a normal state of daily existence which is a boatload of toxins. See if you can relate to this seemingly benign average normal day 

1.     Take a shower with hot water that is loaded with chlorine, fluoride and other chemicals

2.     Brush with toothpastes which would make great metal cleaners

3.     Rinse off with chemicals and alcohol (mouth freshener)

4.     Apply De-odorants that stop sweat glands from excreting the toxins from our bodies

5.     Wear your clothes which were washed in bleaches and chemicals that not only killed the germs that were on the clothes, they still will seep into our blood stream on contact and when we sweat

6.     Spray some of that cologne on your neck and then some more on your clothes. btw, none of those fragrances come from any organic natural sources 

7.     Put some petroleum jelly-based cream on your hair, face, hands and all over the body. Just let our largest organ - skin deal with it. It smells good and feels soft, that's all that matters right? It's always either too hot, too cold, too humid, too something so Air conditioning should be on creating a perpetual barrier between us and the natural air that we belong in. The air that contains all the micro-organisms that ferment dough, dosa batter and other foods in no time and create richest sources of pro-biotics. 

8.     That odor is bad somewhere in kitchen, bathroom etc. Just spray some air freshener or better still install one that keeps dispensing fragrance like a mall all day long. Does the air freshness bottle suggest it is ok to drink or eat it? I guess not, but that's exactly what we are doing, just that we are consuming it via breathing vs. eating

9.     Let's skip breakfast for now, that's another post and get in the car. Wait a second, car should smell good as, well right? You bet, there was an additional car freshener too. Smells great, life is good. I love that new car smell, even if it is carcinogenic

10.   Get back home. Floors are squeaky clean, windows are clear as crystal with ammonia and bleach-based solutions. 

Life is good. You know what is not heading in the right direction? Your immune system’s ability to fight toxins. Why? because, we do not stop bombarding it 24*7. As if this wasn't enough, we further add the following to our meals in the guise of food 

1.     Processed sugar - low on energy just get a caffeinated, high sugar drink. For kids who are active – pack a bottle of Gatorade, they need energy

2.     Bleached flours devoid of fiber and nutrition 

3.     Canned stuff (staying away from calling anything that stays in a can full of BPA lining and sitting on supermarket shelves for months, food) 

4.     Deep fried stuff

5.     Extreme caffeine and alcohol

6.     Dairy, poultry, meat and fish overload 

Then one day, it could be when we are 2 years old or 20 or 40 or 50 or more, Immune system finally gives up because it cannot take it anymore. A thorough medical diagnosis drives towards justifying why the condition exists followed by prescription medication and eventually surgery vs. attempting to find the real root cause. This post has some of the myths which are usually included in the diagnosis - typically an un-substantiated rant on genes, age, luck, we don't know why this happens but we know the pills and surgery that can be done to shoot the messenger organ, gland, hormone or a combination of all of them in the hopes that the problem will disappear.

Fortunately, there are some brain-dead simple ways to get rid of toxins in our daily lives which have short- and long-term detrimental impacts on our families' health. Top couple dozen culprits and some helpful steps are included below. It is more important to mindfully approach this vs. attempting to find the right comprehensive guide online and you will find your own unique ways to live a healthier more mindful life. Remember the last straw that broke the proverbial camels back was just the one that was found on the crime scene. It was the million that came before it which were responsible in creating chronic conditions.

A few dozen things listed below are not an exhaustive list of all toxins our bodies deal with, it’s a start though. My hunch is that if you create a simple checklist of these things and which one’s are in your daily life and start eliminating them one by one, you will develop a sense of natural awareness over time where pausing before buying a toxin will start happening. Reading labels will become a habit, asking the cleaners to clean your home would always be preceded by asking them to use the cleaning supplies you give them, treating your lawn and plants as a part of who you are will become first nature and hence treating them with Round-up will cease .

Nature elements which bodies confuse to be toxins  

1.     Seasonal Allergens - a potential source of allergic response by immune system

There are some things we can-not change – Seasonal allergens is one of those. .The health cost of staying in AC or Heating 100% of the time outweighs the benefits. Ideal state is for immune system to be in sync with the natural surroundings - it is particularly complicated with immigrant populations where parents were born in one country, moved to another and kids are born in another - a DNA that had built in immunity for India, started developing the same for EU or AUS or LATAM and is now in North America needs time to adapt.

Steps that help and Why they help

a)     Buy local Bee pollen - add it to smoothies daily. Developing immunity is like developing muscles. Train them, torcher them and they grow stronger. What is a flu shot? It is the actual flu causing germs that are introduced in our bodies, so body can develop the antibodies to combat them. Developing strong immunity to seasonal allergies is no different. When we consume local pollen, it allows our immune system to develop strong resistance within the body. Really, as simple as that

b)     Buy local honey from farms around us - add to cold pressed juice of turmeric, ginger, pineapple, lemon and apple - in the absence of cold pressed juicer - blend all ingredients in a high-speed blender (E.g. Vitamix) and pass through sieve - just need 6-8 Oz / serving daily is enough. Like Bee pollen, local honey has similar immunity boosting benefits

c)     For as many days throughout the year as possible, keep the windows open. Let the air in. This is especially important when you sleep. Sleep is rest and recovery time. When the body is disconnected from nature for those 6-8 hours, in an entirely different environment as it relates to temperature, humidity and air quality vs. natural surroundings, it adapts to the environment it is in – blood thins or thickens, brains makes it ready for the next day thinking it is summer, spring, fall, winter based on your humidity, temperature etc. Here’s the deal though – when it’s 45-degree F outside but the body is in 80 degrees inside for 8 hours and then steps out for 20 minutes in 40 degrees, then steps back in to 80 for a few hours, then back out in freezing cold and so and so forth …. Body and brain get very-very confused, while the body is an amazing and infinitely adaptable technology, there’s a limit to everything. The hundreds of transitions it goes through eventually lowers bodies immunity and the slightest virus or bacterial outbreak gets through the already weak immune system. When it’s Solar Eclipse for a minute or so, crickets come out thinking its time for them to start their jungle orchestra, then eclipse is over and sun comes out, they go back in. They know better. Our bodies natural regulation systems go through the same, the only difference is that the switch keeps happening dozens of times a day and throughout the year for our entire lifetime. Solution is simple – spend as much time in nature as possible and as much as humanly possible, just let the air in

d)     First thing in AM - water with 2 spoons of Apple cider vinegar + lemon.
Last thing at night (at least 45 mins after dinner) - repeat the same
Lemon - makes the body alkaline. Alkalinity is inversely proportional to levels of inflammation. More Alkaline the body, lower the inflammation.
Apple cider vinegar - one of the richest probiotic sources. Gives gut (our second brain) exactly what it needs and builds tremendous immunity with little or no financial investment

Vendor/Source

a)     Bee Pollen - Earth fare health section freezer

b)     Honey - local farmers markets - organic and non-GMO is preferred but it's hard to get it … local still preferred over Costco the large brands where honey is collected in Brazil - Brazil does not help in NC to fight local infections and germs

c)     Air – nature. Any device that re-circulates the air that you already have in your home/room might help get rid of some toxins, but nothing equivalent to the natural air which has all the seasonal allergens, the right amount of humidity in the right temperature and a ton more nature that we have not classified in to a scientific commercially sellable noun just yet .

Artificial environmental toxins – body does not get confused, these are toxic.

2.     Bath soap

Get a vegetable glycerin-based soap like the one's at Earth fare or Wholefoods (Good bar. Usually $1-2/bar)

Steps that help and Why they help

a)     Would you eat or drink gasoline orally? If not, why would you feed it via your largest organ which is also your first line of defense against all external toxins – skin. Stop – get rid of those nice smelling soaps which are probably great to wash cars not our skin

Vendor/Source – Earth fare / Wholefoods

3.     Shampoo / Conditioner / Hand soap / Hand Sanitizer / really anything that touches your skin

Make sure it’s Paraben free, Sulfate and free of chemicals

Steps that help and Why they help

a)     Shampoo like soaps enter our blood stream through our skin as well. Don’t put on your skin what you will not eat.

Vendor/Source – Everyone, Wholefoods 365 and Earth fare have great in-house brands which are great

4.     Toothpaste

Make sure it’s Paraben, Fluoride, sulfate, chloride, alcohol free - e.g. Tom's of Maines etc.

5.     Mouthwash

Combine organic coconut oil with essential oils like peppermint – it makes for a great antiseptic mouth rinse

6.     De-odorant

Get an organic de-odorant which is not anti-perspiratory and free of parabens and other chemicals

Steps that help and Why they help

a)     There’s a reason why we sweat. This is nature’s way of getting rid of toxins from our bodies. When anti-perspirants are used, they create a havoc on sweat glands not only in one part of body but on other locations as well. It’s like taking a pain medication – via the blood stream it reaches all places where blood goes.

b)     Get organic de-odorants which work only on getting the odors down vs. interfering with our hormones and suppressing sweat

7.     Colognes, after shave lotions and perfumes that smell great but list nothing for ingredients (Wonder why? And if they do – you don’t understand what they are)

Just like de-odorant, get an organic, chemical and paraben free product

8.     home air freshener

Natural air without chemicals is the best you can get

Throw Febreze etc. in garbage. Get a couple good indoor plants if odor is an issue. find a way to keep windows open other than extreme temperature days

9.     car air freshener

Skip it all-together. Use orange/lemon peels in a box and keep recycling them every 2-3 days.

10.   wood floor cleaner / tile floor cleaner

Water with non-toxic cleaner brands

11.   Table-top cleaners

Cleaning non-toxic vinegar with warm water and/or lemon with warm water

12.   Carpet cleaner shampoo

Power wash for area rugs and/or vacuum only for indoor carpets. If shampoo is used, make sure it is Organic and free of toxic chemicals 

13.   Tap water

At a minimum – make sure it is Chloride and Fluoride free. If not a whole home system, at least get a good water filter that eliminates fluoride and chlorine. Our bodies are >70% water. If chlorine, fluoride and other chemicals were an essential ingredient, Gangotri water would already have it.

Berkey countertop water filters are a great no-nonsense and simple option

14.   Bathing water

Fluorine and Chloride free water.

Both Chlorine and Fluoride, especially when taking warm showers create a poisonous breathing environment that inflames all breathing systems (adenoids, nostrils, lungs, skin). Need to remove them from the water faucet

New Wave Enviro Shower Filter  System (Premium) from Amazon is a good choice is whole home water system is not an option. Now Berkey has these as well and they are equally effective

15.   Face and other body creams

Natural organic coconut, olive or avocado oil (based on what suits best) or organic creams based on ingredients which can be understood by our grandmothers

16.   Lip Balm, Hair Oil

Natural organic coconut, olive or avocado oil (based on what suits best) or organic creams based on ingredients

17.   Weed killer in your lawn – There are usually 3 applications – one in spring, one during summer and one in fall. If you didn’t check, chances are they all poisonous chemicals with strict instructions on not allowing children near them etc.

Use natural, organic weed killer

Still a research in progress for me but consuming poison when we open the windows for fresh air is not a way to start, spend or end any day. Less than 1% of the poison that goes into our lawns kills the weeds and grubs, 99% gets into our water supply, air and we consume it – either immediately via air or a few months down the line as it’s the same water that comes back to our kitchens .

18.   Lawn fertilizer

Organic fertilizer, compost

You don’t have to be a farmer for this, just get the organic compost and fertilizer from local store and have the lawn care folks spread them out for you

You and get this from any local garden supply store

Toxins we ingest via FLOs (Food like Objects)

19.   Dairy

Or more appropriately called ‘liquified meat’. Mother in every mammal species makes milk to raise their own off-springs to their naturally expected physical form. Cows do it for their calves, Dogs for their pups, Pigs for their piglets and women for their children. There’s way too much detail and research behind the toxic effects of dairy, but the most prominent one’s are that they are cancer causing (refer to the China study by Dr. Colin Campbell), Heart disease causing (refer to work and research by Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn), Diabetes causing (refer to multiple researches by Doctors like Dr. Neil Barnard), the list goes on and on. I have no idea why Lord Krishna and ancient Indian and other societies consumed milk then, but I am sure there are reasons we can conjure up some of which might be true. As much as we know today – Dairy is toxic and creates sickness

Almond, Soy, Oat, Hemp and other plant-based milks are great alternatives. Good news is that you can make these in about 60 seconds in your own kitchen in Vitamix. And if you want them sweet, just add some dates in addition to water.

20.  All meats and Fish

Here’s the deal – Meats and fish cause the same issues as dairy. They are richest form of bad fat and create the same havoc at the cellular level as Dairy. Protein deficiency in developed countries does not exist – it is the dairy and meat industries brainwashing all doctors WW, followed by consumer brain washing where everyone is fixated on macro nutrients – Protein, Carb and Fat vs. ‘Food’. Whole natural plant-based foods are what our bodies need. You can research it for the next 10 years and stay on a toxic diet or give it a shot for the next 30-90 days and see what a 100% plant-based diet does for you.

21.   Excessive Table salt

Get sea salt instead. Excessive table salt increases available sodium in body and creates hypertension and other problems.

22.   Oils

A few drops of Oil every once in a few weeks never killed anyone. A few spoons used everyday for sautéing or drizzled liberally on salads or consumed inadvertently via chips, snacks etc. creates oxidative damage and free radicals in the body. Stay away, these are toxins. If you must, at least get real oils like Olive, Flax, Hemp oils and use them sparingly vs. as health foods. The amount of oils we need are there in a healthy which has real Avocadoes, Olives, Hemp seeds, Chia seeds, Coconuts etc.

23.   Table Sugar

Excessive sugar and especially table sugar causes inflammation. When we get hurt, body creates inflammation to heal. Excessive sugar causes inflammation with no intent to heal anything. Long term high dose use, creates a chronic state of inflammation and causes many auto-immune conditions to manifest

Here’s the concise checklist for you in case you want to print it out and checking off items gives you the satisfaction of accomplishing

#	Potential source of toxicity
1.	Seasonal Allergens (Pollen etc.) – These are not toxins, they can be toxic if the body is disconnected from the natural surroundings though so absorb the recommendations to deal with these vs. trying to eliminate
2.	Bath soap
3.	Shampoo / Conditioner / Hand soap / Hand Sanitizer / really anything that touches your skin
4.	Toothpaste
5.	Mouthwash
6.	De-odorants
7.	Colognes, Perfumes
8.	Home air freshener
9.	Car sir freshener
10.	Wood floor cleaner, Tile floor cleaners
11.	Table top cleaners
12.	Carpet cleaner shampoo
13.	Tap water
14.	Bathing water
15.	Face and other body creams
16.	Lip Balm, Hair Oil
17.	Weed killer in your lawn
18.	Lawn fertilizer
19.	Dairy
20.	Meats and Fish
21.	Table salt
22.	Vegetable oils
23.	Table Sugar

Disclaimer - This is not a paid advertisement for any vendor. Just a plain, simple sharing of valuable information our and many other families all over the world took years to discover the hard way. One of the things that sets human species apart is our ability to learn from others' experiences vs. other life forms who essentially learn the same things repeatedly. If it's normal to be surrounded by toxins and chemicals and it's rude to point it out because we are surrounded by everyone who subscribes to this skewed version of normality, let's create a new normal for our families for a healthier and holistic life. If you are concerned, it is not paranoia, it is a normal instinct to protect life. Even bacteria found in nature has adapted to anti-biotics and now >95% of anti-biotics and flu vaccines are in-effective. We need to adapt to the environmental toxins we have manufactured as well – Adapting is natural and normal.