Would you expect your motor vehicle to serve you well if you didn’t service it regularly? Can you expect your body to serve you well if you don’t give it the care and attention it requires?
Spring is upon us here in New Zealand. Traditionally in Europe this would be the time for a cleanse. For those individuals herbally inclined this would be time to reach for stinging nettles (with gloves of course) or dandelions. Here in Aotearoa one can indulge the body with the native tonics of kumarahou and/or kawakawa?
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Contrary to a recent sensationalized cover of The Listener—‘So, liver detox is just a gland wagon!’—there are ways to cleanse and rejuvenate the body naturally and they don’t have to cost the earth.
I recently completed a simple liver detox, just another of many I’ve undertaken over the years, All that was required was Epsom salt, organic lemons, grapefruits and olive oil together with as much fresh-squeezed apple juice as I had the time and inclination to make.
Why would one cleanse their liver? Well frankly, cleaning the liver bile ducts is possibly the most powerful procedure you can do to improve your health.
It is the job of the liver to make 2-3 pints of bile a day. The liver is full of tubes that deliver the bile to one large tube, the bile duct. The gallbladder is attached to this as a storage space. Eating fat or protein triggers the gallbladder to squeeze itself empty in order to help digestion. The stored bile starts to travel through the bile duct down to the intestines.
For many people, the biliary tubing is choked with gallstones. Most people have hundreds, if not thousands of these stones of various sizes.
As the stones grow, the back-pressure on the liver causes it to make less bile which can cause indigestion, nausea, headaches, joint pain and high cholesterol levels, to name but a few symptoms.
This liver detox takes eight days to complete. The first six days are business as usual. On the seventh day you cannot eat or drink after 2pm aside from the glasses of Epsom salts with water or juice the procedure requires. On the eighth morning and afternoon you don’t want to be far from a toilet. It is then that you see the results of your efforts in the toilet bowl (if you’re eating now you might like to put the newspaper down and come back to this later)!
You’ll have passed many green ‘stones’ ranging from the almost invisible to pea-size. This last cleanse I even found a couple stones resembling almonds. Finally, on the morning of the ninth day the pièce de résistance: one stone the size of my little finger. Yeah! Better out than in! The abdominal cramping I had been experiencing suddenly vanished.
For those unable to use grapefruit due to its incompatibility with prescribed medication, lemon can be substituted. You are advised to consult your physician before attempting a detox such as this.
The instructions for this cleanse can be found on my website at: http://insearchofsimplicity.com/2009/08/08/how-to-complete-a-liver-gallbladder-flush-safely-at-home/
You may also wish to investigate my post on dissolving arterial plaque using lemon and garlic: http://insearchofsimplicity.com/2013/11/02/garlic-and-lemons-dissolving-plaque/
Radio host, librarian, inspirational speaker and health educator John Haines is the author of In Search of Simplicity: A True Story that Changes Lives and Beyond the Search, books to lift the spirit and touch the heart. See http://www.JohnHainesBooks.wordpress.com
“In Search of Simplicity is a unique and awe-inspiring way to re-visit and even answer some of the gnawing questions we all intrinsically have about the meaning of life and our true, individual purpose on the planet. I love this book.”
Barbara Cronin, Circles of Light. For the complete review visit: http://www.circlesoflight.com/blog/in-search-of-simplicity/
“In Search of Simplicity is one of those rare literary jewels with the ability to completely and simultaneously ingratiate itself into the mind, heart and soul of the reader.”
Heather Slocumb, Apex Reviews
“The author’s experiments and experiences working with nature simply amaze. . . . Beyond the Search is a treasure trove for those who enjoy planting and reaping as it seems nature intended, with respect for each animal and insect as belonging on the planet and therefore deserving of honour.”
Theresa Sjoquist on Suite 101
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Image may be NSFW.Clik here to view.
