White Sands Missile Range employees attended a 21 Days to a Healthier You: Detoxify Your Life presentation Nov. 15 at the Professional Development Center as part of the Take 5 To Save Lives Suicide Prevention training.

21 Days to a Healthier You: Detoxify Your Life

Clifford Kinnear, a Nutritional Health Coach with Natural Grocers, was the guest presenter. He talked about how our bodies can purify and detoxify and what organs are responsible for doing that.

According to the Environmental Working Group, the average person carries 91 different chemicals in their blood and urine.

Kinnear said we are exposed to thousands of environmental toxins daily to include substances found in health and beauty products, pesticides and herbicides, industrial pollutants, mold, preservatives and flame retardants, petrochemical fuels and solvents, and plastics and cookware.

“There is a lot we can mitigate in our daily lives to reduce that exposure,” Kinnear said.

He said our bodies have several mechanisms to keep unwanted toxins from entering the body and remove toxins and waste from the body.

Detoxication of any toxins consumed begins in the digestive tract. After you eat, food goes through the GI and into portal circulation which leads to the liver, where detoxification continues. We also have cellular detoxification to help clean up and recycle our body’s waste products.

The gut is our first line of defense as the purpose of the digestive tract is to let good things in and keep bad things out.

The liver is the major organ responsible for detoxification, a process which is divided into three phases.

Kinnear said you can reduce your toxic burden by limiting environmental toxins, supporting your gut health, and supporting liver detoxification.

Toxins can also be absorbed through the skin. Unlike toxins that are ingested, which are delivered to the liver first, where detoxification occurs, toxins absorbed through the skin enter straight into systemic circulation. Therefore, it’s so important to pay attention to what we apply to our skin.

Kinnear said staying active is also important when it comes to detoxification. Exercise helps the body’s organs involved in detoxification and elimination to function optimally. Increased circulation supports the liver and lymph nodes, and the digestive system works well and more regularly with consistent exercise.

He said it is important to do gentle, low intensity aerobic exercise and drink lots of water so the skin can sweat.

When our detoxification systems are supported, we also support healthy energy levels, a healthy, clear complexion, digestive health, and better sleep.

By Miriam Rodriguez

WSMR Public Affairs