Heavy Metals, Toxic Chemicals and Detoxification

In the modern era where people live a fast-paced lifestyle, everyone is busy keeping up the pace with modernity, technology and the changes in the social environment, we eat and move too fast that we neglect the essence and meticulousness of living a life, a life that concerns with not only the physical body but also the spiritual one.

In the haste of our daily lives nowadays, we are less cautious about our exposures to the substances in the surroundings, specifically, food by consuming, air by inhalation and skincare by skin absorption. As a result, we unknowingly take in hazardous heavy metals and toxic chemicals that contaminate in the industrially-produced consumable goods. Heavy metals are naturally present in earth crust and rocks in the form of sulphides and oxide ores and are generally defined as metals with relatively high density, atomic weight, or atomic numbers that are poisonous or toxic at low concentrations.

Some heavy metals are either essential for human health (such as iron, cobalt, and zinc) but can be toxic in larger amounts or certain forms. Other heavy metals, such as cadmium, mercury, lead, and arsenic are highly poisonous. The adverse health effects caused by these heavy metals contamination have been known for a long time and the exposure still continues and is even worse in some parts of the world particularly in developing countries.

The symptoms and severity of overexposure to heavy metals may vary from one person to another and overtime for any given individual, depending upon many factors including the amount we are exposed to, how we are exposed, and chemical form of the metal, as well as the age, nutritional and health status, which can result in either acute or chronic poisoning. Some individuals tend to develop only mild symptoms while others may experience much more severe manifestations.

Of the numerous heavy metals, chromium, arsenic, cadmium, mercury, and lead have the greatest potential to cause health effects because of their widespread use, the harmfulness of some of their forms, and their frequency in the environment. Lead is the most prevalent heavy metal contaminant we are likely to encounter. Common symptoms from excessive exposure to these poisonous heavy metals include general damages to several organs i.e. lung and kidney, severe burning of the mouth and throat, bone effects and fractures, diarrhea (acute metal ingestion), abdominal pain, nausea, and muscle spasms.

Are Heavy Metals and Toxic Chemicals Exposure Preventable?

Prevention is the best medicine. In recent years the core of medicine has shifted from treatment of illnesses and acute care to prevention. The Benjamin Franklin axiom that “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” holds true and can really save money and life in medicinal practices.

Avoidance and precautions of what we consume and use daily are the easiest and the most effective way to prevent the intake of chemical contaminants into the body. Many different types of diseases and illnesses can be entirely preventable by eating and living organically.

Foodborne illness or foodborne disease is any illness resulting from the food spoilage of contaminated food, chemicals, harmful bacteria, viruses, or parasites, as well as toxins. It can be prevented by properly storing, cooking, cleaning and handling food, on top of that, by carefully choosing and consuming uncontaminated, clean, and organically grown and produced food.

The same story goes with airborne illness or airborne disease which is any disease that is caused by pathogenic microbes that can be transmitted through the air from an infected person via sneezing, coughing or close personal contact. The airborne precautions include avoiding air pollutants in dirty area, wearing a face mask to prevent inhaling germs, avoiding close contact with ill persons, washing hands thoroughly and often after contacting with dirt or impurities. After all, personal hygiene is everything.

How to Remove Heavy Metals and Toxic Chemicals by Detoxification

There are many ways to get rid of hazardous heavy metals and toxic chemicals out of the body, one of the most common method is by detoxification. Detoxification, or detox, in short, is the physiological or medicinal removal of toxic substances from a living organism, including the human body, which is mainly carried out by the liver.

The natural way to detoxify the body can be practiced at home either by a full fast or a juice cleanse. On top of that, in a more advanced and effective way to remove unwanted toxins from the body is by colon cleansing. Colon cleansing, also known as colonic irrigation, is considered to be an alternative medical therapy, believed to have been around since ancient times, to remove poisonous waste from the colon and intestinal tract by flushing the colon with fluids. Generally, it is practiced by pouring approximately 60 litres of fluid through a tube that has been inserted into the rectum. The fluid is released as a normal bowel movement, toxins, and poisonous waste are then expelled through a different tube. The process can be repeated several times and the entire process can last up to an hour. Practicing natural detoxification and colon cleansing regularly will help restore the digestive system and preventing constipation. Additionally, it also helps in improving the immune system, losing weight, and reducing the risk of colon cancer and a wide range of gastrointestinal problems.