With COVID-19, this past year has been hard on our health, and I am not just referring to stress-related disorders or delayed treatment of heart disease, cancer, and other serious concerns. Your body’s toxic load has likely increased during these unprecedented times.

Where Do Toxins Come From? 

Americans of all ages have spent more time at home than ever before. Although outdoor air quality has improved due to lockdown restrictions, indoor air pollution is often worse than outdoor and this can cause your body to become more toxic, not to mention how it can stir up your allergies.

Fumes from cooking and fireplaces, chemicals from cleaning and disinfecting products, formaldehyde from building materials, flame retardants from furniture and carpets, radioactive radon from the soil… All these and more can irritate the lungs as well as the blood vessels and contribute to respiratory and cardiovascular disease. 

Even in the best of times, our drinking water has traces of fluoride, chlorine, pharmaceuticals, pesticides, lead, and other heavy metals. Most of our food supply is the product of factory farming, which relies on the heavy use of pesticides, antibiotics, and genetically modified organisms (GMOs)- these are all contributing factors to a toxic environment. 

We are exposed to mercury from the fish we eat and the fillings in our teeth. Then there are the things we intentionally put on and, in our bodies, —personal care products loaded with petrochemicals, prescription drugs, tobacco, alcohol and ultra-processed foods laden with sugars, unhealthy fats and chemical additives. 

Detox Is a Daily Affair

Your body is quite efficient at detoxification, but years of chronic exposure can overburden even the most efficient detox system, leaving you feeling fatigued, lethargic, achy, and unfocused. Allergies and asthma may worsen. Petrochemical pollutants are endocrine disruptors that interfere with hormonal production and function, resulting in hormonal imbalances that can cause fatigue, mood swings, weight gain and more. 

You are probably familiar with popular programs such as juice cleanses and homemade concoctions like lemon juice, maple syrup and cayenne pepper that are also supposed to help you become less toxic and lose weight. 

That is not the type of detox I recommend. Detoxification is not something you “do” for two weeks. Your liver—the body’s primary detoxifier—is constantly processing and neutralizing harmful compounds and preparing them for elimination. 

Natural Approach to Detox

Our approach focuses on identifying, reducing, and eliminating the toxins that are dragging you down. Equally important, we help you fortify your liver, intestinal tract, kidneys, and other systems involved in detoxification so they can function at peak efficiency. 

Eat whole foods. Real food is far cleaner and more nutritious than highly processed food. It also contains fiber, which binds to toxins and facilitates their elimination. Select organic produce and grass-fed, grass-finished meat and poultry whenever possible and avoid fish with a heavy mercury load. A low-carb, yeast-free eating plan eliminates sugars and starches such as grain, corn, potato, and rice products, enhancing your overall health and helping make you less toxic. 

Drink plenty of filtered water. To flush out toxins and improve elimination, drink enough fluids so that you are urinating every three hours or so during the day. Light yellow as opposed to darker urine is another indication you are adequately hydrated.

Improve indoor air quality. Do your best to avoid obvious sources of air pollution, as discussed above. Weather permitting, open your windows and doors, turn on your fans and get more fresh air indoors. Make a point, when you can, to improve ventilation when you are engaged in activities that generate airborne toxins, such as cleaning, cooking, etc.

Exercise. Did you know your skin is an organ of detox? Toxins are eliminated in sweat, which is one of the many benefits of exercise. 

Take supportive supplements. During the detoxification process, your liver converts toxins into substances that can be safely eliminated. It is a three-phase process, and each phase is fueled by specific enzymes that are dependent on nutritional cofactors. Deficiencies in any of these cofactors can short circuit the process. A good daily multivitamin with relatively high doses of B-complex vitamins, zinc, selenium, and antioxidant vitamins is a good start, but to really give your liver a leg up, you need more.

Some of the intermediary phases of detoxification produce large amounts of free radicals that can damage the liver. Glutathione, the body’s premier antioxidant, not only protects the liver but directly neutralizes some toxins. Supplemental vitamin C, N-acetylcysteine and milk thistle activate and recycle glutathione. Vitamin C is particularly important because studies suggest it also reduces levels of heavy metals in the body. These and other nutrients and botanicals that support detoxification and liver health are included in Dr. Hotze’s Detox Formula.

Body, Mind and Spirit

Now that we are returning to some semblance of normal, this is the perfect time to hit the reset button and get serious about cleaning up your health.

Let us also make an effort to clean out our hearts as well as our bodies, so that we can live the life that God has planned for us, lives of purpose and joy.

“Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me.” Psalm 51:10

To learn more or schedule a Free Wellness Consultation—via telemedicine or at the Hotze Health & Wellness Center—call us at 281-698-8698 or visit hotzehwc.com. 

Visit HotzeVitamins.com or call 281-646-1659 and speak to our Certified Holistic Nutritionists and Vitamin Consultants to learn more about our complete line of physician-formulated nutritional supplements.