You hear about detox all the time. Some experts say it’s the next best thing. Other experts say your liver detoxes on its own, and you don’t need to do anything to ‘detox.’

Well, they were right in one thing only. The liver is truly the organ that detoxes chemicals and compounds that are harmful. It breaks them down to compounds that are neutral so we can get rid of them.

But your liver could use some help. We’re surrounded by compounds through our food, water, air, cleaning products, hair and make-up products, paint, lawn treatment products, plastics, dry cleaning, medications. Your liver could be having a hard time keeping up.

Your liver also needs specific vitamins, minerals, amino acids, antioxidants, and other nutrients for detoxification pathways to run smoothly. You might not be eating the perfect nutrient-rich diet, so your liver detox process may not be running as efficiently as it should be.

Signs that You Need to Detox

These are some symptoms that can be improved with proper detoxification:

1. Headache
2. Fatigue
3. Brain fog
4. Difficulty concentrating
5. Difficulty waking up
6. Dull skin
7. Bloating
8. Swelling
9. Muscle and joint pain
10. Chronic congestion
11. Irritability
12. Mood swings
13. Depression
14. Anxiety
15. Insomnia
16. Difficulty losing weight
17. Cravings
18. Others

5 Things to Help Your Body Detox Naturally

While a real detox usually needs certain ingredients (like milk thistle, NAC, and others), there are things you can do to help your body detox naturally. I share the top 5 in my video here.

I would love to hear from you…

what is the ONE thing you can TODAY to help your body and your liver detox?

What makes it DIFFICULT for you to practice these things?

Write me a comment below!

If you prefer to read the transcription of the video, you can keep reading below.

You may have heard that detox is the next best thing or maybe your liver detoxes on it’s own, so you don’t need to do anything about it. They were right in one thing, which is the liver is the organ that does detoxification, but in some cases, the liver just gets too tired and cannot keep up, so we want to help it do it’s job and boost it’s detoxification.

Let’s face it. We’re surrounded by chemicals in our food, in our water, in the environment, cleaning products, make-up, plastics, all of those the liver has to work hard to get rid of them and it just may be getting a little bit stuck.

The first thing you want to do is to ensure that you’re drinking enough water, about eight to ten glasses of filtered water a day. The reason is what the liver does takes all these compounds and breaks them down into compounds that are dissolved in water. Then they go to the kidneys and the kidneys get rid of them in your urine.

If you are dehydrated, the kidneys are going to hold onto the water in your body and the chemicals in your body and they will be stuck, which is what we don’t want to happen. The best way to see if you’re hydrated enough, because some people might need more than eight to ten glasses, is to look at your urine color. If it’s pale or barely yellow, then you’re good. If it’s darker than that, you’ve got to drink up a little bit more.

The second thing you want to do is to load your plates and meals with healthy, wholesome real foods. Detox foods don’t have to be expensive or fancy. Things like cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, herbs and spices, leafy greens, mushroom, ginger, all of those are going to help your body detox. Fruits like berries and apples. Things like lentils and beans will help along with the vegetables and fruit with fiber so that your bowels move. This is super important because if you’re constipated and things are stuck, chemicals and toxins are stuck as well. Other nutrients you also need are amino acids that come from proteins and healthy fats like avocado and olive oil and nuts.

All of those healthy, wholesome foods are going to provide your liver with amino acids, with vitamins, with minerals, with antioxidants, all of the things that the liver needs to go through the detoxification pathway. When we’re deficient, things are going to get stuck and get blocked up.

The third thing you want to do is to help your body break a sweat. That’s because when we sweat, we lose compounds through our skin and it’s a big surface area that we can take advantage of. Things like running, biking, even if you just go to a Zumba class and have some fun and dance.

Pick one thing that is fun and that you love to do and that’s convenient and try to make it a habit. Now if you cannot exercise because of health reasons or on top of your exercise, I highly recommend walking into a steam room or sauna or even soaking in Epsom salts. These will help your body sweat and let’s face it, who doesn’t need fifteen minute me-time a few times a week?

The fourth thing you want to do is to eliminate the junk in your diet. Now I know it’s so difficult, it’s everywhere, it’s convenient, it’s easy and it’s so addictive, but all these foods are going to make it harder for your liver to detox. Plus, they’re not going to give your liver any vitamins, minerals and nutrients that are going to help it do it’s job.

I’m talking about things like processed foods in packages and processed crackers and cookies and pastries and fried foods and sweets and artificial sweeteners and artificial flavors and colors and preservatives. Things that are made in plants and they are going to stay on the shelf for five years or so, these are not going to be so good for you. Now I know it can be overwhelming, especially if you would depend on these on regular basis, just pick one or two things that you can do starting today that will make the biggest impact on your diet and just do your best to work on those.

The last thing I have to mention is about to help your body detox naturally is chemicals and things that come from smoke, alcohol, drugs, over-the-counter medications like acetaminophen, harsh cleaning products, all of those the liver has to clean them up, break them down, get rid of them. The more you introduce to your body, the more difficult it will be for your liver. Now some things may be a quick fix, but some things need a little bit more time. Pick one thing again in your environment that you can change and stick with that.

There you go. The five things that you need to help your liver detox naturally.

1. Drink eight to ten glasses of water a day.
2. Lots of vegetables, fruits and wholesome, real foods that will provide nutrients for the liver.
3. Exercise, break a sweat or do a sauna or steam bath.
4. Get rid of the junk, one or two things that you can start with.
5. Try to remove the environmental compounds and toxins in your surrounding.