Spring Cleaning: Detox Your Body, Mind & Home

Spring is a time of renewal and rebirth, and with the stay at home orders and physical distancing in place, we have a unique opportunity this spring to turn inwards and nurture ourselves and our homes.

Body

We are dealing with an epidemic of chronic illness in the United States, and the majority of these diseases are completely preventable and often reversible. However, our lifestyles, our food choices and our constant exposure to pollutants through the air we breathe, the water we drink and the food that we eat are driving inflammation and chronic disease. Many of us choose to ignore this fact, justifying our choices because it is the easier thing to do, because the idea of preventing chronic illness feels abstract or in the distance. The crisis we are facing today with the COVID-19 pandemic has brought to the surface the importance of optimizing health and preventing disease. The high levels of inflammation and chronic illness in the United States has led to much higher rates of severe COVID-19 illness and death, among all age groups. Detoxing is an important practice to incorporate into a healthy lifestyle – it helps to lighten the toxic burden of the accumulated chemicals and pollutants we are exposed to every day. Imagine if you never took the trash out of your house and just let it pile up. You would have ants, maybe even mice or rats, and you would certainly have rotting food. It would be a very unhygienic place to live. Detoxing is like taking out the trash, to make your body a healthier place to live. Below are a few techniques I like to incorporate into my regular routine, to support detoxification.

Seasonal Eating + Dietary Suggestions

In springtime we see dandelions and other bitter greens popping up in our yards and gardens. Many of these plants are detoxifiers and liver-supporting herbs. In fact, in Chinese medicine, spring is all about the liver, the master detoxifier. When we look at the connection between humans and food, the plants we see popping up at this time are meant to support a little spring cleaning and detoxification, as we emerge from the winter season of eating heavier and more rich foods.

• Enjoy an abundance of liver-supportive foods such as cruciferous vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, kale, brussels sprouts, bok choy), dandelion greens, cilantro, parsley, and beets.

• Sip on herbal teas that support liver detoxification, including herbs like burdock root, licorice, milk thistle and dandelion.

• Eat organic as much as possible. The pesticides in conventionally grown produce harm the gut flora (see previous blog post on COVID-19 to learn more about why this is important), disrupt healthy hormone production, and cause harmful inflammation. Check out the Environmental Working Group’s dirty dozen + clean fifteen list to see which foods are highest in pesticide residues. If you eat meat, look for these labels: American Grassfed Association, Animal Welfare Approved, Certified Humane, Global Animal Partnership, Food Alliance Certified.

• Consider doing a three-week cleanse. A good place to start is eliminating all processed foods and sugars. Focus on incorporating lots of vegetables, healthy whole grains, and small amounts of high quality meat if omnivorous.

• Intermittent Fasting

  • When we fast, we increase autophagy – the process of cleaning out damaged cells in order to regenerate newer, healthier cells. Fasting for 16 hours, for example from 7:00PM to 11:00AM promotes this process and has been shown to decrease risk of diabetes, cardiovascular disease, Alzheimer’s, many types of cancers and more.

Castor Oil Packs

Rub a quarter-sized amount of castor oil over your abdomen, making sure to cover all four quadrants (draw a rectangle, with your ribs and hip bones as the corners). Put an old t-shirt on (castor oil will stain!) and go to bed. If you have a heating pack, place it over your liver for additional benefit.

Exercise

Moving our bodies and sweating allows us to mobilize fat and lymphatic cells, where many toxins are stored, to promote autophagy and detoxification. Aim for at least 30 minutes of moderate exercise daily.

UNDAs

UNDAs are a form of biotherapeutic drainage that I use in my practice that work to open up the body’s emunctories – our organs of elimination. While the above methods help to detoxify on an extracellular level, UNDAs target detoxification on an intracellular level. UNDAs are combinations of extremely diluted plant and mineral remedies. Each UNDA number targets a specific organ or cell type, to help optimize function through healthy elimination and the restoration of homeostasis. If you are interested in a customized UNDA formula, please schedule an appointment with me.

Mind

Mental + emotional detoxification is also important for healthy outcomes and personal growth. Coming back to our current situation with the COVID-19 health crisis, many of us have found ourselves doing some serious introspection about what is important to us, where we are going in our lives, and what is no longer serving us both on an individual and collective communal level (or is that just me?). This type of work can be really hard and uncomfortable, and many of us are master suppressers and dissociaters, using our daily routines and busy lifestyles to avoid doing the work (or is that just me?). However, you need to work through your thoughts and feelings in order to heal. If this is hard for you to do on your own, or if you have a lot of trauma to work through, getting the support of a professional can be very helpful. 

I would also like to add that if you are caught up in the news cycle and consuming excessive amounts of media during this time, it’s time to set some boundaries and consider a news detox. I recommend allowing yourself no more than one hour of news coverage per day to stay informed without allowing the news to consume you. Give yourself one news-free day per week – consider it a vacation – and treat yourself to some outdoor time and self-care instead.

Home

We are all familiar with the concept of spring cleaning when it comes to our homes. That new spring energy inspires us to clean up and clear out our homes after a long winter. If you haven’t gotten on the Marie Kondo bandwagon yet, check out her book The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up or her Netflix series Tidying Up. De-cluttering your home can help decrease anxiety by making your space more organized and comfortable, and removing dust and dander can decrease allergy symptoms and improve respiratory health.

When spring cleaning your home, please be conscious about the types of products you are using. Many cleaning products contain bleach, fragrances, and other chemicals which are harmful to respiratory health and act as endocrine disruptors, causing long-term health problems. Opt for natural, fragrance free cleaning products such as this one, or make your own.

If you’re concerned about keeping your surfaces clean to reduce the spread of COVID, remember that COVID-19 is an enveloped virus, meaning that cleaning with a simple solution of soap and warm water will disrupt the membrane and kill the virus. If you’d feel more comfortable using something more heavy duty, 70% isopropyl alcohol also kills COVID – no bleach or harsh chemicals necessary.

Spring cleaning is also a good time to think about reducing toxic exposure within your home. A great place to start is by purchasing an air filter or water filter if you are able to. Common sources of air pollution within our homes include fragrances, cleaning products, paint, furniture, gas appliances and smoke. Consider investing in an air filter such as Molekule, AirDoctor or Alen. Having plants in your home also promotes clean air, and opening your windows allows fresh air to circulate.

A quality water filter is another great way to invest in your health. Check out the Environmental Working Group’s water database to see what contaminants are in your water. My favorite water filter is the Berkey, as it eliminates all contaminants. It may be hard to imagine spending this kind of money on a water filter but if it is within your means, I encourage you to do so. We should all be drinking at least half of our body weight in ounces daily, and the accumulation of contaminated drinking water can have long term health consequences. Once you know what kinds of contaminants are in your water, you can shop around and see if there are other filters that will meet your needs.

When it comes time to replace a piece of furniture, a product, or another item within your home, take the time to make sure you are consuming consciously both for the environment and for your health. From our mattresses, to the finishes on furniture, to the products we use on our bodies, we are inundated with extremely harmful chemicals on a daily basis, in our own homes. Our homes should be our sanctuaries, and we should aim to make them as healthy as possible. I’m not suggesting replacing everything you own all at once, but over time, one by one you can replace items with less toxic options. It is also important to consider the environment when making these decisions. Avoid single use plastic (which is also harmful when in contact with our food) and products that were made unsustainably or will quickly need to be replaced and wind up in the landfill. The health of our community and our environment directly impacts our own health, and we must consider these larger spheres when making decisions for ourselves. The EWG Healthy Living Home Guide is a great resource for learning about ways in which you may be exposed to pollutants in your home, and is a great guide for shopping for better alternatives.

If you have any questions or concerns, or would like additional individualized support, please contact me at hello@rachellownd.com or schedule an appointment with me.