Progressive Progressive Medical Center - 2019 | Page 38

WHY WE ALL NEED TO "DETOX"
WHY
WE ALL
NEED TO
“DETOX”
BY: LINDSAY MOREAU, ND,
PROGRESSIVE MEDICAL CENTER
“D
etox” does not mean what you probably
think it does. In the context of health,
it has nothing to do with overcoming
drug or alcohol abuse. Rather, detox
refers to processing and clearing waste products, or
toxins, from our body. These waste products can be
exogenous, which means they come from outside our
body, or endogenous, those made within our own body.
Exogenous waste products are substances such as heavy
metals like lead, mercury, aluminum, and also organic
waste products like pesticides, herbicides, and even
chemicals from car exhaust, nail salons, and dry cleaners.
Heating up food or drinks in plastic is another common
source of exogenous toxins. These substances enter our
body through the food we eat, the air we breathe, and
even through our skin. While there are certain measures
one can take to decrease exposure to these exogenous
toxins, it is really impossible to avoid them altogether.
Endogenous waste products are mostly the normal
by-products of all the processes our cells perform
to keep us alive and functioning. This is referred
to as “cellular metabolism.” Cellular metabolism
is analogous to digestion. We eat food, our body
breaks it down and takes out the nutrients, and we
excrete the waste as fecal matter. Our cells do the
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