Body Detoxification Using Herbs
There are as many body detoxification programs as there are ideas on how to cleanse the body. All of them differ only in their intentions and in their implementation.
Some programs are organ-specific. They only clean the liver or the blood, or perhaps only to ease up the troubles of the kidneys. Combining these detoxification programs into one detoxification program can restore a person's health to optimum levels.
Diets
Detoxification diets (mostly recommending fruits and vegetables) are very good programs to eliminate toxins. These vegetarian diets include natural food fibers that are effective in stimulating better bowel movements, physically cleansing the digestive system.
They contain valuable vitamins and food enzymes (Most are eaten raw). These are vital to the elimination process not just in the bowels but in the liver, kidneys, and skin.
The absence of meat enhances the detoxification process because meat is difficult for the body to digest, requiring many enzymes for its digestion.
Herbs
Changing diets (becoming vegetarian) are generally good because diets have natural inherent detoxification properties. However, they cannot stimulate the liver, kidneys or the lungs as much as they need to be.
Herbal detoxification is a sharper method for the obvious reason that herbs are more powerful than ordinary vegetables and fruits. Since they too are food, they provide enough vitamins, minerals and enzymes for good nutrition.
These herbs, after centuries of use, have been found to be more organ-specific. This means the organs associated with them work better if stimulated by these wonder plants from nature.
Combinations
Some herbs are associated with better performance of the liver. These include the dandelion, red beets, liverwort, parsley, horsetail, chamomile, thistle, angelica, gentian and goldenrod.
The kidneys have their own list of herbal allies: juniper berries, parsley, uva ursi, ginger, goldenseal, cedar berries, and dong quai.
Lungs function better if helped by comfrey, mullein, slippery elm, and Chinese ephedra among others.
How to use
For detoxification, herbs can be used in tandem with a good diet. (It certainly is not right to cleanse the liver with herbs but the bowels are clogged with junk food.)
In the same sense, detoxification diets are effective by themselves but they can be better being reinforced with the use of herbs which stimulate the eliminative organs.
Herbs commonly come as teas, extracts or powdered. Powdered forms (usually in capsules now) are best taken with meals. Herbal teas are easy to prepare and ingest and can be taken all throughout the day.
Today, body detoxification needs all the help from all over. Doing it with the help of herbs is one effective way. After all, herbs have a long history in helping man's physical well-being.