No one I know really enjoys detoxing.  In fact, some people are freaked out by the concept and completely avoid it.  So if you’re a certified detox avoider, then read on for some simple tips to help decrease your toxin exposure level?  One of the simplest things you can do is make your own cleaning products to use around your home.  And read on to find out how you can further help yourself by doing a little shopping (no really, I swear…)

Recipes for Making Household Cleaners

Essential oils (EO) are the ultimate multi-use product because they can be incorporated into many products for the body, mind and home.  Three EO’s I recommend for making your own household products include lavender, lemon and grapefruit because they are inexpensive, readily available and contain cleansing / disinfecting properties.  Making your own products is not enough to detox your body, but it certainly contributes to a healthier environment and will not harm children or pets.

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Liver Cleansing Herbal Supplements

For liver health, a dandelion root supplement is recommened to help stimulate the liver with cleansing.   Taken every morning for one week, it may help filter out drugs, improve cholesterol levels and benefit type 2 diabetics with their blood sugar control.  Milk thistle root with tumeric is another supplement thought to very beneficial for cleansing the liver.  Milk thistle properties include the strengthening, cleansing and rebuilding of the liver; this supplement is recommended to be taken for 5 consecutive days at bedtime.

Gallbladder Health and “Flushes”

For gallbladder woes, many detox programs recommend “flushes” with apple juice, lemon juice, olive oil, etc.  As this topic is quite controversial, see your physician if you have - or think you may have - gallbladder trouble.   Assuming you have no gallbladder issues, following a low fat diet full of fruits and vegetables may help retain a healthy gallbladder.

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It is believed we excrete over a pound of waste through our skin every day.  And when we are full of toxins, our lymphatic systems get clogged.

Exfoliating the skin two or three days per week helps stimulate blood and lymph flow to encourage new cell growth.  Ideal exfoliation methods for detoxifying include dry body brushing and / or the use of a salt scrub.

A couple of weekly bath detox treatments in dead sea mineral bath salts are also recommended to heal and sooth.  These salts help extract toxins and impurities from the body and are also beneficial when convalescing from illness.

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I recently attended a lecture on detox programs taught by a certified nutritionist, who also has unique credentials as both a certified aromatherapist AND herbologist.  She has been teaching classes on detoxification with physicians all over the country since the early 1970’s, back when “detox” was an extremely aggressive toxin elimination program (ahem, pun intended!)

It was stressed that the best detox is a gentle program that targets the entire body as a whole.  Extreme colon cleansing programs and / or radical juice-only fasts were not recommended because of the potential risk for a “healing crisis”.  This condition may occur when a person suddenly eliminates toxins the body is addicted to, such as caffeine.  A healing crisis can send someone into an alarming state of a seemingly violent illness - which may not be life threatening - but has treacherous physical and emotional symptoms.  It is both frightening and enlightening.

Why Detox?

It has been estimated we take in over 1,000 toxins per day, which is more than 100% increase compared to only 50 years ago.  The reasons cited for this huge increase include many of the usual suspects, such as increased stress levels, too many medications (prescription and over-the-counter), environmental pollution, etc.  And as you can probably imagine, the list goes on and on and on.

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Fragrance and Scent:

We wear fragrance because we like the way it smells.  Whether fruity, spicy, floral or earthy, scents are perceived by everyone differently, making it a highly subjective experience.

Our favorite scents can make us feel happy, energetic and healthy.  And because they can be psychologically uplifting, many people use them as part of a healthy lifestyle.

We enhance our well being through scent.  It is unlikely we could ever imagine our favorite scent has the potential to disrupt our lives negatively.

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In mid March, the Organic Consumer Association (OCA) called Seventh Generation to the floor because their dish liquid was found to contain traces of “ethoxylate 1,4-dioxane”.  In short, ethoxylation is a process that modifies plant oils to work as surfactants.

The OCA researched a large number of personal care and household cleaning products currently on the market, noting that, “Dishwashing liquids are particularly hard to keep free of 1,4-dioxane because they require surfactants that are powerful grease cutters.” Liquid laundry detergents also require surfactants for stain removal.  The amount contained in Seventh Generation’s dish liquid is so small that it is actually “deemed safe” by the FDA.

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The USDA’s organic certification program is designed to help protect consumers, to some extent, from misleading advertising.  If a product has a label that says it is 100% organic, then it had better be organic.  These products are often very expensive, compared to available non-organic alternatives.  Contributing factors to the high prices of 100% organic products include extensive time, effort and costs to ensure the products have rightfully earned the right to wear their badge of honor.

In short, the USDA regulates package labeling based on the percentage of organic ingredients in the product.  Directly quoted from their website, “The percentage must reflect the actual weight or fluid volume (excluding water and salt) of the organic ingredients in the product. Four categories of organic content are established: 100 percent organic; 95 percent or more organic; 70 to 95 percent organic; and less than 70 percent organic.”  If you are interested in learning more, click here for details.

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While we have all become more conscious of the importance of conservation, green living can get expensive.  I would love to buy organic 100% of the time, but on a recent trip to my favorite health food store, I got repeatedly zapped by sticker shock.  Perhaps I’m just feeling the pinch of the current state of the American economy, but has a pint of blueberries always cost $8?  And those raw food delicacies I’d love to toss into my cart…..$6 for 4 raw date balls?  $14 for a pound of goji berries?  $6 for 4 organic muffins?  And how about that $30 Noni juice?  Ouch!

On the fashion front, I won’t mention prices on Stella McCartney’s awesome fashion and skin care lines.  My husband would choke on his omega fatty acid pill if he saw the price of facial cleanser!

But anyway, today is Earth Day.  If you didn’t get outside to plant a tree, then how about honoring our planet, while stimulating our economy, experiencing retail therapy AND getting some great deals!?  What a treat to actually have a few greenbacks left in your vegan wallet for a couple of goji berries or a 1/2 oz of Noni juice?!

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Summer is just around the corner and I predict it’s gonna be a scorcher.   So why not prepare by arming yourself with some tools to keep you healthy, cool, comfortable and beautiful all summer ?

Germ Prevention:

Add a few drops of grapefruit, lemongrass and marjoram essential oils to a 2 oz. bottled mixture of grain alcohol, vegetable glycerin and distilled water.  Shake it vigorously and use a few drops as a hand sanitizer. This is a much better alternative to the sanitizers found at mass retail because it will not kill the good bacteria your body needs for a strong immune system.

Quick Health Tips:

Did you know that peppermint essential oil (EO) has a variety of therapeutic uses in the home?  If you have a headache, moisten a washcloth with water, add a few drops of peppermint EO and use it as a compress on your forehead - the pain should be eased within a few minutes.  If you’re feeling that dreaded feeling of nausea, place a few drops of peppermint EO on a tissue and hold it near your nose to breath in the vapors - it can bring you some great relief from that icky, awful feeling we all hate.

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One extremely fragrant essential oil (EO) is grapefruit (both white and pink).  In my opinion, it is one of the best essential oils for generating smiles - so uplifting, bright and happy!

There are many fragrances available that include notes of grapefruit, such as Clinique’s Happy, Jo Malone’s Grapefruit Cologne and Antica Farmacista’s Pompelmo.  I have sampled all of these and each is quite pretty.  So with the wide variety of available grapefruit fragrances, why would anyone even care about pure grapefruit EO?

Try this at home:

If you happen to have a real grapefruit nearby, you can get an idea of what the EO smells like by scratching a little of the fruit’s peel and then breathing in the scent (ideally, try this test with an organic grapefruit because the scent is less likely to be tainted).  Because of its intensity, it is nearly impossible to not react to the smell.  When I smell grapefruit essential oil, I think of happiness, fun, freshness, youth, energy and health.  Just imagine the sun bottled!!!

Perhaps you have a fragrance or two around lying around with some hints of grapefruit.  If so, see if your nose is able to detect the difference between the faux and the EO.  Grapefruit is also a unisex scent, which makes it a nice choice to use around your home.

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