Giving our systems a rest can be useful at anytime of the year but especially after Christmas and other times when the body starts to tell us we have over done things.
What are the signals our body sends us when it needs some extra support?
Black ring round the eyes,
Bloating and excess wind,
Loose bowels or constipation,
Hot flushes,
Chronic fatigue,
Bad temper (feeling liverish)
Easy bruising
Low sex drive
Spots round the mouths
Eruptions of skin problems on the body such as psoriasis and eczema,
Feeling terrible in the morning with no energy but plenty of short temper.
Increased need for carbohydrates caffeine and sugar to keep ourselves going,
All the above are a selection of the bodies cry for help to crawl out from under the burden of excess.
The main organ of detoxification, and one of the largest involved in our general health, is 
the liver. Traditionally thought of as just having a role in detoxifying all the waste our body does not need, and this includes much more than just alcohol, it also has a role in blood sugar control, immune competence, fat digestion and bowel regularity.
It is in our liver that the final steps of many of the hormones such as thyroxine (the hormone that governs the speed our metabolism runs) and bits of chemistry that our body needs to run successfully are made. i.e. the final conversion of vitamin D into a form the body can use.
So what do we need to consider to make all this work successfully. Below we will consider what may help us support this very important system as it detoxifies our rubbish and also what may encourage the healthy elimination of the waste once the body has detoxified it.
One thing to be very aware of at this moment is that the following information can make your detoxification system work more efficiently and this can affect the way we process some drugs for example epilepsy or heart medication. It is of importance that if you are taking any medication that you check with a health professional before proceeding.
First let us consider what to put in our bodies.As a general rule foods to avoid for good liver health are foods high in fat, alcohol – especially binge drinking, non prescription drugs and eating a large meal late at night, after about 7pm when the liver cannot process it as efficiently
Foods to consider for increased liver function are broccoli and other cruciferous vegetables which particularly support excess hormone detoxification, beetroot, carrots, eggs and garlic and plenty of good plain water also help.
The liver is a two stage system. The first stage gathers together all the wastes and is known as the P450 mechanism. Some of this big pile of rubbish will immediately leave the body through the bowel or urinary system at this point but the majority of it goes onto the second stage. A process which relies heavy on antioxidants.
Thorne’s Crusera-SGS contains a natural substance from the seeds and sprouts of select 
Broccoli varieties for effective up regulation of the body’s natural Phase II detoxification enzymes. When ingested SGS is broken down in the gut, releasing sulforaphane and activating the body’s natural detoxification and oxidative inhibitor enzymes
The main essential oxditation inhibitor vitamins are A, C and E and the precursor of vitamin A, beta-carotene. Beta-carotene is found in red, orange and yellow vegetables and fruits. Vitamin C is also abundant in vegetables and fruit eaten raw but heat rapidly destroys it. Vitamin E is found in seed foods, including nuts, seeds and their oils, vegetables like peas, broad beans, corn and whole grains – all of which are classified as seed foods. Eating sweet potatoes, carrots, watercress, peas and broccoli frequently is a great way to increase your antioxidant potential provided that you do not fry them and preferably eat organic to diminish any extra toxic load on your system.
A product I have been using from Thorne Reasearch for more years than I care to remember is Thorne’s Anti-Oxidant formula. I have found it beneficial as it contains many 
of the traditional vitamins minerals and amino acids acknowledged as necessary to help support both phases of the detoxification process with particular emphasis on the second phase.
Sometimes our bodies can be very efficient at the first phase of the liver’s processing of toxins but not so efficient at the second. This often results in a build up of toxins and this is where I found this product especially helpful. If I asked my clients what happened when they drank a coffee and they told me it gave them a headache or made them feel toxic it always fuelled a suspicion in me that the second phase of the detoxification process was not working as efficiently as it could. It would be at this point that I would reach for Thorne’s Anti-Oxidant formula.
Now we have discussed how the liver deals with processing toxins we must think about how they leave the body and a primary route is through the bowel.
If our bowel movements are sluggish then there is the chance that as they sit too long within the body and the toxins get reabsorbed. It is therefore very necessary that bowel movements are regular and that means, at the very least, daily.
Water and keeping the fibre content of our diet high with lots of vegetables and some fruit can help. Including flax seed can also help. Health Interlink sell a variety of Flax seed 
products by Raw Organics and other suitable fibre rich products.
Flaxseed is high in fibre, omega-3 fatty acids, and phytochemicals called lignans. Flaxseed can help reduce total blood cholesterol and LDL (“bad”) cholesterol levels — and, as a result, may help reduce the risk of heart disease. Whole seeds can be ground in a coffee grinder which makes them more useful to the body and then stored in an airtight container in the fridge.
Although the Institute of Medicine has not set a recommended daily intake for omega-3 fatty acids, it has established adequate intake amounts of between 1.1 and 1.6 grams per day for adults. One tablespoon of ground flaxseed provides 1.6 grams of omega-3 fatty acids.
Tips for including flaxseed in your diet:
Add a tablespoon of ground flaxseed to your hot or cold breakfast cereal.
Add a teaspoon of ground flaxseed to mayonnaise or mustard when making a sandwich.
Mix a tablespoon of ground flaxseed into an 8-ounce container of yogurt.
Bake ground flaxseed into cookies, muffins, breads and other baked goods.
Maybe that is all too general for you and you want some specifics.
Reduce or cut out caffeine, fizzy drinks, red meat, fatty fried foods including crisps, alcohol and highly processed foods, refined sugar and white flour including biscuits cakes etc,. Limit your intake of dairy products – try the many dairy-free substitutes now available in health stores. Drink at least one and a half litres of still water a day and try some quality herb teas.
Start each day with half a juiced lemon in water to cleanse the system. Include in your diet, Tofu – try the flavoured ones, chickpeas, beans and lentils for fat-free protein that will also boost your fibre intake. Wheat free pasta, rice cakes, corn cakes, Ryveta, hummus, big salads – try sprinkling with a little seaweed for added iodine and juicy avocados stuffed with prawns in a mixture of lime, garlic and fresh live yoghurt.
To boost your memory, ease your aches and pains and cure the winter blues eat plenty of 
fresh oily fish such as mackerel, tuna and salmon. Try sprouting some beans to use in salads and stir fries, Add sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds to dishes for added zinc, selenium and essential fatty acids.
For maximum nutritional benefit eat fruits and vegetables grown locally and go organic whenever possible.
Dig the smoothie* maker out of the back of the cupboard and whiz up a blueberry smoothie to ward of those cold bugs. Finally get round to using that juicer attachment and try some beetroot, carrot and apple juice with a bit of ginger to stimulate the liver.
Health Interlink have just started stocking a new range of superfoods and another way to get those detoxifying natural goodness into you may be their new Perfect Food Alkalizer & Detoxifier which contains many of the nutritional elements needed and is taken as a daily drink.
Eat something different – we all get in a rut with what we prepare to eat. Go into your local health food shop and by three things you have never tried before. If you don’t know how to cook them ask, unlike supermarkets people who work in health food shops tend to be pretty passionate about food and will be happy to help.
Do this for two weeks and I promise you will feel rejuvenated – not only in your body but also in your interest in food and the effects it can have on your health.
* See also the breakfast smoothie recipe!