Medical researcher calls for body detoxification

Detoxification

Detoxification

Detoxification

A medical researcher and nutritionist, Dr Kathleen Egbuna, on Thursday called for regular detoxification process in the treatment of patients suffering from chronic diseases and conditions.

Egbuna, who works at the Nigerian Institute of Medical Research (NIMR), Yaba, Lagos, said that this became imperative as environmental factors might play significant role in a variety of illness.

She spoke in Lagos.

Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia describes detoxification as “the physiological or medicinal removal of toxic substances from a living organism, including the human body, which is mainly carried out by the liver.

“Additionally, it can refer to the period of withdrawal during which an organism returns to homeostasis (property of a system within the body) after long-term use of an addictive substance.

“In medicine, detoxification can be achieved by decontamination of poison ingestion and the use of antidotes as well as techniques such as dialysis and (in a limited number of cases) chelation therapy.”

Egbuna said that the body constantly created waste and toxins in normal function, adding that toxins entered the body through the environment, air, drinking and eating of foods, among others.

According to her, medical researchers have identified that environmental factors may play significant role in a variety of illness.

“Everybody is becoming more aware of environmental pollution; detoxification has become a prominent treatment in several medical practices.

“Detoxification is beneficial to patients suffering from chronic diseases and conditions which include arthritis, asthma, anxiety, chronic infections, diabetes and depression,’’ she said.

Egbuna said that the body’s ability to remove various toxins that it ingested and manufactured each day diminished with time, leading to accumulation of toxins.

“Most of the toxins in the body and all the waste created or acquired must be removed from the body in order to improve health.

“The body has five channels of detoxification which include the bowel, liver, kidney, lungs and skin; and they all work systematically to remove toxins from the body.

“Damaged cells, waste tissue, excess hormones, excess water, unwanted chemicals and metabolic waste are all removed through the urine, sweat and stool,” she said.

Egbuna said that one of the steps in health recovery programme should be to assist the body’s detoxification process by stimulating the cleaning and toning of all elimination channels.

“The system should be encouraged to cleanse so that energy can be freed from other functions as long as there are toxins in the body; energy is used for the elimination of the toxins.

“Measures that are used to cleanse toxins from the body include opening up the lymphatic system and stimulating lymph flow, opening the body’s elimination channels, and stimulating blood flow,’’ she said.

According to the nutritionist, liver is the primary detoxifying organ in the body because toxins tend to accumulate in the liver and gastrointestinal tract.

“To assist detoxification function in the liver and cleansing from the gastrointestinal tract, people should eat plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole grains and nuts.

“Blood cleansers include high sulphur containing foods such as legumes, onions, eggs, garlic and chlorophyll sources which include green leafy vegetables.

“Fresh pineapple and pawpaw contain protease enzymes that reduce the quantity of excess protein and toxic by-products of protein metabolism accumulated in the body,” she said.

The expert said that non-dietary necessary for assisting the detoxification process included the use of bitter from some herbs and laxatives to cleanse the blood.

Egbuna said that some of the herbs increased oxygen content in the body cells, open up clogged and sluggish lymph flow as well as open the energy channels with massages.

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