Detoxify Naturally with Hydrotherapy
No spring cleaning regimen is complete without the detoxifying powers of water. Using hydrotherapy in a number of ways can increase the circulation and clearance of our main organs of detoxification: the skin, kidneys, colon, lymphatic system and liver. Hydrotherapy practices also encourage us to incorporate self-care and self-pampering into our daily routine. They consist of using water at varying temperatures to encourage blood flow, smooth muscle contraction and sweating. Taking a few minutes to practice some of these techniques helps calm our minds and direct our focus to the body. During times of cleansing, it’s important to remember that detoxification is not just about removing physical toxins in the body, but mental and emotional ones as well.
Here are 6 simple ways to incorporate hydrotherapy into your cleansing plan.
- Drink water: The powerful cleansing properties of water start from the inside out. Drinking water keeps our metabolisms sharp while increasing hydration and blood flow, which helps the colon, kidneys and lymphatic system flush out unwanted toxins. Drinking enough water gives our skin a natural, healthy glow, increases energy levels and decrease appetite, helping us achieve a healthy weight. It also helps to clear out the toxins that have been released into the body from any detoxification plan we’re on. A good rule of thumb for increasing water intake is to drink one extra cup (250 ml) of water per day and observe the effect it has on your skin, energy levels and weight. Starting every morning with a large glass of water also aids in stimulating the digestive system and sending a message to your brain that you’ve made the commitment to being healthy for that day.
- Dry skin brushing: Dry skin brushing is a gentle exfoliation and massage technique that helps increase lymphatic flow. It circulates toxins and cellular debris out of the body, while sloughing off dead skin cells, encouraging skin cell turnover and repair. Using a soft bristle brush, begin at the tips of your toes and finger and work inwards, towards the heart, moving the brush in brisk, gentle circles in a clockwise direction. Do this right before a shower and appreciate the invigorating feeling of increased circulation and a glowing complexion.
- Hot and Cold Showers: After dry brushing, practice daily alternate hot and cold showers. Complete three to five hot and cold cycles by starting with hot water for about one-two minutes and alternating with cold bursts for 30 seconds. Alternating hot and cold increases circulation, encouraging lymphatic flow, and boosts metabolism and immune function. While standing under cold water for 30 seconds at a time might sound uncomfortable, you can work your way up by starting with 30-second bursts of lukewarm water. After a while you’ll look forward to the revitalizing cold cycles as a welcome, stimulating part of your shower routine. Always remember to end the shower on a cold cycle and keep the body warm afterwards.
- Castor oil packs: Stimulating the liver and colon is crucial for proper detoxification. A cheap, easy and effective way to do this is to apply castor oil packs to the entire abdomen, covering the areas under which the liver and colon reside. To create a castor oil pack, rub castor oil over skin, cover the area with an old towel and then apply a hot water bottle on top. Leave the pack on for one hour or longer, allowing the castor oil to reach the underlying organs. The heat from the hot water bottle helps the castor oil penetrate the liver and intestines, stimulating their contraction and encouraging movement and the release of toxins and waste. Castor oil packs are also a great therapy for constipation.
- Infrared saunas: Sweating is one of the best ways to remove toxins from the lymph and blood by excreting it through the skin. Infrared saunas are excellent for this because they encourage profuse sweating and stimulate the body’s metabolism, aiding in calorie-burning. Spend up to an hour in the sauna, taking a break every 15 minutes to shower in cold water for 30 seconds, to promote healthy circulation and keep metabolism high. Remember to drink plenty of water. Also adhere to the main principle of hydrotherapy which is to end every session with cold and then keep your body warm.
- Epsom salt baths: For the relaxing end to a stressful week, fill a tub with warm water and add two cups of Epsom salts (magnesium sulfate salts). Epsom salts help to pull toxins, like lactic acid, from muscles, promoting their relaxation. They also maintain the warm temperature of the bath water, promoting sweating and detoxification while you relax. As with the infrared saunas, drink plenty of water while in the bath and, before finishing, tighten skin with a 30-second burst of cold water. Then towel off and keep warm.
This article is not meant to serve as medical advice. For a more individualized assessment, please see a licensed naturopathic doctor.
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Guide to Alternative Medicine Part 1: Traditional Chinese Medicine
“When health is absent Wisdom cannot reveal itself, Art cannot become manifest, Strength cannot be exerted, Wealth is useless and Reason is powerless.”
— Herophilies, 300 B.C.
Just a decade ago, if patients wanted to explore unconventional treatment options they were on their own. Traditional health professionals generally didn’t encourage alternative therapies or treatments, and discouraged departures from allopathic treatment models such as drugs and surgery.
As research validates the efficacy of non-traditional treatment models, such as traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), ayurvedic medicine, massage and chiropractic adjustment, naturopathy, diet, and natural supplementation — even homeopathy and sound therapy — new branches of medicine emerge.
Integrative, Functional, Complementary, and Alternative Medicine
The “integrative” medical model developed during the early 1990s but was formalized when the National Institute of Health (NIH) created the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH). This classification covered non-conventional treatment and research, and was the beginning of a slow recognition of alternative systems. Integrative models include consideration of a patient’s lifestyle, body, and mind, and how to promote well-being for the whole person rather than just diseases and their symptoms.
“Functional” medicine refers to holistic and alternative medical practices intended to improve overall functions of the body’s systems and explores individual biochemistry, genetics, and environment to determine underlying causes of disease.
According to the NIH, “complementary” medicine coordinates non-mainstream practices with conventional treatments. This has driven acceptance of alternative therapies such as TCM, diet, and nutraceuticals, or supplements.
Alternative medicine is any practice that falls outside conventional systems and is not combined with traditional treatments. For example, if patients choose Ayurvedic medicine, dietary changes, and supplementation to treat their cancer and exclude conventional therapies, they have entered the realm of alternative medicine.
Traditional Chinese Medicine
“Those who disobey the laws of Heaven and Earth have a lifetime of calamities while those who follow the laws remain free from dangerous illness.”
— Huangdi, The Yellow Emperor, 2698–2598 BCE
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) claims to be the third-oldest medical system, preceded only by Egyptian and Babylonian medicine. Theories of TCM are believed to be at least 3,000 to 4,000 years old — likely older, predating written language.
The foundations of TCM are meridian channels and acupuncture points that conduct the movement of chi, and the five-element model correspondences to these points and channels. This five-element system of wood, fire, earth, metal, and water also applies to seasons, colors, sounds, sense organs, personality types, Chinese astrology, feng shui, the I Ching, and countless other aspects of Chinese culture and life.
The Five-Element System in Chinese Medicine
Called the Wu Xing, this five-element system defines relationships between the elements and considers them to be in continual active cycles wherever they are found. Mother/child, or generating relationships, are: wood fuels fire, fire forms earth (think of volcanic flow and ash) earth produces metal, metal carries water (buckets, pipes, etc.), and water feeds wood.
Conversely, there are antagonistic (father/child) relationships: fire melts metal, metal penetrates wood (ax, saw), wood separates earth (tree roots break soil), earth absorbs and directs water (river banks), and water extinguishes fire.
Chinese and Taoist doctors, called OMDs (oriental medicine doctors), see a patient through this lens of five-element relationships, along with yin and yang (passive and active) qualities. Organs are paired into male and female element families that include seasons, colors, compass directions, sense organs, emotions, and virtues. The female, or yin, organs are continually active — the Chinese say a woman’s work is never done — while male yang organs have periods of rest and activity. Element family qualities are:
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- Metal: Lung (yin), large intestine (yang); season: autumn; color: white; direction: west; sense organ: nose; emotion: grief. When balanced, grief becomes the virtue of integrity.
- Water: Kidneys (yin), bladder (yang); season: winter; color: black; direction: north; sense organ: ears; emotion: fear. When balanced, fear becomes the virtues of poise, calm, and alert stillness.
- Wood: Liver (yin), gall bladder (yang); season: spring; color: green; direction: east; sense organs: eyes; emotion: anger. When balanced, anger becomes the virtue of kindness.
- Fire: Heart (yin), small intestine (yang); season: summer; color: red; direction: south; sense organ: tongue; emotion: rush/rudeness. When balanced, rushed rudeness becomes the virtues altruism and joy.
- Earth: Spleen (yin), stomach(yang); season: late summer; color: yellow; direction: center or middle; sense organ: mouth; emotion: worry and overthinking. When balanced, worry and obsession become the virtues of balance and equanimity.
