The goal of Ayurveda is to bring our body and mind back to the state of balance by bringing our doshas in balance. The matter is made of the the five great elements according to Ayurveda: fire, water, ether, earth, and space.

These elements combine to form three main bio-dynamic forces, called doshas, that regulate various structures and functions in our body-mind complex. In their nature-state, these doshas would be found in perfect balance. But then right from the day, we are born, we are exposed to various stimuli, right from the food to the seasons to the habits and lifestyle, which influence this flux of elements one way or the other.

Sometimes, due to natural factors like change in seasons and times of the year and other times due to lifestyle reasons including an unfavorable diet or sleep cycle, exposure to stress and pollution, lack of rest, and other dosha-aggravating practices, this delicate balance of the tridoshas gets disturbed.

While a little bit of imbalance in doshas is natural, when these doshas stay aggravated over long periods of time outside the seasonal cycle, this imbalance can potentially take root as illness.

Imbalance in doshas over time can also lead to the accumulation of toxins called ama in the body that can drastically affect our state of health, our energy levels and slow down metabolism. Only when these toxins have been removed from our system, and doshas are brought back into balance can we achieve good mental and physical health.

Ayurvedic detoxes may seem old school, but they are timeless, effective, deeply healing, and rejuvenating. These detoxes help restore our bio intelligence and by doing so, our immunity. The detoxes remove the toxins from the body, help realign our lifestyle with what works best for our body type, correct the unfavorable practices in terms of diet and living, and bring the tridoshas in balance.

An important understanding in Ayurveda is that diseases of the mind and body arise from long-standing ama deposits that are a result of sluggish agni, or digestive fire.

Ayurvedic detoxes help reinvigorate agni, which helps improve absorption and assimilation of food and reduces ama formation. There are three types of toxins: water soluble, fat-soluble, and volatile toxins.

Volatile toxins can be passed out through breath; water-soluble ones are released through urine, sweat and other physical waste. Fat-soluble toxins attend to stick around in the body, and when they have accumulated in large amounts in the body, they can start affecting the metabolism in the body, functioning of key body organs, and forms a slimy substance called ama.

Accumulation of ama begins whenever our lifestyle and activities are not aligned with our nature, or Prakriti vata, pitta, kapha. It is the presence of ama in the body that makes you feel heavy, fatigued, low, depressed without any real trigger, and it is at the root of many chronic lifestyle diseases today.

Panchakarma focuses on eliminating these toxins from the body. The very first step is a detailed diagnosis of your prakruti, state of doshas, predispositions and imbalances with the help of pulse diagnosis or Nadi Pariksha, which is usually undertaken by a senior Ayurveda physician.

The diagnosis will also include an assessment of the tongue, eyes, general appearance, metabolic health, digestion and lifestyle in general. This assessment will be the basis of how long should your panchakarma treatment be and your personalized line of treatment. There are thousands of cleanses and medicated herbs mentioned in the ancient Ayurvedic texts, so it befalls your physician to design the treatment and include cleanses that work best for you individually.

Panchakarma treatments require you to be in a certain state of health to be able to fully benefit from the treatment. So under poorvakarma, we prepare our bodies for the main treatment.

For most of us, our interaction with Ayurveda is quite recent and it is likely that the ama has been sitting in our system for a very long time.

So this ama needs to be softened first in order to eliminate it. Oleation and sweat therapies are part of this stage in the treatment. You will also be recommended a very targeted diet regime to support the body through these elimination exercises. It is important to stick to this regime since the body tends to be very sensitive during detoxification stages.

Along with diet, you may be introduced to meditation and light yoga postures to enable healing. This stage is like flying an airplane. The landing is as important as the part where you take off.

Focus on getting antioxidants from food and not supplements. Taking too many antioxidant supplements may increase your risk of certain diseases.

Examples of antioxidants include vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin E, selenium, lycopene, lutein, and zeaxanthin. Berries, fruits, nuts, cocoa, vegetables, spices, and beverages like coffee and green tea have some of the highest amounts of antioxidants Consuming a diet rich in antioxidants helps your body reduce damage caused by free radicals and may lower your risk of diseases that can impact detoxification.

Gut health is important for keeping your detoxification system healthy. Your intestinal cells have a detoxification and excretion system that protects your gut and body from harmful toxins, such as chemicals Good gut health starts with prebiotics , a type of fiber that feeds the good bacteria in your gut called probiotics.

With prebiotics, your good bacteria can produce nutrients called short-chain fatty acids that are beneficial for health 41 , Antibiotic use, poor dental hygiene, and diet quality can all alter the bacterial balance in your gut 43 , 44 , Consequently, this unhealthy shift in bacteria can weaken your immune and detoxification systems and increase your risk of disease and inflammation Eating foods rich in prebiotics can keep your immune and detoxification systems healthy.

Good food sources of prebiotics include tomatoes, artichokes, bananas, asparagus, onions, garlic, and oats Eating a diet rich in prebiotics keeps your digestive system healthy, which is important for proper detoxification and immune health.

For some people, detoxing is a means of eliminating excess water. This excess fluid buildup can cause bloating and make clothing uncomfortable. If you consume too much salt, you can detox yourself of the extra water weight. While it may sound counterintuitive, increasing your water intake is one of the best ways to eliminate excess water weight from consuming too much salt.

By increasing your water intake, your body reduces the secretion of the antidiuretic hormone and increases urination, eliminating more water and waste products 49 , Foods rich in potassium include potatoes, squash, kidney beans, bananas, and spinach Consuming too much salt can increase water retention.

You can eliminate excess water — and waste — by increasing your intake of water and potassium-rich foods. Regular exercise — regardless of body weight — is associated with a longer life and a reduced risk of many conditions and diseases, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, and certain cancers 52 , 53 , While there are several mechanisms behind the health benefits of exercise, reduced inflammation is a key point 55 , You should aim to do at least — minutes a week of moderate intensity exercise — such as brisk walking — or 75— minutes a week of vigorous intensity physical activity — such as running While promising, many of these effects are only evident in animal studies.

Therefore, studies in humans are needed to confirm these findings. Your body naturally clears itself of toxins.

You can support the process and your overall health with some lifestyle practices, including avoiding or limiting alcohol, getting enough sleep, drinking enough water, and eating certain foods, among others.

Still, only when these organs are healthy can they effectively eliminate unwanted substances. A full-body detox is part of regular organ function, with the body naturally eliminating harmful or toxic substances through the kidneys, liver, digestive system, skin, and lungs.

Detox diets are said to eliminate toxins, which supports improving health and promoting weight loss. While these diets are popular, they are not necessary. Your body has its own highly efficient detoxification system.

Our experts continually monitor the health and wellness space, and we update our articles when new information becomes available. VIEW ALL HISTORY. While they're not typically able to prescribe, nutritionists can still benefits your overall health. Let's look at benefits, limitations, and more.

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Let's look deeper:. Researchers have found that a daily multivitamin supplement was linked with slowed cognitive aging and improved memory. Dietitians can help you create a more balanced diet or a specialized one for a variety of conditions.

We look at their benefits and limitations. Discover how you can revive with full body detox. Getting rid of toxins isn't easy, especially when they're lodged deep in your organs, bones, and tissues and simply refuse to budge. One detox method that is powerful enough to do the heavy-duty job is infrared light therapy.

Being treated with infrared light is like harnessing all the therapeutic powers of the sun without the damage from ultraviolet rays. The long-reaching wavelengths of infrared light can penetrate through your skin's layers to reach deep down to your tissues, triggering regeneration and repair.

After an infrared light therapy session, your revived and healthier cells will be back in peak fighting form to root and flush out the unwanted chemicals in your body. You'll probably skip this section, thinking you're not exactly the drinking type.

Yet, when you consider those nightcaps, toasts, and one-for-the-road drinks, they can all add up to large amounts of alcohol in your system. This makes your liver go into overdrive to break down the toxins from all those alcoholic drinks, so the poisonous substances can be evicted from your body.

But if the liver is abused, the toxins can overwhelm it and make it dense with the build-up of fibrous tissues, resulting in poor blood flow. This deprives your liver cells of getting the nutrients they need to survive. So the next time someone asks you out for a drink, bring your mental wine-o-meter, or even better, ask for a non-alcoholic version of your usual cocktail.

Your liver will love you for it. Did you know that sleep can actually detoxify? It's been discovered that, during sleep, your body can repair and regenerate itself in the first place because of its glymphatic system, which clears the waste resulting from brain activity.

This system helps wipe out these toxic materials that can lead to all sorts of brain and nerve diseases. So boost your body's natural detoxifying abilities by getting enough quality Zzzs. You are what you eat. And there's no exaggeration there. The food you put into your body today can help determine if you will live a long and meaningful life.

Whether you choose to be in the funk by chomping on the junk or eat healthy to be hearty, it will impact your overall health and wellbeing. Take, for instance, sugar and bad carbs. Sugar is everywhere—in our dishes, drinks, and of course, in our desserts.

Bad carbs are also present, from our basic bread and pasta staples to our snacking essentials of chips and crackers and the occasional beer and baked potato. When you give in to your cravings for sugary sweets and bread, they're broken into smaller sugar molecules that affect how the body controls hunger.

These sugar molecules keep stored fat from being used. The brain then thinks that it needs additional energy sources and tells you that you're hungry, and then you eat more. So what do you do then? Replace your sugars and bad carbs with lean meats, green leafy vegetables that are chock full of antioxidants, and good fats such as Omega 3 and Omega 6 fatty acids.

Water doesn't just help you get rid of the gunk on your body, but it also helps flush out the toxins from within. By keeping well hydrated, you boost the cleansing powers of your body's super detoxifier —your liver. The liver breaks down everything you eat, including the toxins in your food, even those in your food packaging that you don't realize you consume.

The waste materials end up in the backroom, which is basically your intestines, and you know what happens next…. Proper hydration helps the blood easily go through your liver, clearing out all the toxins and wastes that may build up over time. So drink up and help your liver help you detoxify more effectively.

Massage therapy is not just a great stress reliever. It is also a great way of boosting circulation. When your blood flows freely within your body, it can better deliver the nutrition needed by your cells and tissues to properly function, further enhancing your body's ability to repair itself.

For detoxification, a lymphatic drainage massage is a notch up your typical massage. Your lymphatic system is what helps your body get rid of waste and toxic substances and keeps your immune mechanisms working.

Through the natural movements of your muscle tissues, fluid is drained and goes into the bloodstream, from where it is eventually eliminated. Over time, some of these fluids can build up in the lymph system. Lymphatic drainage massage helps clear out these unwanted fluids through the gentle kneading of the lymphatic smooth muscles.

Have your lymphatic drainage massage done by a certified massage therapist to ensure the best detox experience and results. With many stressors on the attack from every corner, it's not a surprise that your body's fight-and-flight mode is constantly on.

The adrenaline released can damage blood vessels, cause your heart to race, and increase your blood pressure, increasing your risk of heart diseases.

Cortisol also shoots up in the system, making your oil glands go on overdrive, which causes acne breakouts and other skin conditions. Detox and pamper your skin as well as your body by indulging in an infrared sauna, like HigherDOSE's Full Spectrum Infrared Sauna , which makes use of the entire spectrum of infrared light to increase your immune system, enhance circulation, and penetrate to the core.

It is the pinnacle of detoxification, encompassing your whole body from your skin's layers down to your body's cellular functions. Simply wanting to relax and detox at home?

Take your sauna wherever you please with Higher DOSE's Infrared Sauna Blanket , and cleanse and rejuvenate even without visiting a spa. Site Design by Lustre. Shop All Wellness Tech Menu Wellness Tech.

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