Is your body a toxic waste dump?

If your detoxification system -- which helps get rid of waste -- isn’t working properly, it certainly could be.

It’s simple: If waste builds up, we get sick.

One key to UltraWellness is to figure out how to enhance your body’s capacity to detoxify and get rid of waste while minimizing your exposure to toxins.

To understand toxicity, you must understand the concept of “total load.”

This is the total amount of stressors on your system at any one time.

Think of a glass of water.

It takes a certain amount of water to fill the glass. After that, any more water you put in will cause it to overflow.

A lot of things can contribute to your total load, including environmental toxins, food allergies, an unhealthy diet, medications, bacteria, and even stress.

When your detoxification system is overwhelmed and overloaded, that’s when you start getting symptoms -- but it may take years of accumulated stress and toxins to get to that point.

And when symptoms do appear, they’re often so vague and common that you might not even recognize them as a problem.

Many symptoms can signal toxicity, but they include fatigue, aching, sinus, skin, menstrual, and digestive problems, headaches, and trouble losing weight -- just to name a few.

And these symptoms are just the tip of the iceberg.

So many diseases are linked to toxicity, from Alzheimer’s disease to heart problems to arthritis to chronic fatigue syndrome to cancer.

In fact, problems with detoxification are a major root of illness.

If you feel lousy, it’s likely you’re toxic!

But being toxic isn’t the end of the world.

You can get better.

The key is to follow a comprehensive program that maximizes your body’s own detoxification capacity and helps you safely eliminate stored toxins.

The plan is detailed. But in brief, you want to drink more water and move your bowels daily.

You want to choose specific foods that help speed detoxification.

You want to avoid drugs and get more exercise.

You want to sweat more and learn how to relax.

Of course, everyone is individual.

Depending on your symptoms, genetic predispositions, and environmental exposures, you may need different levels of nutrients and types of treatment than the next person.

But remember, getting rid of toxins and learning how to optimize your detoxification system is essential for creating UltraWellness.

To your good health,
Mark Hyman, M.D.