Detox Your Body And Mind

20 Responses to “Detox Your Body And Mind”

1. Mary on October 15th, 2009 7:21 am
   

   I was working with a health counselor who takes a holistic view of a person’s health over the summer. One of the things that was mentioned is that whenever there is a food that I crave, or anyone craves, there is usually some mineral or vitamin that the body needs and isn’t getting. The best example is chocolate – if that is something I crave, I may be deficient in Magnesium. There are other foods that are available to eat that I can use as a source of Magnesium. I did notice that once I started putting sea salt (not the regular table salt) on my food, my cravings for chips went away and chips didn’t taste good any longer.

   I have also noticed that I felt much more energized when I bought foods from certain foods from the organic grocery store versus the regular grocery store, and the foods tasted sooooooo much better. I was in heaven. However, the price of my groceries went up significantly.

   I also noticed that I felt horrible when I ate a Burger King hamburger after juice fasting for 4.5 days and cleaning out the colon. At that time, I just craved meat, salt, and a whole bunch of other things after I was done with my fast. I was actually eating healthier before the fast and much worse after the fast because there were so many things I craved. I think my body wasn’t physically ready for the fast. I was just starting to get my energy back, after being seriously depleted energetically, and the fast was probably not a good thing to do. BTW, the lack of energy was only due to have a surgery I had earlier in the summer.
2. akemi on October 15th, 2009 8:09 am
   

   Mary,
   Thank you for your great comment. Our body does know what it needs – but without experiencing better, healthier options to get the nutrients it needs, the need shows up as unhealthy craving. Very interesting.
   I agree about the taste of organic foods. They taste so much better, and after getting used to org foods, it’s hard to swallow non-org foods!

   Your point about fasting and resulting cravings is interesting. My sugar cravings got worse when I first started raw foods. For the same reason, I think — sometimes, our body reacts negatively to positive changes when it’s not quite ready. I encourage you to keep eating wholesome foods, and maybe detoxing in a slow gentle way.
3. Millionaire Mommy Next Door (Jen) on October 15th, 2009 9:12 am
   

   Great article, Akemi. You’ve inspired a new post brewing inside my mind and, once I’ve tackled my new gluten-free lifestyle, I’m moving on to the next diet modification on my list. I find it easier to change one diet habit at a time — so far, I’ve eliminated sugar, everything containing chemicals, and I’m in my third week of gluten-free. I’ve eaten organics for years, and now I’m focusing on local. I’m not sure I’m willing to part with my beloved coffee… I love my cup of shade-grown, organic dark roast! Yum!!!

   Oh, my most difficult diet habit change was to switch from canned seltzer water to filtered water in a glass!

   I so know what you’re talking about when your clean body eats bad stuff. I can barely stand to LOOK at fast food now. I swear, my body reacts poorly even if I just smell it.
4. akemi on October 15th, 2009 4:00 pm
   

   Hi Jen,
   Changing one diet habit at a time is a very sensible approach.
   I had to laugh about your comment on smell. Smell is chemical, and it does affect us — big time. I steer clear of meat and fish (esp fish) section of supermarket.
   I look forward to reading your post.
5. Earth Mother – In The Raw on October 15th, 2009 6:13 pm
   

   This is really an excellent post, Akemi. I had to laugh at your cheesecake story — only because I’ve been there!

   I can remember going to the annual Greek Festival about two months into my own transition from a verrrrrrrry unhealthy diet to one of whole, primarily raw, plant foods. Well, the gyros were calling to me. Why not? Why else go to a Greek Festival, but to eat gyros, baklava, and other traditional foods? Hmmm…

   Well, watching the Greek dancers perform is also a highlight. Just as they were about to start (and roughly an hour after I had eaten the gyro), I had to make a mad dash to the nearest bathroom. And that’s where I had to remain for the duration of the performance. Not pretty.

   Live and learn.

   Yes, detoxing the mind does take longer than detoxing the body. Believe me, I drew upon my “gyro episode” the next time my head told me I wanted something that clearly was not in my best interests physically. Since cleaning out my body and infusing it with live enzymes, it just can’t tolerate certain foods any longer and almost instantly will reject them (much like you described eating food that is spoiled).

   I think you’re taking a very sensible approach to changing your diet. You know I’m a big advocate of listening to your body and doing what works for you.
6. Stephen on October 15th, 2009 10:15 pm
   

   Another well written article Akemi.

   “So, in order to make your own decision, you need to detox yourself. Otherwise, it will be like, “Okay, I’m going to eat meat. Let’s collect all the supporting data that justifies meat eating. Which famous spiritual leaders eat meat? Which nutritionists support meat?” Pretty soon, you do have a very strong argument how wonderful meat is.”

   I completely agree with this and feel this can be applied to almost anything. From meat, to exercise, to fruit and so forth. Personally I was vegetarian for a number of years. And not a vegetarian eating crap food. I was very serious as I had some extreme health problems.

   At the time I thought that was the healthy way to be because that was what everyone was saying. I’ve also completed a number of full fasts. A few beyond 14 days in length. But because I continued to test and experiment I now know that I do far better consuming quality meat, eggs, fat and so forth as part of my diet. But that’s me. I try my best not to project this outcome on others. All I try to do is show myself as an example that we need to keep testing and listening to our individual body.

   It was interesting when I changed my diet from vegetarian to certified organic food, grass fed meat and other free-range naturally and humanely raised products. Those close to me in my life who had followed my diet example and became vegetarian were confused for a while. Then they tried it out for themselves. Some it worked others it didn’t. I know my father lost 1kg per month for 8 straight months by simply changing over to a higher fat diet. Sounds contradictory doesn’t it? But that’s his body and that is my body.

   There is no one who can tell me I’m wrong because for me it’s obvious that I’m right. My health has never been better and I’ve never been stronger than I am right now.

   We each need to seek out own truth.

   Stephen
7. akemi on October 16th, 2009 7:10 am
   

   Earthmother,
   Haha, well, if you had to dash to the bathroom after only one hour, your system is very well calibrated. The faster the rejection, the better.
   My mind is pretty stubborn. But considering I had sugar addiction before, I’d like to think I’m making a good progress.

   Stephen,
   Wow, I’m impressed. I’ve never done a full fast, nor even a juice fast yet. And I saw your photos on your blog so obviously you are in great shape and strength.
   I agree that some raw / vegetarian people are overly zealous to convert others. That’s just another prejudice. It may be good for many people, and it’s very cleansing esp if someone has been eating the typical western diet, but it doesn’t mean it’s good for everyone.
8. akemi on October 16th, 2009 8:54 am
   

   I think another important point is that the best way to eat may change over time, depending on the season and whatever changes you may be experiencing.
   My spirit guides just advised me to incorporate a little bit of eggs, like one boiled egg a few times a week. It wasn’t good before when I first started eating vegetarian, but now it’s okay. Interesting.
9. Lisa (mommymystic) on October 16th, 2009 12:41 pm
   

   Akemi – despite my defense of my coffee habit in my last comment, I really liked this post! In both my pregnancies, I of course had to give up alcohol, coffee, sushi (a major love of mine) and I actually gave up refined sugar also, because it gave me some digestive issues…some of these tastes never came back, the sugar one especially – I felt like the length of abstinence just let the desire for it die out…I do eat some sugar, chocolate or ice cream occasionally, but the constant craving I had for sugar before that died out…it’s interesting because I was recently reading this book on how different chakra blocks impact our cravings, and 2nd chakra blocks are associated with craving sugar, so I have often wondered if pregnancy somehow unblocked some issues I had with my 2nd chakra and that contributed to overcoming that addiction? Anyway, this book ties in very well with what you are saying about how our physical cravings can represent unmet needs or energetic issues on other levels…
   Also, I have been thinking about how we might need different foods in different environments…for example, when we are in Los Angeles, I do eat some meat, but when we go to our Utah house, where it is very pure energetically, I almost never want meat, and eat very light in general, even through we are very physically active there…So I think that perhaps in LA my body ‘uses’ meat as a kind of protective barrier…I do not think I have an addiction to meat, as I actually don’t like it much, and was a vegetarian for 2-3 years awhile back, but at a certain point I did get the intuition that I needed a certain amount and went back to it for that reason (and have a whole host of gratitudes and ethical buying rituals for myself around it)…I am wondering if/when we move to Utah full-time if my diet will change entirely…
10. Stephen on October 16th, 2009 4:40 pm
    

    Good point Akemi. Metabolic typing acknowledges that one’s metabolic type can certainly change over time. Therefore testing should be a regular ongoing thing throughout life. This points to another reason why rigidly holding to one way of being as THE way or the only Truth ignores the inherent nature of the universe. That is, all is change.

    Interesting on the egg. Before when I first ate a vegetarian diet I couldn’t eat eggs either. They would really upset my stomach. Now I eat at least 6 if not 9 or more a week and feel fantastic. It’s all a journey and if we point at a snapshot of ourselves in time and say “see that, that’s me” we step out of the river with our minds while everything flows on. Trouble is the only thing that can come of that.

    I recently wrote about this sort of thing in my article Undefined Abstraction. Please let me know your thoughts on that if you ever get a chance to read it.

    Stephen
11. akemi on October 16th, 2009 5:17 pm
    

    This discussion is getting so interesting! Let’s keep going, and I will write another post to sum up.

    Lisa,
    What’s the title of the book, and can you do the book review on your blog? Sugar remains to be a major challenge to me. I just don’t know why cookies, muffins, cheesecakes, and ice creams call me so much. I’m done with chocolate. It’s some of these sweet baked goods and dairy – sweet stuffs I have problem with. Am I missing some nutrients? Or is it because baked goods are easier to digest?

    My predominant dosha is vata, and traditionally vatas are advised to eat cooked foods to keep the digestive fire going because our intestines are weak.

    And I def agree about places and food preferences. Well, it’s not just foods — things smell differently depending on the moisture level, etc. of the place, look differently depending on the sunlight (I’m a painter), and taste differently. The energy pattern is different.

    Stephen,
    I totally agree. I think some people talk like religious fundamentalist when they talk about their food preference.
    I’ll come over to your blog because your blog is so good. In the future, don’t hesitate to leave a link because that helps us find the post you are talking about.
12. Stephen on October 16th, 2009 7:15 pm
    

    It’s interesting that you mention the doshas. The fellow who wrote the Metabolic Typing book refers to the ancient use of doshas and to similar approaches in both Chinese and Greek medicine and health. These are approaches that have been around so long they have been forgotten.

    On the craving of sugar, I understand this to be a symptom of too much exposure to light. This tells your body that it is high summer and that winter is coming. Winter means shortage and so the biological survival imperative is to eat carbohydrates as much as possible to get as fat as possible in order to survive winter. Summer is after all when carbohydrates are in abundance. I’ve described the physiological process in an article – Why Living in Balance and Harmony with Nature is the Key to Good Health

    I like your religious fundamentalist analogy. Is it not insane that there exists vegetarian terrorist groups? Such people have cast aside their humanity. We cannot become any sort of higher being if we cannot even be human. It’s the same sadly ironic concept of the violent piece protest.

    Stephen
13. akemi on October 16th, 2009 7:35 pm
    

    My current understanding of my sugar craving is it’s caused by excessive yeast in the digestive system. I never worried about yeast because I never had the typical “female” yeast problems, but I heard that yeast can overgrow in the intestine, too, which can cause various problems, including sugar craving, because years lives on sugar.
    My spirit guides recommend kind of high fat, low carb, moderate protein diet. I might try yeast cleansing, too, after I’m done with my current general detox.

    Also, when I was in Japan, I heard that a good way to figure out what is appropriate to eat is to think what I can gather/catch myself. We are used to getting groceries at stores, but of course, this is very new in human history.
    What can I get in nature myself?
    Now a big guy like Stephen may be able to tackle a cow or a buffalo, but not me. But collecting wild birds’ eggs isn’t too hard. And foraging fruits and greens. Earthmother loves it and writes about it on her blog all the time. I’d need some training from her, but I think I can manage it after some practice. So I gather mostly vegetarian diet, with some eggs, is appropriate for me.
14. Ralph on October 17th, 2009 4:53 pm
    

    Thanks for the post! Fasting is my favorite method of detox.
15. Lisa (mommymystic) on October 19th, 2009 7:49 pm
    

    Akemi, just got back here and saw your question, the book is called Chakra Foods for Optimum Health, by Deanna Minich. As I remember, one reason for craving these kinds of sweets is to feed the pleasure needs of the 2nd chakra, and so feeding it instead with healthy foods that specifically nourish it can help. Those are foods high in water, high in omega-3 fats, tropical fruits and orange foods like yams, papayas, oranges, etc. But I know there are so many different theories on sweet cravings, i think it is a tough one to get to the bottom of.
    Another theory that has come up more than once with various psychics/seers I have known is that people with very sensitive energy bodies, especially psychic women, are more likely to crave high-sugar carbs like pastries because they provide a short-term sense of energy protection (whereas protein in this theory provides a more heavy-duty ‘real’ protection.) So in this theory, a sweet craving might signal an energy body overload of some type…I’m not so sure about this one for myself, sometimes seems relevant, sometimes not…
16. Robin on October 19th, 2009 8:52 pm
    

    Hi Akemi – I love what you are saying here. I love your points about listening to our bodies rather than a “leader” – and your points about addictons making doing this tricky.

    I also think like you about foods, and the placebo effect – for a long time now I haven’t been particularly concerned about various toxins in the environment, because I picked up the idea somewhere that the toxins can only be held in our bodies by our mind/consciousness.

    The same with foods – if I end up eating unhealthy meals sometimes because all-up it’s the best option, I don’t fret. In fact, being obsessive about a particular diet (for health reasons) is giving your power away to it, isn’t it?
17. akemi on October 20th, 2009 11:49 am
    

    Ralph,
    Hey, that’s great you are doing fasting!

    Lisa,
    Thank you for the book info. I haven’t read that book, but now I do remember some theories about chakra and foods. Interesting. I will take pleasure in eating more mangos and papayas.
    Energetic attacks… Geesh, actually I know I’m attacked. It’s a nasty persistent attack and I keep cleaning up daily. Being Akashic Record Reader has its challenges, I guess.

    Robin,
    I agree! We don’t want to become the slave of dogma, even a healthy eating dogma. But after restraining from eating certain foods, don’t they become pretty disgusting to you? Like you said, after not eating any sweets, an apple tastes so sweet. How did you get back to sugary foods after that? Didn’t you want to stay away from sugar and starches?
18. Robin on October 21st, 2009 3:31 am
    

    Hi Akemi – you must be referring to my holiday with my diabetic friend – I was 22 at the time and I became a school teacher straight after that holiday, and I would have just succumbed to habits with the pressure.

    I don’t eat much sweet food these days – if I do eat too much of that sort of thing, it would be an emotional issue and I would be numb to how it tastes or how it makes me feel.
    Robin´s last blog ..Keeping Body And Soul Together
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