From algae to common kitchen staples, review the top five detoxifiers to help boost elimination of heavy metals and toxins that are common in everyday life.
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By GreenMedInfo Research Group
Whether you’re interested in a general detox or a year-round wellness solution, enhance your body’s natural cleansing systems. Various whole foods, including cruciferous vegetables, berries, garlic, soy, and spices are popular for detoxification support in the functional medical model of care.
Natural strategies such as sweating and probiotics are also considered helpful in detoxifying toxic metals and petrochemicals, which persist as silent invaders in daily life.
Here are some time-tested, evidence-based ways to use natural detoxifiers for a healthy year ahead.
1. Astaxanthin
Astaxanthin is one of the most potent antioxidants found in nature. An aquatic carotenoid with blood-red pigment found in various seafoods, astaxanthin has been widely explored for its antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and immune-enhancing properties, along with beneficial effects on DNA repair.1
Astaxanthin supplementation for four weeks was found to increase blood levels of the antioxidant glutathione in active young men.2 In an animal study, this marine biocompound emerged as a critical agent in protecting the brain against neuroinflammation and oxidative stress induced by environmental tobacco smoke.3
2. Chlorella
Heavy metal toxicity poses serious health risks. Exposure to pollutants, xenobiotics (foreign chemicals), and heavy metals such as mercury and lead can affect the levels and activities of antioxidants and enzymes in the body.4 The algae chlorella offers numerous nutritional benefits and helps enhance the elimination of these toxins.
In a recent study, chlorella, was found to reduce the half-life of chlordecone (an organochlorine insecticide) from 40 to 19 days and contributed to the removal of heavy metals in patients with long-term dental titanium implants and amalgam fillings.
In a randomized, double blind, placebo-controlled crossover study, chlorella supplementation was found to detoxify carcinogenic heterocyclic amines (HCAs).5 Similarly, a 2015 study showed that chlorella helped women detoxify cancer-causing polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs)—a class of chemicals produced when coal, gas, wood, garbage, or tobacco is burned.6
3. Garlic
Garlic has a long history of medicinal and culinary use throughout history. Its major component—allicin—not only shows remarkable antiviral, antifungal, and antibacterial activity, but is thought to play a key role in its antioxidant and detoxification capabilities.7
In a study comparing the therapeutic effects of garlic and d-Penicillamine in patients with chronic occupational lead poisoning, garlic appeared safer and as effective as the drug. Clinical improvement was significant in several symptoms, such as irritability, headache, decreased deep tendon reflex, and mean systolic blood pressure after treatment with garlic but not drug therapy.8
Additionally, garlic exhibited anticancer properties due to its ability to induce phase II detoxification enzymes.9 A separate study suggested that this effect may be partly due to organosulfur compounds in garlic, such as sodium 2-propenyl thiosulfate (2PTS).10
4. Broccoli Sprouts
Broccoli sprouts, or baby broccoli plants, are cruciferous vegetables that may aid in natural detoxification. Broccoli, along with its phytochemical sulforaphane, has been shown to activate enzymes that protect against toxicity from PAHs.11 Broccoli-sprout extract may protect the liver from different types of xenobiotic substances by inducing detoxification enzymes and glutathione synthesis.12
Even small amounts of broccoli sprouts may help protect against chemical carcinogens. “Small quantities of crucifer sprouts may protect against the risk of cancer as effectively as much larger quantities of mature vegetables of the same variety,” researchers noted in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America.13
In animal studies, broccoli sprouts also attenuated oxidative stress from alcohol consumption.14 Thus, they may protect the liver by increasing antioxidant capacity and downregulating associated stress.
5. Green Tea
Green tea is not just a delicious beverage, but it’s also a shield from various everyday toxins. According to a growing number of studies, green tea and matcha green tea can reduce the adverse effects of lead and decrease gastrointestinal tract absorption of common offenders such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs), and dioxins.15 16
In the aging brains of animals, models showed that the antioxidants found in green tea also protected against declining glutathione peroxidase levels and the ensuing age-related oxidative damage.17 Ultimately, green tea is a safe, effective, and gentle detoxifier to help reboot your health this new year. Learn more about the anti-cancer properties of green tea in “Food as Medicine: Green Tea and Turmeric,” on page 44.
Top 5 Detoxifiers Summarized
In summary, detoxification is an important aspect of maintaining a healthy body, and there are several natural ways to support it. This article explores various whole foods, such as cruciferous vegetables, berries, garlic, soy, and spices, which are popular for their detoxification support in the functional medical model of care.
Additionally, natural strategies like sweating and probiotics can help detoxify toxic metals and petrochemicals that persist in our daily lives. These top five natural detoxifiers have stood the test of time and have evidence-based support. Again, these include astaxanthin, chlorella, garlic, broccoli sprouts, and green tea. Each of these natural substances has unique benefits that can aid in detoxification and improve overall health.
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Well Being Journal adapted this article from the previously published original at greenmedinfo.com titled “Five Natural Detoxifiers for a Healthy Year,” April 22, 2022.
References available at the following web address:
https://greenmedinfo.com/blog/five-natural-detoxifiers-healthy-year
