If your cells don’t function well, then you don’t function well; and if these building blocks of your body are tired and stressed, then you, the sum of these tiny parts, will feel the same way. Many people interested in being healthier and feeling better choose a periodic dietary and lifestyle detox to power their cells with nutrients and rid them of the heft of burdensome toxins. Some report that a good detox helps them feel better, have more energy, sleep better, and even lose weight.

These toxins can originate from stress, hormones, sleeplessness, or difficulty in digestion. They can also sprout from external pollutants, such as the air we breathe, the water we drink, and even what touches our skin. But the greatest assault of daily toxins often comes from the food that we eat, particularly our ingestion of sugar, nicotine, alcohol, caffeine, and chemicals - what nutritionist and detox specialist Dr. Elson Haas calls "SNACCs".

A carefully-planned detoxification program is a chance to take a break and relieve your body of many of these stresses. The goals of the program are to remove SNACCs from the diet entirely (or to the best of your ability), and to replace them with nutrients that help the body function and repair at optimal levels, either through supplements or highly nutritious foods.

Choosing a Cleansing

There are as many detoxification programs as there are practitioners, but here are a few of the most common. Note that these can be undertaken independently or combined.

Healthnotes Newswire (July 5, 2007)—The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced that, rather than being regulated by the standards used in the food industry, manufacturers of vitamins, minerals, and herbs will now be held to standards more in step with the pharmaceutical industry. Many supplement manufacturers have created and kept high standards for their products and welcome the new FDA regulations, since they ensure that other companies that have been slow to adopt such practices will be held to equal standards.

Healthnotes Newswire (June 28, 2007)—A new study finds that taking a combination extract of the herbs valerian (Valeriana officinalis) and hops (Humulus lupulus) can help people with insomnia fall asleep faster.

Your Cancer Prevention Routine

What’s the appropriate Cancer Prevention Supplement routine for you?

When you think of Herbs and Brain, take your mind out of the visions of a smoky cannabis club and think cognitive support.

The brain is our most important organ and, like other organs, responds to herbs to heal and restore it.

Brain expert Daniel Amen, Author of Making a Good Brain Great, concludes what’s good for the heart is good for the brain. Aside from taking herbs for your brain, general wellness measures, such as regular exercise, sleep, stress-reduction and a diet rich in antioxidants and moderate in saturated fats will help improve cognitive and other functions. You’ll also find that improvements in brain function will improve other areas of your life, such as athletic and sexual performance.

Healthnotes Newswire (April 12, 2007)—Arnica (Arnica montana), also known as leopard’s bane, has been used as a topical medicine since at least the sixteenth century. Now modern clinical research shows it to be equal to topical ibuprofen in treating osteoarthritis of the hands.

“Although a multitude of topical gel preparations for osteoarthritis of the hands are used by patients and prescribed by doctors, we set out to evaluate whether there was a noticeable difference between a commonly used synthetic NSAID [nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug] and a modern preparation of a traditional medical plant,” said Jörg Melzer, MD, of the Institute of Complementary Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, at the University of Zurich in Switzerland. “We chose this specific arnica preparation because of its demonstrated anti-inflammatory action, its ability to penetrate the skin, and its availability as a gel similar to ibuprofen gel.”

“Every culture has a way of describing that which animates human life. For the Chinese, the word ‘qi’ is at the heart of Chinese Medicine and the perspective on what health is about.

“Every living thing has qi, and it’s this qi that is enhanced, dispersed and regulated by both Chinese herbs and Acupuncture.

Many vitamin deficiency ailments such as beriberi, scurvy, and rickets require supplementation with vitamins and minerals, but some people question whether a healthy person truly needs supplemental vitamins and herbs.

Supplements will never take the place of eating well, but they are essential for the proper functioning of the human body and an important component of wellness. Nutrient depletion, toxins in our environment, and the stress of modern life all combine to make nutritional and herbal supplements an important component of sustained wellness.

The Master Cleanser diet, also called The Lemonade Diet, was created by Stanley Burroughs in 1941 and made popular by Peter Glickman through his book Lose Weight, Have More Energy and Be Happier in 10 Days.

The diet, according to nutrition and detoxification experts like Elson Haas, clears out toxins and speeds healing. The cleanse can remove congestion and toxins, and help you feel alert and focused. It can even help you feel younger.

The Master Cleanser diet consists of a liquid fast of:

• 2 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1/10 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 Tbsp maple syrup in eight ounces of spring water
• Ingest for 7 or 10 day

In addition, dieters drink lots of water and herbal tea, especially peppermint or chamomile.

The diet also keeps the bowels actively cleansing with proprietary laxative teas, enemas, and colon irrigations. Or, try this internal saltwater bath: First thing in the morning, drink two teaspoons of sea salt dissolved in one quart of warm water. Either way, some form of cleansing bowel movement should happen at least every other day.