Your liver is processing toxins 24 hours a day, 7 days per week your entire life (except in the cases of liver disease). But, this detox process can get overwhelmed and backed up. Detoxing is a way to make this process more efficient and get rid of all that backlog.

What is a toxin?

Basically, it's anything that your body no longer needs and it's also chemicals that your body never needed. This includes hormones, inflammation, products of the immune system, pollution, pesticides, medications etc.

If I stop eating am I cleansing?

No. When you stop eating, or only drink water or juice your liver detoxification pathways will slow down. These pathways use a lot of protein, vitamins and minerals.

If I take laxatives, does this help?

No. You need to have regular, daily, healthy bowel movements in order to detox properly but taking laxatives is not the answer. If you are constipated, do not start a detox until the constipation has been resolved. Using laxatives, even natural/herbal ones, does not count. Nor does using magnesium or vitamin C to induce bowel movements.

What about the layers of dried fecal matter some people say has accumulated on the inside of our colon?

I used to believe that, but I no longer do. When doctors perform a colonoscopy on someone, they go quite far up the colon and never see this. If you are really concerned, consider having a colonoscopy and figure out a way to see the video. You will most likely only see pink mucous membrane. (It looks similar to the inside of your cheek, but with lots of folds and shaped differently.)

What about 3 or 5 day cleanses? Those sound good to me.

In my opinon they are not the best idea. It takes time to clear out toxins. It takes time for your liver to process all the backlog. If you really want to be healthy naturally, you need to be patient.

I know this is a world where, if something is not instant it is too slow, but natural medicine just doesn't work that way.

Be patient and you will be rewarded.

Can I detox if I smoke?

In my opinion this is pointless. Smoking is a huge input of toxins into your system. You cannot effectively clear toxins out while you are putting so many toxins in. If you really want to be healthy, focus your energy on quitting smoking or on exploring and dealing with the reasons why you smoke.

Do I have to change my diet in order to detox?

In order to detox well, yes. Again, junk food, unhealthy food, fatty/fried foods, sugar, caffeine and alcohol (to name a few) all contribute to the overall toxicity of the body and also slow down the liver detox pathways.

If you want to get the toxins out, you need to stop putting them in.

What is the point in changing my diet for a detox, when I am just going to go back to my old diet?

There's not much point, so maybe re-think the part about going back to your old diet.

Eating healthy foods is a big part of being healthy.

Author's Bio: 

Tina Christie ND, is a naturopathic doctor and health educator. Helping others through naturopathic medicine is Dr. Christie's great passion.

She has been licensed and in private practice since 2002 in Brampton and Toronto, Canada and enjoys bringing her years of experience to the information she shares with others.