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The Role of Toxins Toxins enter our body through the air we breathe, the water we drink, the foods we eat, and the things we touch, the products we apply to our skin, and even the pools we swim in. The chemical residue is referred to as a person's body burden, a chemical legacy that scientist say is the result of decades of our increasing reliance on synthetic chemicals in our everyday lives. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has released three assessments of the nation's collective body burden since 1999, and each "biomonitoring" reports shows how we're becoming more and more contaminated from a stew of pesticides, solvents, plastics, and metals that are a result of living in a material world. The latest report, issued in 2005, declared that CDC scientists looked for 148 environmental chemicals in blood and urine samples from a random sample of several thousand participants. As a way of comparison, the initial report in 1999 tested for only 27, yet nearly 80,000 chemicals are registered for use in commerce today. The major findings in 2005, were that children have higher concentration of stored chemicals than adults, especially heavy metals, pesticides, and a family of chemicals, called phthalates, which are used to increase plastic's flexibility and resiliency. Women of childbearing age continue to show a high exposure to mercury, which is harmful to an unborn baby growing in the womb. "We have found our own nest, " said pediatrician Jerry Paulson, MD., a spokesman for Physician's for Social Responsibility, following the release of the Third National Report on Human Exposure to Environmental Chemicals. "We've contaminated the environment sufficiently that there are measurable amounts of potentially toxic substances in people-kids and adults." The body attempts to absorb and excrete toxins in different ways. Water-soluble toxins things like uric acid and ammonia, are primarily excreted in urine, while others, like carbon dioxide and benzodiazepines, are released from the skin and lungs. Fat-soluble chemicals such as dioxins, phthalates, and chlorine accumulate in our fatty tissues, where they may persist for months or years before they're eliminated from our systems, mainly through our bowels and perspiration. Though it would be impossible to go back to a pristine Garden of Eden-like world, it behooves us to take steps to protect ourselves and our children from potentially harmful toxins in our environment. Detoxification The digestive tract is the part of the body most exposed to environment threats, including bacteria, viruses, parasites, and toxins-and it requires the immune system support. When food is broken down in the intestines, it travels through the blood to the liver, the largest organ of the body's natural detoxification system. The liver breaks down and removes the toxic by products produced by digestion, including natural ones and the chemicals which are present in the food supply. During fasting, the liver and immune system are essentially freed to detoxify and heal other parts of the body. Chemicals, many of which are known to cause health problems, are also found in food, air, and water. Toxins are also produced as natural by products in the intestines by the bacteria which break down food, and the digestion of protein also creates toxic by-products in the body. The body has natural methods of detoxification, but intentional detoxification through fasting may be selected when the body's natural detoxification systems become overwhelmed. Fast "Feedback" According to a study appearing in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences conducted y Mark P. Mattson, Ph. D. shows that "...in mice at least-skipping meals improves glucose metabolism and insulin levels, and it also seems to protect brain cells." The meal skipping mice had nerve cells that were more resistant to neurotoxin injury or death-more so than other mice. "We don't recommend people go whole days without eating." Mattson states. "However, we think this does suggest that skipping meals may not be bad-in fact, it may be good for you. In terms of our history, it's only very recently that humans began eating three meals a day plus snacks. Our ancestors had to compete for limited supplies of food; and had to go hours, sometimes days without food." James Dillard, M.D., assistant clinical professor at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York City, remarks about "detox" diets and fasting: "Certainly, the human body carries huge loads of petrochemicals. We know people usually die with the full burden of PCB's they've ever been exposed to "stuck" in their liver. DDT sticks around, too." Can fasting remove these? Dillard responds, "Theorectically, yes. When fat is mobilized, anything that is fat-soluble should be mobilized, too." Each year people are exposed to thousands of toxic chemicals and pollutants in the atmosphere, water, food, and soil. As a result of the Industrial Revolution and post-World War II petrochemical revolution, toxins have accumulated in the human system faster than they can be eliminated. People now carry within their bodies industrial chemicals, pesticides, food additives, heavy metals (like lead), and anesthetics, plus the residue of pharmaceuticals. In recent history, people have been exposed to chemicals in far greater concentrations than were previous generations; over sixty nine million Americans live in areas that exceed smog standards; most drinking water contains over 700 chemicals, including excessive levels of lead; some 3,000 chemicals are added to the food supply; and as many as 10,000 chemicals in the form of solvents, emulsifiers, and preservatives are used in food processing and storage, which can remain in the body for years. Bodily Organs of Elimination in Detoxification
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