Are There Ways to Purify and Heal Our Bodies?

As I sit at my desk eating french fries ...

The answer is actually quite simple. The more you eat fruits and vegetables, the more you stick to lean proteins and healthy grains, the more you avoid fried foods and fatty foods, the more water you drink and the more you exercise, the better you will feel.

Healthy diet and exercise. That's really all you need to do.

I have never done any detox/purification, but as the wife of a pharmacist I would say to be very careful with vitamins, minerals, herbs, and "natural" supplements. Many of them, especially herbal supplements, are not regulated and do not always contain what they say they contain. They also do not always do what they say they do. Many of them can also have adverse effects if they are combined with prescription drugs. Recent studies have also shown that vitamin supplements are not necessary if you are eating a healthy diet. Getting vitamins and minerals through food is the ideal.

The best thing to do is to eat as little processed food as possible. And drink lots of water (not the flavored waters). If you want flavored waters make your own infused water with fruits and even veggies like cucumber. It does not necessarily add vitamins and minerals to the water, but it does inhance the taste. Shop the outer rim of the grocery store (skipping the bakery area). It is actually better to eat raw fruits and veggies than to drink juice. Juicing takes away the fiber which is important. If you do drink juice, don't buy it. Juice your own. Some studies have also shown that frozen fruits and vegetables are just as good if not better than fresh. They are frozen at their peak. Fresh fruits and veggies lose vitamins and mineral the longer they are exposed to light and air. Buying local fruits and veggies is the best way to get them at their peak. Don't completely cut out carbs or proteins or fats. Eat whole grains. Eat more complex carbs. Eat healthy fats. Eat lean proteins.

Any exercise is good. Cardio and weight bearing excercises are best. You don't have to do intense, hour long exercises to benefit. Walking is a great workout.

Portion control is a huge part of weight loss and just being healthy in general. You can actually eat just about anything you want and still lose weight if you control how much and how often you eat the "bad things." It also helps to avoid foods that are trigger foods for you. I lost a lot of weight using Weight Watchers. I didn't cut out anything completely. I still ate pasta, cheese, cake, cookies, etc. The difference was that I limited them to once a week or less and I ate a much smaller portion than I normally would have. I also did try to avoid my trigger foods like French fries as much as possible, but I did treat myself once in awhile.

Taking time for yourself, doing something you like is important. That could be meditation. It could be taking a power nap or a power walk. It could be going for a massage. Personally, I haven't seen any long term benefits of massage. It is relaxing when I am getting the massage, but by the next day I don't really feel any benefits from it. For me, just sitting down and escaping in a good book is enough to relieve my stress. Going for a walk is enough for me to release built up emotions.

There is no "magic potion" to getting healthy. It takes work, it takes commintment, and it means totally changing your lifestyle. But, if you make it too much "work" you aren't going to stick with it. Find a way to change your lifestyle that fits into your lifestyle. If that makes sense. Make little changes at first. When that becomes natural, add something else. Make a commitment to stick to it. If something isn't working for you, drop it and try something else. If yoga just doesn't do it for you, find something that works better. If making your own juice takes too much time, find something that does work. If trying to fit in an hour at the gym every day is adding more stress to your life, find a different way to work out. If you are going to stick to something, you have to find a way of doing it that works for you. There is not cookie-cutter answer that fits every individual.

I eat as many raw, organic fruits and veggies as possible.

I eat raw nuts and I make smoothies with organic almond milk.

If I eat rice, I make sure it's organic. I eat organic sweet potatoes, too.

When I buy a food item, I look for a non-gmo label !!! Allergies have skyrocketed since gmos were introduced into our food...corn, wheat, soy, etc...

I do not eat wheat--even if it's organic---or white bread. Bad carbs...Most bread today contains sugar and corn syrup.

For air pollution...indoor air...the home can be very toxic. I use only green cleaners or vinegar and water. I do not use Fantastik or any of those toxic cleaners. If I do burn a candle --It is soy only.

I walk outside as much as I can !!! Outside air is cleaner !! When I go outside...I breather in deep and fill my diaphragm and breathe out...Do this a few times.

I drink pure water and organic green tea to flush out toxins.

Laughter is good !!! I love step aerobics. Sometimes I just put on my favorite music and dance for 20 minutes.

I never consume anything with corn syrup in it.

In the summer, I go to an organic farm where the soil is not soaked with chemicals and I get all my veggies there for 3 months.

I add organic turmeric and many other organic spices to my foods for health !!! Dr. Oz should have a list on his website.

Every so often, I splurge and eat what I want...Then, I go back to my pure diet.

If you feel hungry...Drink a glass of water or bubbly Perrier...or eat raw broccoli inbetween meals.
I do not deprive myself of calories. I try to exercise more to burn fat !!
Dieting is not good and makes one lose muscle.

Cleanses are fine and they do cleanse (what's in your intestines THAT DAY, they do not effect years of bad eating), but they are a temporary thing. As soon as you eat bad food again you're back to square one. If your lifestyle is healthy then you are constantly cleansing and don't need any cleanses.

What has cleared out my system, brightened my skin, given me energy, regulated my system, etc is eating well and exercising regularly. The most important part of my diet is FRESH LIVING FOOD. I make it a point to eat 75 to 80% raw fresh fruit and vegetables (organic whenever possible) every day and the other 20/25% is healthy carbs, healthy protein, a little junk. I drink water and tea. very little alcohol or coffee. I exercise to keep circulation and all systems healthy. You can't ALWAYS do this high ratio of living food while traveling and on holidays and stuff, but when you get back on track you improve again immediately. My skin glows, my hair shines, I'm 43 and healthier than I was in my 30's when I wasn't as conscious of eating healthy natural food and TONS of veggies.

I never juice or cleanse or buy fancy supplements or fad health things. Cook with herbs and stick to lots of raw food. You'll feel like new and it won't be temporary. Actually when I started the "Fit For Life" eating style (book from 80s, author Diamond) that I'm still doing, it was like a detox cleanse at first. I rapidly shed weight, I had some break-outs and diarrhea the first week before my body got used to the clean eating and started to keep weight off effortlessly. Now it's just easy maintenance. You don't pack on pounds or jam up your system when you eat right, so you don't really need cleanses. If you want a cleanse to kick start yourself, the most important thing is to eat healthfully after that so its not all for nothing.

The essential oils are mainly hype. they're fragrant and nice, but limited in what they actually achieve. Some say they achieve nothing at all. But fresh herbs in your food can change your life. "Mind Body Green" site and FB page has awesome health and wellness tips and recipes for the things you are asking.

One of my friends goes twice per year and does a Native American ritual(?). She goes to a certain place and drinks a tea like drink then spends some time in a building/hut. I really don't know a lot about it but I do know this woman has never been ill, she's nearly 100 and has not been sick in the 20 years I've known her.

Another friend goes to fairs/flea markets/craft fairs and sells foot baths. They have the person sit down and put their feet in this liquid for a certain amount of time. The way it smells will almost always tell her what they eat/drink/work at and more. When her husband does it the water smells like motor oil and car fluids. He's a mechanic. I told her I imagine it would smell like chocolate and Dr. Pepper. I've not done it myself but she says they both feel so much better after they do this regularly.

Sorry, but there is no one solution. I agree that you should pay attention to every little thing that you put into your body. Each body is different and will respond to more or less of certain things.

While you're documenting it all, be sure to drink plenty water, AND become more active bit by bit. If you sit at a desk all day, get up every time you think of something that requires your foot traffic, instead of combining your visits into one trip. That can help you get used to moving around more.

Make note of which foods energize you and which bog you down. I have a gluten sensitivity. When I stick to my gluten-free diet, I feel more energized. The gluten makes me feel sluggish and makes my joints ache. Watermelon and oranges and cucumbers make me feel awake and alert. Beef gets my plumbing flowing, which is the opposite effect that it has on my husband. Listen closely to YOUR body.

I love apple cider vinegar and Epsom salt baths or foot soaks. I'm getting ready to try a castor oil pack placed over the area where my liver is (outside, on my skin).

Since you're so new at this it's probably worth it to work with a qualified alternative health care provider. They can do some testing and see where your problem areas are. You will figure it out faster than just trying different stuff.

Also, with any supplements always be careful how they interact with any medications or other conditions that pertain to you.

I'm not a health care provider of any type - this is just my "mom" opinion.

ETA: I do much better off wheat, dairy and processed food.

Just eat real food, in reasonable amounts. It really is that simple.

Have cut out processed food, lots of sugar, soda, juices, "diet" foods like skinny cow or those lean cuisine microwaved meals. Eating right and feeling good is very basic and easy in my opinion. My life is more simplified

I have replaced all these with more natural options....We make our own juice, and for a sweet tooth fix I even make my own gummis!

As for workouts..yoga and just working out in general.

I'd start off by looking at everything you put into your body every day. Write down what you eat and how much. There are a ton of free trackers on line that you can use. Once you do that for a week go back and analyse to see if you notice anything wrong. If you are eating a lot of snack food, candy, soda, empty calories then that's the first thing you need to change. There's no magic bullet on weight loss and better health. It's just a matter of plugging away at it every day.

Do a colon cleanse. Give yourself a long weekend from start to finish. You can't just do it on a Saturday and Sunday. And plan to stick close to a toilet the entire time. Cleanses go through different people in different ways. See if your doctor can recommend one. If not, there are plenty of OTC ones. Central Market or any health food /nutrition central place should have good ones.

Be prepared when you're finished, filling your pantry with all natural pure juices and fresh fruits and veggies. From that point you can start re-introducing foods back into your system, but if you're going to go through a colon cleanse, go for the purest, most organic foods you can buy.

And if you just have respiratory allergies, try removing as much cow's milk and wheat from your diet. I have terrible chronic dust allergies and staying away from cow's milk and wheat helped me not build up so much mucus. Try fortified coconut, almond, goat or rice milk instead.

You will feel so much better, allergies or not!

Eat healthy and exercise. And exercise.

Reread Amy J.'s response.

Sometimes after a bout of bad eating my body really benefits from a few days of juicing. But the real big change we made that has totally changed the way we feel is going plant based.

Try a couple of healthier solutions that you can sustain forever.

1. Low-fat menu. Or...
2. Low-cal menu. Or..
3. Low-carb mediterranean menu.

What I'm getting at, is that each person is truly unique. Trying to use a solution that someone else has used only works once you have discovered what makes YOU feel good. For me it's low carb. As soon as I start (after Christmas cookie season) I feel free, energetic and happy. Creative salads, some fats, protiens, veggies and berries make me a very happy girl. I do not eat any manufactured low-carb garbage bars or drinks, as they are filled with chemicals.

I hope you find out what works for you, then keep a daily record of what you eat and how you feel, and reward your successes!