(Picture from Holistic Dental Institute)

For decades fluoride has been praised for its abilities to strengthen teeth and prevent cavities. It’s even been added to a majority of drinking water since the 1940s in efforts to improve peoples’ dental health.

However when you start digging into the research something about this narrative doesn’t quite add up. That something is actually many things. For starters “…fluoride is a waste product that is so toxic it is not allowed to be dumped in our landfills, and yet somehow it is routinely added to our water supply.” (1)

The types of fluoride added to our water over 90% of the time are silicofluorides. These silicofluorides are 85x more toxic than the naturally occurring calcium fluoride. (2) Silicofluorides are a toxic waste product from the phosphate fertilizer industry. (2, 3, 4, 5)

Rather than pay $1.40 per gallon (or more depending on how much cadmium, lead, uranium and arsenic are also present) to neutralize and properly dispose of silicofluorides, phosphate fertilizer companies sell non-neutralized toxic silicofluorides to the government to add directly into the public drinking water. (2, 5)

In other words, your tax dollars are going towards poisoning your own drinking water, because greedy phosphate fertilizer companies don’t want to pay to properly dispose of the chemicals they are releasing.

What Is Fluoride?

I’ve told you that silicofluorides are a toxic waste product of the phosphate fertilizer industry, but what about fluoride as a larger group, what’s that?

“Fluoride is the anion (negatively charged ion) of the halogen element fluorine.” (6) Fluorine is a pale yellow, highly toxic, and corrosive gas that is rarely ever found in nature due to its instability. Fluorine (like all halogens) is missing 1 electron in it’s valence shell, this is what makes it so unstable. (6, 7, 8, 9)

To gain stability, halogens must acquire another electron. When fluorine does, it becomes fluoride (F⁻). The negative charge of fluoride leads it to bind with positive charged elements in nature like calcium ions (Ca²⁺) to make calcium fluoride (CaF₂). (7, 8, 9) Silicofluorides contain silicon, fluoride, and sometimes another element (like sodium).

Many pro-fluoride organizations claim that nature thought of adding fluoride to water first. In this statement they are referring to calcium fluoride which is found in some water in nature. However the fluoride in our water, silicofluorides, are quite different. (9) Studies show that calcium fluoride doesn’t dissolve easily in water and less than 2% of it gets absorbed by animals and most of that is excreted in the urine. On the other hand silicofluorides dissolve much easier in water and a greater amount is absorbed. (9) This is one reason why silicofluorides are 85x more toxic than calcium fluoride. (2)

However even calcium fluoride is not benign. Studies show that animals given calcium fluoride developed mottled teeth, aka dental fluorosis. In dental fluorosis, fluoride causes calcification of the enamel which gives a white chalky appearance at first, which gradually turns brown, as seen in the picture below. (9, 10)

A few more notes about fluoride:

• It’s a cumulative toxins meaning it accumulate in the body (9)
• The FDA classifies fluoride as a prescription drug (2, 11)
• The National Research Council (NRC) of the National Academies classifies fluoride as an endocrine (hormone) disruptor stating that “fluorides have the ability to interfere with functions of the brain.” (3)
• The US Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) lists fluorides “among the top 20 of 275 substances that pose the most significant threat to human health.” (9)
• In Australia’s National Pollutant Inventory (NPI) “fluoride compounds were ranked 27th out of the 208 ranks.” (9)

Now that you know what fluoride is and some of the concerns about it, lets look at some specific negative health consequences of fluoride.

Health Consequences Of Fluoride:

1) Decreases Intelligence

Fluoride is a neurotoxin that has been shown to cross the blood brain barrier, decrease mental function, and decrease IQ. (1, 3, 9, 12) There is an “overwhelming weight of evidence that fluoride is neurotoxic. These include one hundred thirty human brain studies; two hundred forty-one animal brain studies; thirty-three cellular brain studies; and thirty review studies.” (3)

As far as IQ goes, as of 2019, there were 60 studies on IQ and fluoride, 53 of which showed a lowered IQ in children in communities with high fluoride exposure compared to communities with lower fluoride exposure. The average decrease in IQ was 7 IQ points. (3)

“It should be noted that a shift downward of five IQ points in a large population would halve the number of very bright children (IQ greater than one hundred thirty) and increase by over 50 percent the number of mentally handicapped (IQ lower than seventy). Such a downward shift would have both huge economic and social consequences for a country like the USA.” (3)

A decrease in IQ in children has also been correlated with an increased fluoride consumption of the mother during pregnancy. This was found in two separate studies one in Canada and one in Mexico. (12) In the Canadian study “An increase of 1 milligram of fluoride was associated with a decrease of almost 4 IQ points, where the overall association was driven by boys.” (12)

The Mexico study looked at 299 mother-offspring pairs and found a strong correlation between “fluoride exposure to the pregnant women (as measured in their urine) and lowered IQ in their offspring at age four and again at six to twelve years of age. Subsequently, in 2018, a study reported that the lowering of IQ in the same cohort also occurred in an earlier age range (one to three years).” (3)

Fluoride has also been linked with ADHD. “A 2015 study found a relationship between the prevalence of ADHD in the U.S. and fluoridation status by state; the higher the percentage of the state fluoridated, the greater the prevalence of ADHD.” (3)

In another study, rats exposed to fluoride in water were found to store fluoride in their brain tissue indicating that fluoride can pass the blood brain barrier. And high concentrations in the brain induced behavior changes. (12)

2) Calcifies The Pineal Gland

Fluoride has also been found to accumulate in the pineal gland resulting in the formation of phosphate crystals, aka calcification. (13) The pineal gland is a tiny gland in your brain responsible for the production of melatonin, maintaining the circadian rhythm, regulating the onset of puberty in females, and protecting the body from cell damage caused by free radicals. (13)

Once the pineal gland is calcified it becomes under active and struggles to maintain its normal functions. (13) This can lead to:

• Trouble sleeping
• Early puberty onset for women
• Breast cancer
• Increased oxidative stress
• Alzheimer’s Disease

(13)

“Even the first published fluoridation safety experiment based in Newburg, New York, supported the early puberty claims. As the authors uncovered, girls living in a fluoridated community reached puberty five months earlier than girls living in a non-fluoridated community.” (13)

The pineal gland is also called the third eye and associated with our connection to the divine in many cultures. A blocked third eye (aka a calcified pineal gland) is said to lead to confusion, uncertainty, cynicism, pessimism, and a spiritual disconnect. (14) Where as an open third eye is associated with telepathy, clairvoyance, lucid dreaming, astral projection, and a greater spiritual connection. (13)

Due to the mass fluoridation of water, most people over the age of 18 now have a calcified pineal gland. (13)

3) Increases Cavities

Despite fluoride’s mass claims to improve dental health and prevent cavities, it doesn’t do either of these. In fact some studies show it may actually make both worse!

“The largest study of tooth decay in America (by the National Institute of Dental Research in 1987) proved that there was no significant difference in the decay rates of 39,000 fluoridated, partially fluoridated and non-fluoridated children, ages 5 to 17, surveyed in 84 cities. The media has never disclosed these facts. The study cost us, the taxpayers, $3,670,000. Surely, we are entitled to hear the results.” (2)

Fluoride doesn’t prevent tooth decay, it delays it by provoking a genetic malfunction that causes teeth to erupt later than normal. Therefore in many studies the statistics are very skewed as teeth that have not yet erupted are counted as no decay. (2)

In one study, “… they claimed that the fluoridated Newburgh children age 6 had 100 percent less tooth decay; by age 7, 100 percent less; by age 8, 67 percent less; age 9, 50 percent less; and by age 10, 40 percent less. Obviously, the only reduction that really counted was the 40 percent by age 10, but the Public Health Service totaled the five reductions shown, then divided by 5 to obtain what they called ‘an over-all reduction of 70 percent.’ Had the Health Department continued their survey beyond age 10, they would have found that the percentage of reduction continued down hill to 30, 20, 0, and eventually the children drinking fluoridated water had more cavities–not less. The rate of decay is identical, once the children’s teeth erupt. In other words, this ’65 percent less dental decay’ is just a statistical illusion. It never happened!” (2)

Another interesting case is that of children from the African country of Uganda. These children have less tooth decay than American children. This is thought to be for 2 main reasons. One, most Ugandan children do not use fluoride tooth paste or have fluoridated water. And two they do not eat sugar and processed and refined junk foods like many Americans do. (15)

To dig more into the fluoride aspect, we can compare Ugandan children who live in high fluoride and low fluoride districts. “No teeth were lost due to caries (cavities) in the low fluoride district but 6 of 135 (4%) in the high-fluoride district,” report authors Rwenyonyi, et al. Ugandan children, aged 10 to 14, with similar socioeconomic backgrounds and diets, who lived their entire lives in either low fluoride (0.5 mg fluoride per liter) or high fluoride water districts (2.5 mg fluoride per liter), were examined for tooth decay by the same dentist, with results verified. ‘Surprisingly, there was a significantly higher caries prevalence and DMFT (decayed, missing, filled teeth) score in the high-fluoride district than in the low-fluoride district,’ the authors write.” (15)

Since these children had similar diets and lifestyle it leads me to believe that the fluoride played a major role in the cavity rates.

Further evidence supports this theory. For example, when looking at a different African population, we see the same results. “Children drinking 3.0 mg/L water fluoride have more cavities than children drinking .19 and .48 mg/L fluoride. In contrast, only 65% of fluoride-saturated American 10-year-olds are cavity-free and a, mere, 35% of 14-year-olds are cavity-free.” (15)

Another example can be seen in Europe. “Ireland, 73% fluoridated since the 1960’s, has a higher tooth decay rate than five other European countries that don’t fluoridate the water, according to the June 30, 2001, Irish Independent.” (15)

And another example can be seen in the “world’s largest study on dental caries, which looked at 400,000 students, [and] revealed that decay increased 27 percent with a 1ppm fluoride increase in drinking water. In Japan, fluoridation caused decay increases of 7 percent in 22,000 students, while in the US a decay increase of 43 percent occurred in 29,000 students when 1ppm fluoride was added to drinking water.” (9)

4) Increases Dental Fluorosis

I talked briefly about dental fluorosis in the “what is fluoride” section. To reiterate, dental fluorosis (aka mottled teeth) occurs when fluoride causes calcification of the enamel which gives a white chalky appearance at first, which gradually turns brown. (10, 23)

While many dismiss this as “just a cosmetic defect,” it actually predisposes tooth decay. Dr. Weston Price DDS further explained that excess fluoride in the water “even a small fraction of this concentration, when present in drinking water, greatly disturbs normal tooth and bone development, producing the unsightly disfigurement of brown stains and mottled enamel.” (8)

Dr. Price also stated that fluoride “… may ruin teeth of grazing animals, by making them so brittle that they break off.” (8)

It has long been known that fluoride is detrimental to dental health. “In 1944, the Journal of the American Dental Association reported: ‘With 1.6 to 4 ppm fluoride in the water, 50 percent or more past age 24 have false teeth because of fluoride damage to their own.’” (9)

The origins of fluorinating water came about from a dentist named H. Trendley Dean. In 1939 Dean examined the water from 345 communities in Texas. He found that high concentrations of fluoride in water correlated with high incidences of dental fluorosis. And he found that communities having about 1 ppm fluoride in the water supply had less incidences of dental fluorosis, by less he still meant 10% of the people. (9)

Based on that, Dean decided that 1 ppm fluoride in the water supply must be the perfect amount and many cities began adding 1 ppm fluoride to their water supply. However Dean’s report had left out some key facts. For instance, his report used data from the 21 cities that supported his claim, while leaving out the 272 other cities that did not show the same correlation! (9)

Later “in court cases Dean was forced to admit under oath that his data were invalid. In 1957 he had to admit at AMA hearings that even waters containing a mere 0.1ppm (0.1 mg/l) could cause dental fluorosis, the first visible sign of fluoride overdose. Moreover, there is not one single double-blind study to indicate that fluoridation is effective in reducing cavities.” (9)

Unfortunately this info has not reached much of the public and the lie that fluoride is good for your dental health has only snowballed. Meanwhile, “Currently up to 80 percent of US children suffer from some degree of dental fluorosis, while in Canada the figure is up to 71 percent. A prevalence of 80.9 percent was reported in children 12-14 years old in Augusta, Georgia, the highest prevalence yet reported in an ‘optimally’ fluoridated community in the United States. Moderate-to-severe fluorosis was found in 14 percent of the children.” (9)

5) Increases Skeletal Fluorosis

Skeletal Fluorosis is very similar to dental fluorosis. It’s also caused by fluoride calcification but in the bones instead of teeth. Skeletal Fluorosis is “a serious bone disorder resembling osteopetrosis and characterized by extreme density and hardness and abnormal fragility of the bones.” (7)

Skeletal Fluorosis can also cause joint pain and stiffness, bony outgrowths, bone fractures, and dyspnea, (difficulty in breathing because of the rigidity of the thoracic cage). (6)

“In more advanced cases of fluoride exposure, bones become held together by masses of new bone laid down in the joint socket, ligaments, and tendons. This results in the locking up of joints and permanent inability of victims to move or flex their joints. Vertebrae become fused at many places. This results in the characteristic ‘hunch back’ symptom of skeletal fluorosis,” as seen in the pictures above and below. (16)

(Pictures from SCRI Group)

Fluoride is a cumulative toxin meaning it accumulates in the bones overtime. This accumulation can alter the resorption (break down of weak parts of the bone so they can be rebuilt stronger) and the accretion (rebuilding) of bone tissue as well as the homeostasis of bone mineral metabolism. (17)

“Fluoride has [also] been shown to interfere with collagen formation in osteoblasts and chondroblasts. If, as pointed out, increased production of imperfect collagen or collagen-like protein results in mineralization of tissues which should not be mineralized, and vice versa.” (16) This leads to the previously mentioned side effects.

Research by Dr. Jolly and her team shows that as little as 0.7 ppm fluoride in drinking water led to bone deformities and Skeletal Fluorosis in India, with the occurrence and severity increasing with increasing levels of fluoride in the drinking water. (16)

“In the United States, Dr. George Waldbott also diagnosed some of the early symptoms [of Skeletal Fluorosis]… including arthritis and joint pains, as being due to the consumption of water fluoridated at 1 part per million.” (16)

More incidences of fluoride (this time airborne) causing arthritic symptoms can be found in Switzerland, Germany, Britain, United States, Canada, and North Africa. In one incident, “they had found in a brick manufacturing area about 50 miles outside of London where they reported that over 90% of the population was suffering from arthritis induced by air-borne fluoride.” (16)

6) Other Health Consequences:

Fluoride consumption has also been linked to:

• Hypothyroidism (3, 9)
• Death (12)
• Cancer (2)
• Genetic Damage (2)
• Damage To The Blood, Bone, Brain, Heart, Kidneys, Liver, Lungs, Thyroid, And Reproductive System. (1, 3)
• Hardening Of Arteries (16)
• Black Tarry Stools (9)
• Vomit (Sometimes Bloody) (9)
• Stomach Cramps Or Pain (9)
• Tremors (9)
• Constipation (9)
• Loss Of Appetite (9)
• Skin Rashes (9)
• Sores In The Mouth And On The Lips (9)
• Weight Loss (9)
• Accelerated Aging (9)
• Immune System Dysfunction (9)
• Gut Inflammation (9)

What You Can Do

The best thing you can do is to get a good quality water filter that removes fluoride. I chose to buy the Berky with the added fluoride filters, but any high quality water filter will do as long as it’s tested to remove fluoride. Remember to also avoid fluoride in products like tooth paste and mouth washes. Making your own toothpaste is a great option. I’ve been doing this for over 6 years and you can find my favorite toothpaste recipe here!

And if you want to learn more about what’s in tap water and why you should probably get a water filter, check out this post!

Works Cited

1. Griffin, Cole. “The Problem With Fluoride.” The Weston A. Price Foundation. 6 May 2019. https://www.westonaprice.org/podcast/186-the-problem-with-fluoride/

2. Shattuck, Anita. “Fluoridation: The Fraud of the Century.” The Weston A. Price Foundation. 15 May 2004. https://www.westonaprice.org/health-topics/environmental-toxins/fluoridation-the-fraud-of-the-century/

3. Connett, Paul. “Water Fluoridation.” The Weston A. Price Foundation. 25 April, 2019. https://www.westonaprice.org/health-topics/environmental-toxins/water-fluoridation/

4. “Where Does the Fluoride Added to Water Come from?” Fluoride Alert. 8 January 2012. http://fluoridealert.org/faq/where-does-the-fluoride-that-is-added-to-water-come-from/

5. Connett, Michael. “The Phosphate Fertilizer Industry: An Environmental Overview.” Fluoride Alert. May 2003. http://fluoridealert.org/articles/phosphate01/

6. “Does Berkey Remove Fluoride?” Berky Filters. Accessed 29 June 2021. https://www.berkeyfilters.com/pages/do-berkey-filters-remove-fluoride

7.”Fluoride Fact Sheet.” Water Quality Association. Accessed 29 June 2021. https://www.wqa.org/Portals/0/Technical/Technical%20Fact%20Sheets/2014_Fluoride.pdf

8. Price, Weston. “Nutrition and Physical Degeneration.” California: Price-Pottenger Nutritional Foundation. 2014. Print.

9. Schuld, Andreas. “Fluoride: Worse than We Thought.” The Weston A. Price Foundation. 14 April 2004. https://www.westonaprice.org/health-topics/environmental-toxins/fluoride-worse-than-we-thought/

10. “Mottled Enamel.” The Free Dictionary. Accessed 29 June 2021. https://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/mottled+tooth

11. “Nutrient or Drug?” Fluoride Alert. Accessed 29 June 2021. https://fluoridealert.org/researchers/fda/drug/

12. Aggeborn, Linuz and Öhman, Mattias. “The Effects of Fluoride in Drinking Water.” The University Of Chicago Press Journals. Accessed 29 June 2021. https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/711915

13. Krol, Casey. “Fluoride’s Effect On The Pineal Gland?” Truth About Fluoride. 17 June 2021. https://truthaboutfluoride.com/fluorides-effect-on-the-pineal-gland/

14. Murphy, Andye. “The Pineal Gland and The Third Eye Chakra.” Gaia. 26 February 2020. https://www.gaia.com/article/pineal-third-eye-chakra

15. Kopf, Carol. Fluoride Dangers. 11 December 2005. https://fluoridedangers.blogspot.com/2005/12/fluoride-causes-cavities.html

16. “Aging the Bone: The Degenerative Effects of Skeletal Fluorosis.” SCRI Group. Accessed 29 jUNE 2021. https://www.scrigroup.com/limba/engleza/100/Aging-the-Bone-The-Degenerativ43711.php

17. Krishnamachari, K A. “Skeletal fluorosis in humans: a review of recent progress in the understanding of the disease.” Progress in food & nutrition science vol. 10,3-4 (1986): 279-314.

Epsom salt baths help increase lymphatic flow and improve drainage by increasing circulation. They also cause you to sweat which helps release toxins out your pores and promote clear skin.

Epsom salt contains magnesium and sulfates. Magnesium plays a critical role in over 325 enzymes, helps improve muscle and nerve function, decreases inflammation, and improves blood flow and oxygenation throughout the body. (1) Needless to say it’s important!

You can actually absorb and utilize magnesium from epsom salt baths. And since most people are deficient in magnesium, finding ways to get more can benefit most people.

Sulfates are necessary building blocks for healthy joints, skin, and nervous tissue. Sulfates can also be absorbed and utilized from epsom salt baths. (1)

Baths can also be very relaxing and de-stressing. And in a world with so much stress, finding ways to de-stress is one of the most important things we can do for our health, longevity, and vitality.

How To Do An Epsom Salt Bath

1) Fill the bath with the hottest water you can tolerate.

2) Add 1/2 cup – 2 cups epsom salts into the running water. Use less if you’re a beginner or are smaller.

3) Soak for at least 20 minutes. Get out before the water turns cold.

4) Rinse your body before getting out.

P.S. If you’d like to learn more about detoxing and cleansing check out my in depth guide on how to detox and cleanse your body.

Works Cited

1. Katja. Savory Lotus. Accessed 11 June 2021. https://www.instagram.com/savorylotus/

If the lymphatic system becomes stagnant, toxins and waste from lymph, organs, tissues, and cells can build up. (Remember everything higher on the drainage funnel can’t be eliminated, if the lymph is blocked, see this post for details on the drainage funnel). This build up of toxins can cause immune dysfunction, skin issues, weight gain, brain fog, bloating, fatigue, and other health problems. (1)

Dry brushing is a helpful tool for improving lymphatic drainage. Since your lymphatic system doesn’t have a pump, like your cardiovascular system does, it relies on other things like exercise, movement, dry brushing, sweating, and hot and cold exposure to help move it.

Dry brushing is when you brush your skin, while dry, with a natural soft bristle brush (preferably with a long handle so you can get your back too!) or with a gua sha (a small wooden, metal, or stone tool used in traditional Chinese medicine) in the direction of your lymphatic flow to stimulate movement and unclog block up areas.

Dry brushing also helps exfoliate your skin, remove dead skin, and open clogged pores which helps your skin to better eliminate toxins through sweat.

Improving lymph flow through dry brushing may also help get rid of/prevent cellulite.

How Do You Dry Brush?

1) First of all, it’s important to understand that the lymphatic system flows in a particular way and it’s important to brush in the direction of lymphatic flow to effectively increase flow and avoid stagnation. (See direction of lymphatic flow in picture above). Also when you’re brushing, avoid any areas with abrasions or rashes, and sensitive areas such as your face, breasts and private parts.

2) Use your brush or gua sha to brush your bare skin in the direction of your lymphatic flow. Don’t brush too hard! The key is to be gentle enough to stimulate the flow of lymph yet use enough pressure to get things moving. Your skin should be slightly pink but it shouldn’t be red or scratched after. Note it’s best to do dry brushing earlier in the day because it can be energizing.

3) Start brushing on your lower abdomen. Brush in small strokes up towards your heart. Brush each area with about 5-10 strokes, you can spend more time on problem areas with backed up lymph if you wish.

4) Then brush the upper quadrant of your torso with small strokes towards the closer armpit. Brush from all angles (front, back, sides, and shoulder). Then brush the upper arm in small strokes towards your armpit. Then do the same on the lower arm and then hands.

5) Then work your way back up the arms, again with small strokes towards the armpit. Starting with your hands, then lower arm, then upper arm.

6) Then revisit the upper quadrant, but this time briefly brush towards your heart not your armpit. The purpose of this is to redirect some lymph towards your heart drainage so too much doesn’t build up at your armpits.

7) Repeat the same upper body brushing on the other side.

8) For your legs, start with the upper leg and brush in small strokes towards the groin. Remember to work all around your leg. Then do the same with your knee, then lower leg, then ankle and foot.

9) Then work your way back up the leg starting with your foot and ankle, then lower leg, then knee, then upper leg. Remember to get around your entire leg and continue to brush towards your groin.

10) Repeat the same thing for your other leg.

11) Then return to your lower abdomen and brush up towards the heart.

12) Finally rinse off in the shower (preferably cold) to remove the dead skin that got brushed up. Then you may apply a little oil or moisturizer if you wish.

(1, 2, 3, 4, 5)

P.S. If you’d like to learn more about detoxing and cleansing check out my in depth guide on how to detox and cleanse your body.

Works Cited

1. Katja. Savory Lotus. Accessed 11 June 2021. https://www.instagram.com/savorylotus/

2. “Lymphatic Skin Brushing for Breast And Body Health.” Circuelle Foundation. Accessed 11 June 2021. https://www.circuellefoundation.org/blog/item/lymphatic-skin-brushing-for-breast-and-body-health.html

3. Wells, Katie. “Dry Brushing for Skin: 5 Benefits & How to Do It the Right Way.” Wellness Mama. 8 January 2021. https://wellnessmama.com/26717/dry-brushing-skin/

4. “Dry Brushing for Lymphatic Drainage – Shown the Best way by a Lymphedema Physical Therapist.” Youtube, Uploaded by Cancer Rehab PT. 6 October 2020. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1YnVb9Ie-r0

5. Gould, Wendy. “Everything You Should Know About Dry Brushing.” The Klog. 20 January 2017. https://theklog.co/dry-brushing/

What Is A Coffee Enema?

Enemas are actually an ancient health practice used in many cultures. The first recorded use dates back to 1550 BC in Egypt.

A coffee enema is when you use an enema kit (bucket + tube) to put lukewarm coffee into your intestines via your anus.

During an enema, coffee is held in the intestines and caffeine is absorbed into the bloodstream and travels to your liver. This stimulates the liver and gall bladder to push out bile which carries the toxins from your liver into your colon and out of the body with your bowel movement. This makes coffee enemas excellent for liver and bile duct cleansing! (1, 2, 3)

Since enemas are flushing out your intestines they can also help relieve constipation and get things moving in your colon.

Coffee enemas can also help kill and flush out parasites, stimulate the vagus nerve and parasympathetic nervous system (which promotes rest, de-stressing, and healing), reduce inflammation, and more. (1, 2, 3)

If you’d like to learn more about how coffee enemas fit into a whole cleansing routine, then check out my in depth guide on how to detox and cleanse your body.

How To Do A Coffee Enema

1) An hour or so before you plan to do your enema, prepare the coffee. I recommend doing it after you’ve had a bowel movement but not too late in the day or the caffeine may keep you up. Combine 1-3 tbsp (depending on your sensitivity to caffeine) of good quality organic coffee (free of mycotoxins and mold) and 4 cups filtered water in a pot on the stove. Simmer with the lid off for 5 minutes, then simmer with the lid on for 15 minutes.

2) Then strain into a glass flask or container. I like to strain back and forth between a flask and the pot a few times to really get the coffee grounds out. Then let the coffee cool till it’s lukewarm and comfortable to the touch. You can speed this process along by putting the coffee in the fridge or freezer (after it’s cooled a little to avoid breaking the glass with a drastic temperature change).

3) Meanwhile, prepare a comfortable private place near the toilet. A towel on the bathroom floor or laying in the bath tub works great.

4) Then, plug the tube into your enema bucket (I recommend using a glass or stainless steal bucket, not a plastic one) and secure the clamp on the tube. Put a little coconut oil on the end of the tube and then pour the cooled coffee into the bucket.

5) Then lay on your right side and gently insert the tube about 2-3 inches into your rectum, do not go beyond 4 inches or you could puncture a hole in your colon.

6) Very slowly let about 1-2 cups of the coffee in by unclamping the tube and holding or placing the bucket above you. You may wish to clamp the tube from time to time or lower the enema bucket to slow down the flow. You may be able to add the whole bucket or you may not, with time it will get easier, but don’t push it too much. Try to hold the enema in for 15 minutes (starting from when you first start the enema). This may be hard at first but you will get better at it with time. While holding the enema you can lay on your back or right side or switch between the two. You can also gently massage your colon to help loosen up and hard stuck stools. When massaging your colon, start at the bottom right corner of your abdomen, go straight up to the base of your ribs, straight across, then down the left side. This is the same direction your stools travel.

7) When you’re ready to release the enema, slowly move to the toilet and gently remove the tube to release the enema into the toilet, sit there for a while to really make sure you get it all out.

8) Rehydrate with an electrolyte rich drink like water with a pinch of high quality salt and lemon juice or ACV, coconut water, juice, or aloe vera juice.

9) Also clean your enema kit very well. Hot water, hydrogen peroxide, and soap work well. And let dry completely before storing.

(1, 2)

Recommended Enema Kits

• Aussie Health Co’s Premium-Purity™ Non-Toxic Stainless Steel Enema Bucket Kit
• Purelife Glass Enema Bucket Kit

Who Should Not Do Coffee Enemas

Enemas are generally a very safe practice, however some people should not do them. Including:

• Pregnant + nursing women
• People with bleeding and/or ulceration in the colon tract (Like in ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease)
• People with acute or ongoing chronic diarrhea
• Children under 14
• People with a hyperactive thyroid (like in the case of Graves Disease)
• People with high blood pressure
• People currently undergoing chemotherapy
• People with renal/heart/respiratory failure
• People who had surgery less than 8 weeks ago 
• Anyone who is worried that they have a condition that makes it unsafe (if this is you, do some research or check with a qualified practitioner before trying an enema)

Works Cited

1. Sarah. The Healing Place. Accessed 11 June 2021. https://www.instagram.com/p/CH0nXS-j_YU/

2. Katja. Savory Lotus. Accessed 11 June 2021. https://www.instagram.com/savorylotus/

3. Dr. Cole, Will. “Coffee Enemas: Everything You Need To Know.” Dr. Will Cole. Accessed 17 June 2021. https://drwillcole.com/functional-medicine/coffee-enemas-everything-you-need-to-know

(Disclaimer: Detoxing and cleansing should not be done while pregnant or breastfeeding because you could expose your child to the toxins you’re resurfacing which can be very harmful to them)

There’s a lot of info in this guide so I want to start by giving you an overview of all the steps of detoxing/cleansing:

• Step 1: Understanding Why Detoxing And Cleansing Is So Important For Your Health
• Step 2: Understanding What Your Detox/Drainage Pathways Are?
• Step 3: Opening Your Drainage Pathways
• Step 4: Creating A Customized Regular Detoxing Routine
• Step 5: Incorporate Deep Cleanses 2-4x A Year

I will dig into each one of these topics in depth below.

Step 1: Understanding Why Detoxing And Cleansing Is So Important For Your Health

Now a days we are exposed to so many toxins, much more than our ancestors were. We’re exposed to:

• Heavy Metals
• Xenoestrogens / endocrine disrupters
• EMFs
• Parasites
• Pathogens
• Mold
• Fluoride
• Air pollution
• Chemicals
• Pesticides and herbicides
• Free radicals
• And more!

These are common in:

• Tap water
• Plastic (even bpa free ones)
• Receipts
• Alcohol, cigarettes, and drugs
• Fragrances (in candles, perfumes, detergents, and more)
• Flame Retardants (in clothes, furniture, mattresses, and in the air)
• Processed foods
• Some supplements
• Vegetable oils
• Pharmaceuticals
• Personal care products (toothpaste, face wash, hairspray, mouth wash, deodorant, sunscreen, etc.)
• Cleaning products
• Soaps, laundry detergent, and dishwashing soap
• Cookware (nonstick + aluminum + vegetable oil seasoned pans)
• Phone, bluetooth, airpods, wifi, and cell towers
• Fat and bones from unhealthy animals
• Toxins produced by pathogenic microbes in the gut
• Microwaves
• Non-organic food
• Clothes (made from synthetic materials or sprayed with chemicals)
• Old moldy homes
• New homes made with toxin materials
• Synthetic hormones in birth control or medication
• Vaccines
• City air

Detoxing and cleansing is how we get rid of these toxins! If our detoxing systems (particularly drainage, which I’ll talk about later) are not working properly, we end up storing these toxins in our body. Over time this toxin build up leads to dysfunction in the body systems and eventually disease.

A few examples:

• Xenoestrogens and endocrine disrupters (in things like plastic, soy, cleaning products, and beauty products) can throw off hormonal balance, lead to weight gain, and decrease fertility. (more info on xenoestrogens in this article) (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
• Free radicals in things like vegetable oils can clog arteries, cause cardio vascular disease, inhibit fat loss, and damage metabolism. (6, 7)
• Parasites can eat our nutrients and lead to nutrient deficiencies, can create blockages in the intestines preventing bowel movements, can cause unhealthy weight loss or weight gain, can increase sugar cravings, can cause fatigue and headaches, can cause insomnia, and so much more. (8, 9, 10)
• The toxins in tap water can lead to cancer, decreases IQ, autism, organ damage and disease, hormonal and fertility issues, immune dysfunction, bone weakness, DNA damage, gut damage, gastrointestinal bleeding, ulcers, developmental harm, Alzheimer’s, arthritis, neurotoxicity, depression, Celiacs, autoimmune disease, Parkinson’s, heart attacks, lymphoma, acne, skin issue, and more! (more info on toxins in tap water in this article)
• Glyphosate (aka Round Up) can cause leaky gut, open the blood brain barrier, cause joint pain, autoimmune disease, autism, cancer, reproductive issues, hormonal imbalance hypothyroidism, and more!

• Overall toxin build up can lead to cancer, autoimmune diseases, chronic illness, headaches, fatigue, skin issues, digestive and gut problems, brain fog, weight gain or difficulty losing weight, joint pain, insomnia, decreased fertility, hormonal imbalances, colds and flus, and more. (8, 9, 10)

Cleansing and detoxing is not about doing some fad juice cleanse, it’s an ancient practice that has been done by many cultures to keep the body healthy, prevent stagnation of energy and toxins, and to prevent disease.

It’s an incredibly useful tool for our health. Many people eat healthy, exercise, and live generally healthy lives yet still suffer from headaches, fatigue, skin issues, gut problems, auto-immune issues, joint pain, trouble sleeping, and more.

In this case toxin overload is often the root cause of these issues or at least some of them. By focusing on opening drainage pathways and incorporating regular detoxing and cleansing into our lives we can treat the root cause of many of our undesired symptoms and unlock a higher level of health.

Step 2: Understanding What Your Detox/Drainage Pathways Are?

Your body’s primary method of detoxing is focused around a drainage funnel. At the top of the funnel you have cells which flows into organs and tissues which flows into your lymphatic system which flows into liver and bile ducts which finally flows into your colon and all the toxins are eliminated in your bowel movements. (8, 9, 10, 11)

Much like a funnel, if any of these pathways are blocked, nothing upstream can flow and therefore can’t be eliminated.

Making sure all your drainage pathways are clear and supporting optimal drainage is the first step in cleansing. Since before you start bringing up stored toxins, you wanna make sure you’ll be able to eliminate them.

If your drainage pathways aren’t open when you detox, these resurfacing toxins will make you feel sick and cause rashes, headaches, fatigue and other undesired symptoms. This is known as a HERX reaction.

You also want to start at the bottom of the funnel and work your way up to ensure that every time you open a pathway it will be able to fully eliminate toxins. So you start with the colon.

Colon Drainage

You should be pooping at least 1x a day, if not more. If you aren’t, the elimination of all the toxins in your body is delayed. When this happens your stools sit in your colon for too long and some of the toxins you’re trying to get rid of, get reabsorbed into the body.

Symptoms of Blocked/Inhibited Colon Drainage Include:

• Constipation
• Digestive issues
• Skin issues (acne, rashes, eczema, etc.)
• Bloating
• Stinky gas
• Intestinal cramps and pain
• Hard abdomen (particularly in the area of your colon)
• Not pooping everyday
• Not having full relieving bowel movements

(8, 11)

How To Open/Support Colon Drainage:

• Stay hydrated (plenty of water + minerals)
  • Example of hydrating drinks + foods: add a pinch of quality mineral salt to your water (this is my go to, I do this with nearly all the water I drink), coconut water, aloe juice, fruit juice or fruit (be sure to have with protein to balance blood sugar), bone broth, and milk.
• Have a routine (Try to go around the same time every morning. Pick a time when you can relax (so not 10 minutes before you have to rush off to work!) and sit on the toilet around that time every morning for 10-15 mins, regardless of if you have to go or not. Feel free to read or go one your phone during this time as it often makes it easier to relax. Eventually, it will start to become a habit and you can listen to your body over the clock).
• Sit in a squat like position where your knees are above your hips and your legs are wide. This may sound strange, but it helps align your intestines properly and makes it easier to go. Think about how you’d go out in nature after all.
• Avoid gut harming foods like processed foods and improperly prepared grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds
• Find your fiber sweet spot (not too much or too little) (for more info on fiber check out this article)
• Manage stress
• Exercise and move your body
• Increase magnesium consumption
• Coffee enemas (instructions here) or other enemas
• Colonics
• Bowel moving herbal supplements (use conservatively to avoid dependence)
  • My bowel moving herbal formula:
    • 1 part softening agent – slippery elm, licorice, or sarsaparilla1 part motility agent- cascara sagrada or triphala
    • 1 part digestive supporting herb- ginger
    • Combine all 3 herbs in a jar and mix well. Take 1-2 tsp in water at night (before bed and away from a meal)
    • Also take a bulking agent separately- 1 tbsp ground flaxseeds or psyllium seeds in warm water at night (before bed and away from a meal)

(8, 11)

Liver And Bile Duct Drainage

The next drainage pathway to work on is your liver and bile ducts. Your liver has over 500 functions, needless to say it’s very important! (8) And 1 in 3 Americans has a liver that doesn’t work properly so focusing on liver drainage is very important for many people. (8) Liver drainage is commonly improved by increasing bile flow that’s part of why this pathway includes bile ducts.

Symptoms of Blocked/Inhibited Liver And Bile Ducts Drainage Include:

• Headaches/migraines
• Greasy pale stools
• Low energy + brain fog
• Poor memory and cognitive ability
• Dry skin and hair
• Nausea
• Pain in the gallbladder area
• Skin issues (acne, rashes, eczema, etc.)
• Poor immunity
• Weight gain
• Digestive issues + constipation
• Frustration and anger
• Hormonal imbalances
• PCOS, PMS, painful irregular periods
• Chemical sensitivities
• Inability to tolerate alcohol or caffeine

(8, 11)

How To Open/Support Liver And Bile Ducts Drainage:

• Eat animal fat (if you currently have a low intake, increase gradually)
• Drink water (hot or cold) with lemon or apple cider vinegar
• Reduce toxin exposure
• Limit or eliminate alcohol and tobacco
• Eat a very nutrient rich diet (liver detoxification requires a long list of nutrients in order to function)
• Eat liver
• Make and drink GAPS shakes
  • Ingredients:
    • Juice from 1 carrot, 2-3 apples (or an equal amount pineapple), 1 stick celery, a small wedge of beet root, a small piece of cabbage, and optional a little lemon or greens
    • 1-2 raw egg
    • 4-5 tbsp homemade raw sour cream (See Level 3 diet recipes doc. in diet module) (or raw butter, ghee, animal fat, olive oil, or coconut oil)
    • Cod liver oil (optional)
  • Recipe:
    • Blend in a blender or whisk by hand.
    • Drink in the morning and or/ in the afternoon on an empty stomach. Starting with a small amount and working your way up to 1 glass, then 2 glasses a day.
    • If you have bile stones I recommend having this shake 2x a day till the stones are gone and fat digestion is restored.
• Drink liver detox tea
  • Traditional Medicinals and Yogi Tea both make a good one
  • Or you can make your own using this recipe
• Take ox bile (once you can tolerate a good amount of animal fat at each meal, wean off). Ancestral Supplements has a great supplement called “Grass Fed Gallbladder (w/ Ox Bile and Liver)”
• Include some fiber and bitter greens in your diet (if tolerated)
• Castor oil packs
• Take binders (like activated charcoal, spirulina, chlorella, or CellCore’s BioToxin Binder) (take away from meals and any other supplements)
• Coffee enemas (instructions here)
• Fat loss (in a healthy way when your body’s ready)

(8, 11)

Lymphatic Drainage

Your lymphatic system is a part of the circulatory system made up of nodes (or glands) and vessels that carry lymph (a fluid that contains white blood cells) throughout the body.

Your lymphatic system is crucial for immune function and the removal of waste and toxins. Unlike your cardiovascular system, your lymphatic system does not have a pump to keep it flowing. It relies on your movement, hot and cold exposure, sweating, and dry brushing to keep it flowing optimally. (8, 11, 12)

Symptoms of Blocked/Inhibited Lymphatic System Drainage Include:

• Skin Issues (acne, rashes, eczema, etc.)
• Enlarged lymph nodes
• Body odor
• Poor circulation
• Cold hands and feet
• Swelling in ankles, hands, and feet
• Weight gain
• Chronic fatigue
• Cellulite
• Headaches + sore neck
• Brain fog
• Get sick often

(8, 11)

How To Open/Support Lymphatic System Drainage:

• Deep breathing
• Avoid wearing clothes with tight elastic, underwire bras, and other tight clothing
• Exercise + move your body (especially jumping and sudden impactful movements)
• Hot and cold showers and exposure
• Sweating
• Dry brushing (instructions here)
• Epsom salt baths (instructions here)
• Lymphatic massage
• Gua sha
• Regular and infrared saunas

(8, 11)

Organ And Tissue Drainage

The next pathway to work on is organs and tissues. The brain is one of the biggest focuses of this pathway. The lymphatic system doesn’t flow through your brain, instead your brain clears cellular wastes and fluids through the glymphatic system which then drains into the lymphatic system and continues through the funnel. (11)

The glymphatic system works to remove waste when you are sleeping so getting adequate quality sleep is one of the best things you can do to support organ and tissue drainage.

Symptoms of Blocked/Inhibited Organ And Tissue Drainage Include:

• Brain fog
• Poor sleep
• Body odor
• Headaches
• Chemical sensitivities
• Inability to lose weight
• Mood swings
• Food allergies
• Memory issues
• Food sensitivities
• Hormone imbalance
• Difficulty concentrating
• Organ dysfunction or disease

(8, 11)

How To Open/Support Organ And Tissue Drainage:

• Get adequate quality sleep
• Sweating
• Take binders
• Epsom salt baths (instructions here)
• Sauna

(11)

Cellular Drainage

The last pathway is cellular drainage. Your mitochondria play a large role in this pathway. They generate the energy needed to support detoxification, play a role in immune defense, and aid in DNA repair. (13)

Symptoms of Blocked/Inhibited Cell Drainage Include:

• Low energy and fatigue
• Mitochondrial dysfunction
• Muscle weakness
• Heart, liver, or kidney disease or dysfunction
• Decreased immunity

(11, 13)

How To Open/Support Cell Drainage:

• Get sun
• Eat a nutrient dense diet
• Red light therapy

(11, 13)

Step 3: Opening Your Drainage Pathways

Start at the bottom of the funnel with the colon. If you have any of the symptoms of a clogged colon, work on opening this and make sure you’re pooping daily before moving on. Start by picking 1- 3 of the methods to open/support colon drainage, you can add more with time if you wish.

Also note that the order of the list of ways to support/open each drainage pathway are listed from easier/milder methods to more intensive methods. If you need more help with this pathway you may want to pick some more intensive methods. While the easier/milder methods are good simple things you can do year round to support detoxification. I can also assist you in picking things that will best support you and work with your lifestyle!

Now back to opening your colon drainage, when you’re pooping daily and have minimal to none of the other blocked colon symptoms, you can move onto liver and bile duct drainage. Again, if you have any of the symptoms of block liver and bile duct drainage, pick 1-3 of the methods to open/support colon drainage to add to your detoxing routine (continue to do at least 1 thing to support your colon drainage).

Once you have minimal to none of the blocked liver and bile duct symptoms, you can move onto lymph drainage. And I think you get the pattern, once a drainage pathway is clear you move onto the next one. After lymph do this for organs and tissues and then cells.

Use the symptom lists above as a guide to help tell if your drainage pathways are open or inhibited. If you are unsure, I recommend incorporating at least one of the methods to open that pathways for at least a week.

Here’s an example of what this might look like: (By the way Jane is a made up person and this is a hypothetical scenario)

1. Jane’s colon drainage is blocked since she has an average of 4 bowel movements a week as well as frequent bloating and gas. She decides to take magnesium supplements at night; decrease fiber in her diet by cutting out grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds; and she incorporates weekly coffee enemas. After 4 weeks, Jane’s bloating and gas have significantly decreased and she now has a complete bowel movement ever day for the past 10 days so she moves onto liver drainage.
2. Jane gets headaches and energy crashes almost every afternoon, sometimes her stools are pale and greasy, she thinks she has difficulty digesting fat, she gets nauseous often, and has pain in the upper right quadrant of her stomach (near her gallbladder) very often. All of these indicate blocked/inhibited liver and bile duct drainage so she decides to work on it. She keeps up with her colon drainage routine (the coffee enemas help with liver detox too!) and she adds in GAPS shakes starting with 1/2 a shake and gradually increasing to 2 a day. She starts slowly increasing her animal fat intake and taking ox bile + liver + gallbladder supplements with each meal. Her symptoms improve greatly in 4 weeks. She notices that for the past 10 days she hasn’t gotten practically no nausea, pale greasy stools, energy crashes, headaches, and pain. She still having daily bowel movements and feels she is digesting fat very well so she begins to ease off the ox bile supplements and moves on to addressing lymphatic drainage.
3. Jane believes her lymph could use some help because she has stinky body odor, is holding onto about 10 extra pounds, and gets cold hands and feet. Jane already does hot and cold showers and exercises 4x a week, which support lymphatic drainage, so she decides to just add one more thing to her routine: sweating by laying out in the sun midday for 20 mins 5x a week (it’s summer and around 100 degrees Fahrenheit so she gets a good sweat from this). After about 3 weeks she notices that her sweat no longer smells and she’s lost 3 lbs so she moves on.
4. Jane is unsure whether her organs and tissue drainage is open. The only symptoms she had where headaches, brain fog, body odor, and in ability to lose weight, but those have been resolved. She’s already supporting this pathway by getting 8 1/2 hrs of sleep a night and sweating regular. She concludes that her’s is not inhibited so she decides to jump to cellular drainage.
5. Again Jane has no symptoms cellular drainage and she’s already supporting this pathway by getting sun regularly and eating a nutrient dense diet so she doesn’t feel the need to add anything.
6. After all of Jane has already seen a massive decrease in her previous symptoms (in fact they’re almost all gone). She decides to keep up her current detox routine for another month and then switches to a simplified routine for the long run. (I’ll discuss how to create a routine like this in the next section).

Step 4: Creating A Customized Regular Detoxing Routine

Now that you’ve opened up your drainage pathways, you want to create a routine to continue to support the function and flow of all of your drainage pathways. This will help your body to regularly detox on its own.

I recommend including at least 1 method for each drainage pathway. If any of the pathways are more problematic for you (get clogged easier), you may want to spend more attention on those ones.

Since this is a long term routine, you want to keep it more mild and simple. And of course you can always adjust your routine with time, based on what’s working best for you and what you may want some additional help with.

Here’s An Example:

• Dry brushing 3x a week
• Hot showers 2x a week
• 2 minute cold showers 1x a day
• Exercise 5x a week
• Stay hydrated by drinking water with a pinch of quality salt
• Decrease toxin exposure (minimize plastic use, buy or make clean beauty and cleaning products, buy organic food, and use a water filter)
• Sleep at least 8 1/2 hrs a night
• Sweating by laying in the sun to read for 20-60 mins 5x a week
• Don’t wear tight clothes
• Eat half a raw carrot most days (to draw out and eliminate environmental toxins and excess estrogen in the gut)
• Eat a nutrient dense nose to tail diet
• Occasionally throw in additional things like drinking liver detox tea, epsom salt baths, and coffee enemas.

I want to emphasize that a lot of these things influence many other areas of your health aside from just supporting detox/drainage pathways. Things like exercise, sleep, eating a nutrient dense diet, and more. I did this on purpose because I want each thing I do in my day to day health routine to have a large impact, that way I can keep my routine minimal, yet effective.

Step 5: Incorporate Deep Cleanses 2x A Year (Optional)

I suggest doing deep cleanses about 2x a year for about 2-3 weeks. This is not a fixed number, but rather a suggestion to emphasize the importance of taking breaks from intense cleansing. As always do what feels best for you.

If you are new to cleansing and have a lot of stored toxins or parasites, you may want to start with a longer deep cleanse (≈1-3 months) to help rid the body of all the stored toxins and parasites that have accumulated over a long time.

During Deeper Cleanses I Recommend You Do Some (Or All) Of The Following:

• Parasite Cleansing (explained below)
• Weekly or Biweekly Coffee Enemas
• Daily Liver Detox Tea
• Incorporating More Of the Methods For Supporting The Drainage Pathways Or Increasing The Frequency (listed in drainage pathway section under each pathway)
• Eating A Cleanse Supporting Diet (explained below)
• Intermittent Fasting (eating within an 8 hr window and fasting for 16 hrs)
• Doing Something Like Journaling To Work Through The Emotions That Are Often Brought Up During Cleansing
• Oil Massages
• Avoiding Excess Stimulus When Possible (Ex: TV, most music, cities, and stress)

About Parasites And Parasite Cleansing

You might be wondering why I’m talking about parasite cleansing. People just get parasites when they travel to 3rd world countries, right?

Nope, wrong! Parasites are extremely common and it’s estimated that around 70% of people have them! (8, 9, 10)

There are 1000s of different types of parasites, some are microscopic and some are larger. Most are tiny or microscopic when they enter your body, but after feeding on your food for a while they grow larger. They can be anywhere from microscopic to several feet long, however parasites longer than a foot or 2 are quite rare.

Parasites can be in any tissue or organ in your body (including the gut, liver, brain, uterus, vagina, spleen, lungs, heart, lymph, gallbladder, skin, nervous system, blood, muscles, eyes, and more). (8, 9, 10)

Parasites eat some of our food and nutrients and can cause nutrient deficiencies. They also love sugar and can increase your sweet cravings in order to get the food they love.

Parasites act like toxic sponges, they absorb heavy metals, pesticides, mold toxins (aka mycotoxins), viruses, bacteria, and other pathogens. This makes it especially important to have your drainage pathways open and to use good supplements when parasite cleansing, otherwise the parasites may break open and release heavy metals and toxins into the body giving you a HERX reaction (headache, flu-like symptoms, itching and rashes, and flushes). Parasites can also cause sleep issues, gut issues, and other health problems. (8, 9, 10)

You can get parasites from food (both meat and veggies), the dirt you touch, walking barefoot, pets licking your face, swimming in lakes and rivers, drinking water (even tap water), and coming into contact with feces. (8, 9, 10)

I don’t say this to make you afraid of doing these things, especially because many of them are quite important, but rather to show you that being exposed to parasites is practically inevitable.

There are however, things we can do to decrease the number of parasites that stay to hang out in our bodies and to flush out the ones that do stay.

1) We can increase our gut health and heal leaky gut. This prevents parasites from nestling into crevasses in the gut or slipping between the gut lining and traveling to other organs and tissues. A smooth tight healthy gut wall will help more parasites be passed in the stoles as soon as they enter the body.

2) We can also improve our immunity. Healing our gut and leaky gut should help with autoimmune issues. Also avoiding vegetable oils, lectins, and other inflammatory things will help lower the burden on the immune system. This frees up the immune system to focus on getting rid of pathogens and parasites.

3) And finally we can do parasite cleansing. Parasite cleansing has been an important part of many cultures throughout history, though it has become far less common in recent times. Parasite cleansing typically involves opening drainage pathways and using herbal supplements to kill off parasites.

Cellcore Biosciences has excellent parasite cleansing herbal supplements. However you must work with a practitioner to buy Cellcore products. I got mine through Healing Cave Lady. She has tons of awesome videos to walk you through the cleansing process and has a private Instagram cleansing group.

It’s best to do your parasite cleansing during the full moon because parasites are more active then and are thus easier to remove. During the full moon, melatonin is decreased in the body. Melatonin plays an important role in fighting off critters, so when levels are down parasites take advantage and often travel to the gut to look for food. (9)

Seratonin is also decreased during the full moon and low serotonin levels paralyze parasites. The combination of parasites moving to the gut and then getting paralyzed makes them easier to remove during the full moon. (9)

I previously said that about 70% of people have parasites, but how do you know if you are in that 70%? Well some people do stool testing but that’s pretty inaccurate and often doesn’t pick up on parasites (especially the microscopic ones).

Given that parasites spend so much effort to avoid detection from our immune system (by doing things like shedding their skin, hiding in biofilms, and waiting to grow and move until your immune system is distracted) this isn’t too surprising.

If that doesn’t work, what does?

Honestly I think the best way to tell is to start working on drainage pathways and then some parasite cleansing. Then, as gross as this may sound, sift through your stools to look for them. If you find them you have them, if not then you may or may not have them. (@nutritionfortheppl has a great saved Instagram story showing parasite pictures if you wanna see what they look like.)

It should be noted that when cleansing, sifting through your stools is entirely optional. The whole point of cleansing is to improve your health and feel better so as long as that’s happening you’re on the right path.

Also practically everyone can benefit from cleansing and detoxing. So even if you don’t have parasites, you likely have some toxins (heavy metals, endocrine disruptors, candida, bacteria, chemicals, pesticides, etc.) that would be better out than in. In modern society it’s nearly impossible to avoid toxins so regular detoxing becomes very important to avoid toxin overload.

Another indicator that you may have parasites is if you have many of the following symptoms. Now these are common symptoms with many possible causes, but if you’ve already focused on improving your diet, exercise habits, gut health, and overall health, yet still have these symptoms, parasites may be the cause.

Especially if these symptoms increase around the full moon when parasites are more active.

Symptoms:

• Fatigue
• Weight gain
• Weight loss
• Acne
• Reassuring yeast or fungal infections
• Teeth grinding (especially at night)
• Sweet cravings
• Bloating
• Constipation/diarrhea
• Headaches
• Nausea
• Itchy anus/genitals
• Insomnia
• Anemia
• Nutritional deficiencies
• Poor tolerance to stress or illness
• Depression/anxiety

(8, 9, 10)

What Is A Cleanse Supporting Diet

The goal with a cleanse supporting diet is to give your digestion a break by eating easy to digest foods and to give your gut a chance to heal by eliminating foods that are hard on the gut. In a cleanse supporting diet you:

• Eat simple
• Eat well cooked food and avoid raw foods
• Drink lots of bone broth
• Limit all sugars
• Eat soups
• No gluten
• No alcohol
• Practice intermittent fasting
• No snacking
• No processed foods
• Optional avoid grains (except white rice and oats are fine), legumes (except well cooked lentils are fine), nuts, and seeds

This is a great starting point, but feel free to customize this diet based on what works best for you.

To Recap

Now that you understand why detoxing and cleansing is important and how to do it, here’s an overview of what to do now to incorporate cleansing and detoxing into your life:

1. Open your drainage pathways starting with your colon
2. Create a customized regular detoxing routine
3. Incorporate deep cleanses 2-4x a year

Good luck on your detox and cleansing journey!

* If you’re interested in learning more about if detoxing is right for you and how to set up a customized detoxing routine, then sign up for a free 15 minute call with me and I’ll help you figure that out! Click here to schedule your free call!

Works Cited

1. Lauren. “Xenoestrogens.” Innate Functional Nutritionist. Accessed 10 June 2021. https://www.instagram.com/innatefunctionalnutrition/

2. Julia. “Endocrine Disruptors Damage Your Hormonal Balance.” Julia’s Wellness Tips. 25 April 2020. https://juliaswellnesstips.com/2020/04/25/endocrine-disruptors-damage-your-hormonal-balance/

3. Kubala, Jillian. “How Your Diet Can Affect Estrogen Levels.” Healthline. 30 November 2020. https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/foods-to-lower-estrogen

4. “Xenoestrogens and their Harmful Effects.” Healthy Focus. Accessed 10 June 2021. https://healthyfocus.org/what-are-xenoestrogens/

5. Hayes TB, Khoury V, Narayan A, Nazir M, Park A, Brown T, Adame L, Chan E, Buchholz D, Stueve T, Gallipeau S. Atrazine induces complete feminization and chemical castration in male African clawed frogs (Xenopus laevis). Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2010 Mar 9;107(10):4612-7. doi: 10.1073/pnas.0909519107. Epub 2010 Mar 1. PMID: 20194757; PMCID: PMC2842049.

6. Shanahan, Catherine. Deep Nutrition. New York: Flat Iron Books. 2016. Print.

7. Shanahan, Catherine. The Fatburn Fix. Flatiron Books, March 2020, NY.

8. Katja. Savory Lotus. Accessed 10 June 2021. https://www.instagram.com/savorylotus/

9. Mary. Healing Cave Lady. Accessed 10 June 2021. https://www.instagram.com/healingcavelady/

10. Johnson, Sarah. Nutrionfortheppl. Accessed 10 June 2021. https://www.instagram.com/nutritionfortheppl/

11. Dr. Todd Watts and Dr. Jay Davidson. “Drainage 101: Why It’s the First Step in Your Detox Journey.” Detox Learning Center. 30 December 2019. https://microbeformulas.com/blogs/microbe-formulas/drainage-101-why-it-s-the-first-step-in-your-detox-journey

12. “Lymphatic System.” The Free Dictionary. Accessed 10 June 2021. https://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/Lymphatic+system

13. Dr. Todd Watts and Dr. Jay Davidson. “What Damages Your Mitochondria? (And How Fixing Them Boosts Energy).” Detox Learning Center. 22 April 2019. https://microbeformulas.com/blogs/microbe-formulas/what-damages-your-mitochondria-and-how-fixing-them-boosts-energy

What Is Fiber?

Fiber is a mostly non-digestible carbohydrate found in plant foods like vegetables, grains, legumes, and nuts. A majority of fiber is never absorbed into the body and therefore comes out in the feces. Fiber provides very little to no Calories or nutrients. (1, 2) However it does have some other functions that will be discussed below.

Mainstream nutrition praises fiber and recommends you eat lots of it for colon health, weight loss, microbiome health, and regular bowel movements. While some of these are true to some extent, that’s far from the whole picture. Moderation is key when it comes to fiber consumption as you will see when we dig into the pros and cons of fiber.

Pros:

1) Rids The Body Of Old Recirculating Fats

When you eat fat, bile (a fluid made primarily of cholesterol) is released from the gall bladder into the intestines to aid in the digestion of fat. After digestion, in the absence of fiber, about 95% of the bile is reabsorbed into the blood stream and travels back to the gall bladder waiting to be used again. (1) Due to the efficiency of this recycling process, fats can be reused many many times and may go rancid with time. Fiber however binds to bile in the intestines, preventing reabsorption. This forces the body to make new bile from new cholesterol. (1) Thus fiber helps rid the body of old (possibly rancid) fats.

2) Aids The Gut Microbiome

Soluble fiber, a type of fiber that dissolves in water, feeds the good bacteria in your gut and promotes a healthy microbiome. (2) Most of the food we eat has already been broken down and absorbed into the blood stream before it can reach the large intestine. This leaves very little food for the good bacteria in our large intestines and that’s where fiber comes in. Since we can’t digest fiber, it reaches the large intestine relatively intact and is then used as food for our gut bacteria. This is called a prebiotic. (2)

But why should we care about feeding our gut bacteria?

Our gut is a complex ecosystem that effects many aspects of our health including digestion, the majority of serotonin production, our mood, biochemical signaling between the GI tract and central nervous system (this is known as the gut brain axis), our weight, our food cravings, immunity, and much more. It’s important that we fed the good bacteria to aid in these functions as well as to fight off bad bacteria. If we don’t feed the good bacteria, the bad bacteria may get too numerous which can lead to candida over growth, yeast infections, UTIs, bacterial infections, compromised immunity, and more. (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)

3) Detoxifies The Gut Of Environmental Toxins

Fiber helps pull environmental toxins, xenoestrogens, and endotoxins out of the gut, binding to them and bringing them out through the feces. Mushrooms and raw carrots are particularly effective for this. (7) In modern society we are exposed to so many toxins which can cause many health problems such as hormonal imbalance, fertility and reproductive issues, headaches, cancer, fatigue, anxiety, and more. (7, 8) This makes both reducing our exposure and finding ways to detox and remove these toxins extremely important. More info on this can be found in this article.

4) Reduces Blood Sugar Spike

Fiber, particularly soluble fiber, has been shown to slow down the absorption of sugar due to it’s viscosity and therefore decrease the blood sugar spike associated with eating carbohydrates. (1, 2) It’s important to avoid frequent blood sugar spikes because over time they may lead to metabolic dysfunction, insulin resistance, and diabetes. If fiber is causing problems for you, fat and protein can also help lower the blood sugar spike when consumed with carbs.

Cons:

1) Can Worsen Constipation And Gut Issues

Contrary to popular belief, too much fiber has been found to worsen constipation and gut issues such as bloating, anal bleeding, abdominal pain, and strain in having bowel movements. Fiber appears to be more damaging in those with idiopathic constipation, IBS, Chrohn’s Disease, Ulcerative Colitis, Diverticulitis, leaky gut, and autoimmune diseases. (9)

One study of 63 people with idiopathic constipation (constipation with an unknown cause) looked at the effects of no fiber and low fiber diets on bowel movement frequency and common symptoms associated with constipation. For the first two weeks the participants went on a no fiber diet, then for the remainder of the 6 month testing period they were able to choose the amount of fiber they wanted.(9)

“Forty one patients who completely stopped fiber intake had their bowel frequency increased from one motion in 3.75 d (± 1.59 d) to one motion in 1.0 d (± 0.00 d) (P < 0.001). Of 16 patients who reduced their dietary fiber intake, 12 patients had daily bowel movement, 3 had one bowel movement every 2 to 3 d and one had a bowel movement every 4 to 6 d, giving one motion per 1.9 d (± 1.21 d) on a reduced fiber diet compared with 1 motion per 4.19 d (± 2.09 d) on a high fiber diet (P < 0.001). There was no change in the frequency of bowel movement for patients who continued with high dietary fiber intake, with one motion per 6.83 d (± 1.03 d) before and after consultation (P = 1.00).” (9)

There was also a complete elimination of anal bleeding, constipation, bloatedness, strain in bowel opening, and abdominal pain in the no fiber group. These symptoms were reduced in the low fiber group and remained almost unchanged in the high fiber group. The results can be seen in the table below. (9)

In addition to this study, many people have tried this on their own and found reducing fiber to be extremely helpful. I myself found heavily reducing fiber to help me overcome bloating, painful intestinal cramps, loss of appetite, chronic idiopathic constipation (After being constipated most of my life, I now have a bowel movement nearly every day), and strain in bowel movements. Many other people have reported similar experiences, a few can be found on this testimonial page.

So why does decreasing fiber help cure constipation and its associated symptoms?

“The role of dietary fiber in constipation is analogous to cars in traffic congestion. The only way to alleviate slow traffic would be to decrease the number of cars and to evacuate the remaining cars quickly. Should we add more cars, the congestion would only be worsened. Similarly, in patients with idiopathic constipation and a colon packed with feces, reduction in dietary fiber would reduce fecal bulk and volume and make evacuation of the smaller and thinner feces easier. Adding dietary fiber would only add to the bulk and volume and thus make evacuation even more difficult.” (9)

2) Can Cause Gas And Bloating

As seen in the study we just talked about, higher fiber intake is associated with bloating. (9) This is because when we eat fiber it sits in our gut and ferments creating hydrogen, carbon dioxide, and methane as a byproduct. These gases are trapped by peristaltic colon and therefore exert pressure on the walls, causing abdominal pain and gas. (9)

3) Can Damage The Gut Lining

Fiber, especially insoluble fibers like cellulose, can scrape the gut lining making it fragile and allowing things like endotoxins (and food particles in severe cases like Leaky Gut) to enter the blood stream. In a healthy gut some fiber is fine, however with a damaged gut in cases like leaky gut, Chrohn’s Disease, Ulcerative Colitis, and autoimmune diseases, fiber can do a lot of damage. (10)

In these conditions think of your gut lining like a fresh scab. You have to be careful with the scab and what rubs on it until it is fully healed. Since fiber can scrape against the gut lining, it’s best to avoid it until your gut is healed and can tolerate it again. (10)

How Much Fiber Should You Consume?

It really depends. If you have chronic constipation, IBS, leaky gut, Chrohn’s Disease, Ulcerative Colitis, or an autoimmune disease then little to no fiber for a period of time would likely be ideal. The more severe the condition, the more restrictive of fiber you’ll need to be and the longer you’ll need to restrict fiber in order to heal your gut and condition.

If you have a healthy gut, then you can likely tolerate a small to moderate amount of fiber just fine. I still wouldn’t recommend going hog wild on the fiber though, especially insoluble fiber which seems to do more damage. Insoluble fiber is in things like brown rice, wheat, rye, vegetables (especially the peels/skins), and other plants. (1)

I would opt for more soluble fiber instead, which is found primarily in oats and fruit. (1) The optimal amount of fiber ultimately varies a lot based on the individual. Therefore I recommend you experiment with it to see what works best for you.

Works Cited

1. Dr. Lauren Housley, Ph.D., R.D. “Carbohydrates.” Human Nutrition Class. January- May 2020, Chico State University, Chico, CA. Power Point.

2. Gunnars, Kris. “Why Is Fiber Good for You? The Crunchy Truth.” Healthline. 23 May 2018. https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/why-is-fiber-good-for-you#TOC_TITLE_HDR_3

3. Hills, Ronald D Jr et al. “Gut Microbiome: Profound Implications for Diet and Disease.” Nutrients vol. 11,7 1613. 16 Jul. 2019, doi:10.3390/nu11071613

4. University of Utah Health. “These gut bacteria prevent mice from becoming obese — what could that mean for us?” Science Daily. 25 July 2019. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190725150401.htm.

5. Cryan, J.F. and O’Mahony, S.M. (2011), The microbiome-gut-brain axis: from bowel to behavior. Neurogastroenterology & Motility, 23: 187-192. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2982.2010.01664.x

6. Bonaz, Bruno et al. “The Vagus Nerve at the Interface of the Microbiota-Gut-Brain Axis.” Frontiers in neuroscience vol. 12 49. 7 Feb. 2018, doi:10.3389/fnins.2018.00049

7. Julia. “Endocrine Disruptors Damage Your Hormonal Balance.” Julia’s Wellness Tips. 25 April 2020. https://juliaswellnesstips.com/2020/04/25/endocrine-disruptors-damage-your-hormonal-balance/

8. O’Brien, Kayley. “Health Consequences of Xenoestrogens.” Heart to Kitchen. 19 February 2021. https://www.hearttokitchen.com/health-consequences-of-xenoestrogens/

9. Ho, Kok-Sun et al. “Stopping or reducing dietary fiber intake reduces constipation and its associated symptoms.” World journal of gastroenterology vol. 18,33 (2012): 4593-6. doi:10.3748/wjg.v18.i33.4593

10. “Don’t Think That Fiber Is Perfectly Harmless…” YouTube, uploaded by Healthy With Nicole, 13 March 2021. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mQP2CDUOC-k

What Are Anti-nutrients?

Anti-nutrients are a chemical compound found in plants that are somewhat toxic to animals. Anti-nutrients are plants’ defense mechanisms. Like animals, plants don’t want to get eaten, but they can’t run away or fight back so they produce plant toxins like anti-nutrients to harm the animals that eat them.

As plants’ defense system of anti-nutrients evolved so did animals (primarily herbivores) ability to handle these toxins. For example, “moose and other grazers have enzymes in their saliva as well as multiple stomachs which deactivate plant toxins such as tannins.” (1) That’s why herbivores can eat plants without dying or getting sick, or at least to some degree. (1, 2)

Herbivores can only handle so much of one plant toxin, therefore when able to, they rotate between eating different plants to avoid consuming too much of one plant toxin. If they aren’t able to rotate food sources, they have been found to get sick. (1, 2) Herbivores also avoid some plants especially those high in lectins, like grains, for the consumption of these foods causes them great pain. (4)

But what about humans?

Since humans are omnivores that got most of their Calories from animal foods for most of history, we have not evolved to handle plant toxins in the same way herbivores have. We can still handle some without health consequences, plants are part of an omnivore diet after all, but as you will see in this article we have to be careful and limit our intake of anti-nutrients to avoid health issues such as leaky gut, IBD, IBS, autoimmune diseases, nutrient deficiencies, kidney stones, and more. (1, 2, 3, 4)

One other key function of anti-nutrients is to store nutrients in plants by binding to them. While this mechanism helps plants, it’s not so great for humans. And this is where anti-nutrients get their name. They bind to nutrients in your GI track making the nutrients too bulky to be absorbed into your blood stream. These nutrients bound to anti-nutrients end up getting excreted in the feces. Therefore the more anti-nutrients you consume, the less nutrients your body absorbs and utilizes.

Different Types Of Anti-nutrients

There are many different types of anti-nutrients, but in this post I’m gonna share 4 of the most common ones.

Lectins

Lectins are a type of anti-nutrient and protein that are particularly harmful to the gut. Lectins bind to the epithelial cells lining your gut wall and puncture holes between the cells, a condition known as leaky gut or intestinal permeability. These holes in your gut lining allow microorganisms toxins, parasites, and food particles to slip through your gut lining and enter your blood stream. (2, 3, 4)

These are categorized as foreign by your body and trigger an immune response in the body, which is inflammatory by nature. The immune system goes on high alert and destroys anything resembling these foreign objects. Unfortunately the protein structure of lectins is very similar to several body tissues including the thyroid, myelin sheath (coating of nerves), synovial tissue (connective tissue), and more. (2, 4) Therefore your body accidentally attacks your own body. This is what an autoimmune disease is.

As you can probably imagine, high lectin consumption overtime leads to severe gut damage, leaky gut, chronic inflammation, and autoimmune disease.

(2, 4)

Oxalates

Oxalates (aka oxalic acid) are compounds found in certain plants that have a negative charge of -1 or -2, they are known as anions. This negative charge makes them like magnets searching for molecules with a possitive charge (cations). (4, 5)

When oxalates bind to minerals with a charge of +2 (like Sodium, Magnesium, Calcium, Copper, Zinc, or Iron) they form crystal-like substances that resemble glass or needles. (See picture below) (2, 4, 5)

These crystals are sharp and painful to tissues and can contribute to conditions like fibromyalgia (a condition characterized by chronic widespread pain) and arthritis. (4, 5) Under normal conditions, oxalates are excreted in urine or feces, however if too many oxalates are present the body moves to store them in tissues like the brain, GI system, endocrine glands like testicles and breasts, skin, joints, kidneys, thymus, blood vessels, eyes, thyroid, and muscles. This is known as oxalosis. (2, 4)

Oxalosis may lead to kidney stones, neurotoxicity, vulvar pain, menstrual disorders, hormone dysfunction, memory loss, mood disorders, Parkinsons, and Alzheimers. (2, 5)⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

It’s also important to note that when oxalates bind to these minerals they are not able to be used by the body and therefore excessive oxalate consumption can lead to deficiencies in the previously mentioned minerals (Sodium, Magnesium, Calcium, Copper, Zinc, and Iron). (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)

While a diet too high in oxalates (see picture of foods high in oxalates below) is the main cause of oxalosis; It can also be worsened by toxic metals; overgrowth of bacteria, fungus, candida, or parasites; mold exposure; vitamin B6 deficency; excessive consumption of vitamin C; and genetic conditions such as hyperoxaluria (a condition that inhibits the processing of oxalates). (4) Although very uncommon, death has been reported from consuming 5000 mg of oxalates in a day. (1, 2)

It should be noted that humans actually produce 10-30 mg of oxalates a day when breaking down the amino acids glycine and hydroxyproline and a molecule called glycoxalate. (1, 2) So we are able to tolerate some level of oxalates. However foods high in oxalates (like those listed below) typically have about 40-755 mg of oxalates per 100g serving, therefore it’s easy to overdo the oxalates if you’re not carefully about your food choices. (2)

Green smoothies are the worst culprit of excessive oxalate consumption. I know they feel healthy, but they’re really not! The foods highest in oxalates typically get thrown into a blender for green smoothies, things like spinach, kale, or other leafy greens, almond milk, almond butter, and turmeric. (2, 4, 5) Other high oxalate foods are listed below:

(2, 4)

Polyphenols

Polyphenols are a large group of molecules found in plants that serve as plant pigments and phytoalexins (a type of plant toxin used to fend off predators). (1, 2) There are many types of polyphenols including resveratrol, quercetin, flavinoids, tannins, stilbenes, lignans, curcumin, capsaisin, and many more. (1, 2)

Mainstream nutrition claims these molecules are magical anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, cancer fighting, heart disease preventing molecules, however the science just doesn’t support these claims. Most studies done on polyphenols are epidemiology studies (studies where a large group of people is observed, but there is no intervention). These studies do not account for many variables and are unreliable. Therefore they are typically used to make correlations which serve as the hypothesis in interventional (or experimental) studies which can lead to causative theories.

Like I said many of the studies behind the health claims of polyphenols are epidemiology studies. In these studies an increase in polyphenol consumption often correlates with the health benefits listed above. However there are so many variables that are unaccounted for so we can’t accurately make a causative statement from this data. (2)

There are however a few interventional studies on polyphenols. However many of these studies failed to show benefits in terms of inflammation, DNA damage, or immunological markers. (2, 6) And in one study a 10-week period without dietary fruits and vegetables lead to a decrease in oxidative damage to DNA, blood proteins, and plasma lipids, concomitantly with marked changes in antioxidative defence. (7) Since this was an exclusion of fruits and vegetables as a whole, which have many compounds, we can’t say for sure that the lack of polyphenols is what lead to these benefits, however the evidence for polyphenols improving inflammation, DNA damage, immunological markers, oxidative stress, cancer risk, heart disease risk, and so on doesn’t seem to be there!

Now that we got that cleared up, lets look at some of the specific types of polyphenols. A major family of molecules that falls under the classification of polyphenols is flavinoids. Flavinoids includes anthocyanins (found in the skin of berries), isoflavones (found in soy), catechins (found in tea), flavan-3-ols (found in cacao), and more. (2)

Flavanoids (primarily isoflavones, genistein, and quercetin) are endocrine disruptors. They disrupt normal hormone function by mimicking the hormone estrogen which can lead to decreased fertility and reproductive health, hormone imbalances, reproductive abnormalities, and tumors. (2) Flavanoids have also been shown to negatively impact the thyroid. (2)

Tannins (a type of flavanoid) are designed to inhibit digestive enzymes of animals trying to eat them. This leads to poor digestion and less nutrient absorption (especially vitamin C, iron, and protein). (2, 3)

Overall, the purposed benefits of polyphenols are not backed by quality science and there are a few concerns with the consumption of too many polyphenols potentically disrupting hormones, reproductive health, digestion, nutrient absorption, and thyroid health. Polyphenols role in inflammation is inconclusive (it’s possible that this may vary between the types of polyphenols as well). Polyphenols don’t appear to have as many consequences as lectins and oxalates, however I would advice avoiding soy which is high in multiple endocrine disrupting polyphenols. The negative effects of these have been better studied and proven. (8)

(9, 10)

Phytates

Phytates (aka phtyic acid) are naturally occurring substances plants use to store phosphorus. Similar to oxalates, phytates have an affinity for minerals with a charge of +2 like magnesium, manganese, calcium, iron, copper, selenium, potassium and zinc. Therefore phytates bind to these minerals and block their absorption into the blood stream. Consequently, consuming too many phytates too frequently could lead to deficiency of these minerals. (3, 4, 5) Phytates have also been shown to reduce the activity of digestive enzymes such as trypsin and pepsin. (5)

However phytates do have some benefits as well. Since they bind to minerals with +2 charges, they also bind to heavy metals like mercury and lead (which also have +2 charges). This prevents absorption of heavy metals and helps eliminate them. (4, 5) Phytates can also help remove biofilms (a mucus like matrix that hides pathogens from being detected by your body). (5)

Phytates can be broken down pretty well through soaking, sprouting, and fermenting your food. However if you have leaky gut or mineral deficiencies it’s probably best to avoid phytates at least until those are resolved. (3, 4, 5) Another thing to mention is that foods high in phytates tend to be high in lectins, oxalates, and other anti-nutrients which may cause problems.

Overall Thoughts On Anti-nutrients:

I think to achieve optimal health it’s best to limit your anti-nutrient intake, particularly that of lectins and oxalates. Notice I didn’t say eliminate, that’s because most people can tolerate a small amount of anti-nutrients and there are still benefits to consuming some fruits and vegetables. The real problem lies with excessive anti-nutrient and plant consumption.

Also if you have leaky gut, an autoimmune disease, IBS, and/or IBD, I would suggest being extra strick about reducing anti-nutrients (especially lectins), you may even choose to eliminate all of them. This is key to healing your gut which will inturn help heal these conditions.

To reduce anti-nutrient consumption:

• Really limit grains, beans, nuts, seeds, and leafy greens
• Soak any grains or legumes overnight and rinse before consuming
• Roast or soak nuts and seeds before consuming
• Ferment or cook vegetables before consuming
• Have most of your plant intake be from fruits and vegetables

It’s also important to experiment and see what works for you. Everybody is so different and will react differently to anti-nutrients. Tune into your body. If you start to get or already have digestive issues, skin issues, food sensitivities, mood disorders such as depression or anxiety, frequent yeast infections or UTIs, autoimmunity, SIBO, candida over growth, IBD, IBS, hashimotos, fibromyalgia, or chronic fatigue, then I would suggest decreasing your anti-nutrient consumption. This will help heal your gut and support gut health which plays a major role in the previously mentioned symptoms and conditions.

Works Cited

1. Eriksson, Keenan. “Your Vegetables Want To Kill You.” Medium. 1 June 2020. https://medium.com/the-carnivore-curation/your-vegetables-want-to-kill-you-c863763d02cd

2. Sladino, Paul. The Carnivore Code. New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. 2020. Print.

3. Kummer, Michael. “What Are Antinutrients? – A Science-Based Review.” Michaelkummer.com. 9 April 2019. https://michaelkummer.com/health/antinutrients-food/

4. Bucko, Alexandra. “Ill-Digestion, Leaky Gut, and Deteriorating Effects of Anti-nutrients.” 5 August 2019. https://www.throughhealthandback.com/blog/2019/8/5/ill-digestion-leaky-gut-and-deteriorating-effects-of-antinutrients

5. Bucko, Alexandra.Through Health and Back. Accessed 12 May 2021. https://www.instagram.com/throughhealthandback/

6. Peluso, Ilaria et al. “Effects of High Consumption of Vegetables on Clinical, Immunological, and Antioxidant Markers in Subjects at Risk of Cardiovascular Diseases.” Oxidative medicine and cellular longevity vol. 2018 5417165. 8 Oct. 2018, doi:10.1155/2018/5417165

7. Young, J F et al. “Green tea extract only affects markers of oxidative status postprandially: lasting antioxidant effect of flavonoid-free diet.” The British journal of nutrition vol. 87,4 (2002): 343-55. doi:10.1079/bjnbjn2002523

8. O’Brien, Kayley. “Health Consequences Of Xenostrogens.” Heart to Kitchen. 19 February 2021. https://www.hearttokitchen.com/health-consequences-of-xenoestrogens/

9. Gotter, Ana. “Top Foods with Polyphenols.” Healthline. 8 March 2019. https://www.healthline.com/health/polyphenols-foods#TOC_TITLE_HDR_1

10. Staughton, John. “Top 11 Foods High in Polyphenols.” Organic Facts. 28 July 2020. https://www.organicfacts.net/foods-polyphenols.html