Do you need to do a Lymphatic System Detox? Are you gaining weight, feeling tired & puffy? Do you have sore joints, increased water retention, cellulite and feeling irritable? Keep reading.
Your Lymphatic System
Many of our clients are feeling like they have increased inflammation, water retention and stagnation coming out of lockdown. Some have even had a lockdown break down and are feeling out of sorts physically and emotionally. The body’s lymphatic system needs to flow like a river, so we avoid pools of toxic buildup like what you see in nature.
Your lymphatic system was designed to flow, but when this ‘river of life’ slows down or gets blocked, a variety of health problems and diseases can manifest due to a backlog of toxic lymph.
The lymphatic system has three leading roles;
- Remove excess fluids from body tissues
- Absorb fatty acids and transport fat and chyle (milky liquid containing fat droplets) to the circulatory system
- Produce immune cells such as lymphocytes, monocytes, and antibody-producing cells called plasma cells, so vital in this season!
Symptoms of a Limited Lymphatic System
Some common symptoms of reduced flow of lymph include:
- acidity
- inflammation
- sore swollen & painful joints
- weight gain
- increased water retention
- increased cellulite
- fatigue
- irritability
- appetite & cravings (due to elevated acid & toxic load)
Your lymphatic system’s key role is to collect excess fluid from your tissues, purify it and return it to the bloodstream. This role is vital because many substances are continuously leaking out of the blood capillaries into the surrounding tissues. When your lymphatic system fails to hoover up these excess fluids, they can accumulate, cause swelling, oedema and potentially increase the risk of infection due to overloading the immune system.
An Efficient Lymphatic System
An efficient lymphatic system helps to defend your body against germs such as bacteria, viruses & fungi that may cause illness, so a great friend to have on your side in this season of COVID. The lymphatic system was designed to work silently in the background to keep you healthy, and it doesn’t have to be complicated for you to love your lymph and maintain a healthy flow.
How To Support Your Lymphatic System
Here are my top 10 tips on how to keep your lymph “in flow” (starting with a Lymphatic System Detox).
1. Lymphatic System Detox: Start With Watering Your Lymph
Lymph is about 95% water, making water essential for it to flow. Stay hydrated by drinking half your weight in ounces of water a day, so if you weigh 120 pounds, then you would want to drink around 8 cups of water per day.
Without adequate water, lymphatic fluid cannot flow properly. And one of the most common causes of lymph congestion is dehydration. Water or herbal tea can adequately hydrate the body, but if you want to expedite the process, start your day with the Rejuv Wellness Detox Water or sip all day to reduce cravings.
Rejuv Wellness Detox Water
This Mix up 1 litre of water with:
- 1 tablespoon of Bragg’s Cloudy Apple Cider Vinegar
- Juice of one lemon
- 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
- A pinch of cayenne pepper
- 30ml aloe vera juice or 1 teaspoon of fresh aloe
Note: Don’t forget your straw. You can get glass straws by companies such as Hummingbird to protect the enamel on your teeth.
I hydrate with at least 500ml of detox water each day as we’ve been fasting for around 8 hours while sleeping at night. It’s a critical wellness ritual that will serve you well long term for excellent health.
2. Foods For Drainage & Enzyme Boost: Eat More Plants
Incorporating more plants and raw foods into your diet is an easy way to keep the lymphatic system healthy long term. Raw foods offer high levels of naturally occurring enzymes that break down toxic buildup and promote the clearance of harmful substances in the body.
Eating fresh fruits and vegetables is also a great way to boost the hydration levels in the body. Raw foods are primarily alkaline, which helps to neutralise harmful pathogens, lessening the burden on the lymph, supporting your immune system and reducing water retention.
Enzymes are also crucial and are produced by the body to break down food substances and to expedite many metabolic processes. They are utilised by the body to clear toxic-waste buildup in the lymph and blood, making their supplementation a fundamental way to improve lymphatic health.
Using proteolytic enzymes between meals can help to “digest” or breakdown organic debris in the circulatory and lymph systems, increasing lymphatic flow. They also help to ease the burden of allergy-like compounds, freeing the immune fractions travelling in the lymph system for other work.
Eating pineapple is also high in enzymes but if it’s a little tricky to carry your pineapple slices out to dinner with you, try our Rejuv Digestive Aid Capsules. Take 1-2 capsules before a regular meal & 3-4 before a treat meal and your digestion will be tip-top.
3. Food & Supplements for the Lymphatic System to Reduce Inflammation
The more acidic you are, the thicker your blood so the more toxic your lymph. Eating fewer animal products and more plants will reduce acid waste and toxic lymph buildup. Consuming 3-4 cups of green vegetables per day is ideal, or you can have half of this with a fresh green juice and half actual vegetables to eat.
You might prefer to take super greens powder each day, such as our Rejuv Super-Greens Powder, or the Welleco The Super Elixir I formulated for Elle Macpherson if you find it hard to do this and live Pesca-vegan.
If you favour a capsule, you can also take our Rejuv Sea & Soil Green Capsules, which is excellent for thyroid and metabolic support too.
4. Bounce & Rebound to Pump the Lymphatic System
Rebounding is one of the easiest ways to pump the lymph. Simply spend 15-20 minutes per day, jumping on a trampoline. The jumping passively moves the lymph while stimulating the circulation of blood throughout the body.
Numerous studies have proven its efficiency, and have even shown it to improve muscle tone. Best is to rebound for 15-20 mins per day and either pull out your home rebounder or jump on the trampoline with your friends and family, either way, it is super fun, and your body will love it. Great way to shake off stress too!
If you have a health condition that doesn’t allow you to bounce; walking, or any form of cardio is great, and by supporting your liver and lymphatic system with herbs this will fast track your healing.
Limit your animal product intake to fish/seafood. Increase plant-based foods and add in herbs such as the ones in our Liver Support and Water Flo Capsules.
Making these changes will support your Lymphatic System Detox pathways, facilitating removal of acidic wastes and toxins.
5. Sweat It Out
Since there is no pump on the lymphatic system unless you move or sweat the toxins cannot be removed. A great way to support your lymph detox is to visit a dry sauna 1-2x week or buy an inexpensive Far-Infrared mat or sauna for your home.
A cold shower after the sauna is best for circulation and always wash your body with an organic soap or body wash and loofah if possible as you don’t want to reabsorb any released toxins.
Any form of cardio that allows you to sweat is also ideal for this acts as a natural pump for the lymphatic system, and it is best to move your body for 30-60 minutes each day.
6. Swim In Nature
Being submerged in water creates a compression effect from the water on your entire body, including your lymphatic system. The force of the water on your body causes a significant increase in hydrostatic pressure creating a pump-like effect which in turn has a fantastic impact in supporting the flow of your lymph.
Swimming in a lake or ocean is best as you also get the added minerals and good bacteria to support your immune system and microbiome further. Swimming pools are ok, but chlorine is very toxic, so choose saltwater pools instead when possible. Next week I will be writing a blog about chlorine exposure and how to reduce this so stay tuned.
7. Dry Brushing
Dry skin brushing is a brilliant way to assist in lymphatic flow and boosting circulation. You simply use a dry brush with coarse bristle and brush the skin towards your heart.
The brushing stimulates your sweat glands, opens pores, and removes dead skin cells. It also stimulates the movement of lymph and blood in underlying organs and tissues of the body, which helps clear built-up toxins. As a result, it may also improve skin conditions and reduce cellulite.
8. Physio & Massage
We all love a relaxing massage, and here’s another reason why: A lymphatic massage is a particular type of massage that targets the flow of lymph in your body. It uses pressure and rhythmic movements to stimulate the lymph and encourages its progress towards your heart to drain fluid and waste.
Studies have found that lymphatic massage may push up to 78 per cent of stagnant lymph back into circulation. The circulation mobilises toxins for clearance, lessening the burden on the lymphatic system.
We offer bespoke Physio Lymph Detox at the Rejuv Wellness Clinics in the UK & UAE. Our highly qualified physiotherapists incorporate lymphatic drainage with their musculoskeletal therapies. It is a powerful combination, especially in summer, when you want to reduce body fat and cellulite.
For appointments, please use the contact form.
9. Ladies, Remove Metal Underwires In Your Bra
Underwire bras can impede normal lymphatic flow. You’ll find one of the most significant clusters of lymph nodes in your armpit and upper chest area. Those nodes act as a source of drainage for the breast, arm, and upper chest.
The lymph can be constricted if a bra is too tight or if the underwire is too restrictive (for most of us this is the case), this prevents normal drainage.
Some researchers believe that over some time, this can cause long-term impairment of the lymphatic function, and may contribute to an array of conditions including fibrocystic breast tissue, swollen lymph nodes and breast cancer.
If you must have the extra support, choose underwire bras with plastic & NOT wire. You can tell if your underwire is plastic for if you bend it, it will bounce back whereas metal will not.
Also on an EMF note: the wire in the bra picks up lots of WiFi-Signals, acting like an antenna which may also increase your risk of breast cancer.
10. Practice Inversion: Handstands, Headstands & Shoulder Stands
Since the lymphatic system has no pump, inversion or merely spending time upside down is great to relieve congestion and encourage detoxification.
To start, inversions such as handstands, headstands and shoulder stands, and even placing the legs up the wall, reverse the effect of gravity. Doing this helps to drain the lymph towards the heart, escalating the rate in which it’s cleaned and filtered.
Inversion tables are also fun and cost-effective. Twists are also a great way to stimulate lymphatic flow. Since the body is interconnected diagonally, it’s useful to trace with your hand figure of 8’s over your skin, particularly in areas with water retention. The practice of twisting the abdomen, squeezes the organs and muscles, forcing the lymph out of the tissues.
Finally, the natural dynamic flow through the yoga poses cause the muscles in the body to contract and relax, which is the primary way lymph moves through the body. The exercise allows for a free flow of lymph, which prevents its stagnation and accumulation of toxins.
Supplements for lymphatic drainage
If you would like to do a complete lymphatic system detox or flush, you can incorporate the tips above for 2-4 weeks and choose from one of our Rejuv Packs.
To detox and burn fat, choose our Metabolism Reset Pack or the Metabolism Reset Pack (Coffee Burn Edition)
To do a complete cleanse, you can choose from these three packs that each come with a comprehensive wellness protocol and eating plan. All packs give you a substantial discount compared to buying the individual products.
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Complete Health Reset Pack This pack is a full health reset that will:
- cleanse your gut and flush out parasites
- reset your microbiome & help to heal leaky gut
- reduce stress hormones in your body (which cause weight gain and inflammation)
- cleanse and detox your liver and lymphatic system
- balance your blood sugar levels
- boost your metabolism to support fat burning
- support your thyroid
- reduce inflammation
- support your gut-brain axis
- help reduce depression and anxiety
- boost your energy levels
- support your immune system
- reset all of your 11 systems.
- 30 Day Health Reset This pack is great to detox, clear your lymphatic system, support fat burning, balance your blood sugar levels, decrease inflammation, boost energy levels, support gut function and help memory and cognition. This pack will, therefore, support an overall detox and support metabolism and fat burning too.
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Gut-Brain Reset This pack will reset your gut-brain connection, as it
- clears out all fungus, parasites and non-essential bacteria
- cleanses your colon and reinoculates your gut with good bacteria
- cleanses your liver and lymphatic system
- resets your gut-brain axis, so symptoms of IBS subside
- lessens cravings and excessive appetite
- diminishes depression and anxiety
- resets your memory and cognition, allowing you to feel physically and mentally strong
Your Lymphatic System is a great friend and needs to be nurtured daily by adding in at least 3 of these tips daily for you to live with outrageously good health.
If you have any specific questions, we are here to help so please contact us.
