The children I see in my practice, walk through my door for different reasons: allergies, asthma, eczema, constipation, stomachaches, headaches, anxiety, ADD, autism and more – but they often share a common problem: they are not adequately detoxifying and draining toxins from their body. In a nutshell, detoxification and drainage are the way your child’s body cleans itself.

 

We are what we consume, minus what we eliminate. Most people get the consumption part ~ eat REAL food, right? But most of us don’t pay mind or attention to the second EQUALLY important part ~ elimination. We become so food focused, we forget that food is a HUGE something but not EVERYTHING in helping our child obtain REAL health.

 

 

Toxins can be exogenous (what he consumes from outside his body) and endogenous (what his cells create inside his body). Exogenous toxins include pollutants, insecticides, pesticides, food additives, drugs, most of us can rattle off these. What we forget about are the endogenous toxins – the end products from cellular metabolism. We forget cells are living…they breathe, digest, and dump themselves! So even if we ate perfectly, drank artisan spring water blessed by a Zen monk, and lived in a stress-free bubble, we’d still have to dump our endogenous toxins.

 

Your child is bombarded with toxins: from the food she eats, the water he drinks, the air she breathes and the products he uses (bug spray, sunscreen, soaps, household cleaners, etc.) – plus all the toxins your child’s cells produce just from living.  Fortunately, your child’s body has a handful of ways to neutralize and clear toxins from his body.

 

Your child neutralizes toxins (primarily by her liver) and then clears (or drains) those toxins from the body through “exit” doors. Open exit doors are KEY to obtaining REAL health – it’s like trying to clean dirty dishes in the kitchen sink, and the sink won’t drain! The job is half done. If your child’s exit doors are functionally closed, you still have a dirty sink!

 

There are 5 primary exit doors to eliminate toxins from our body.

 

1) Liver (and Digestive Tract)

2) Kidney

3) Lungs

4) Skin

5) Nervous System

 

The liver and digestive tract eliminate toxins through the stool, the kidney through urine, the lungs through breath, the skin through sweat, and the nervous system through emotions. The circulatory systems (blood and lymph) are important as well. They help carry the toxins out through these 5 primary exit doors, so it’s important both the lympahtic system and the cardiovascular system are “moving”.  See Move/Play below.

For example, take a child with eczema. The body is always trying to eliminate its toxins, and the most efficient way is through the liver (stool) and kidneys (urine). Yet, when the liver/kidney function is “sluggish” and not doing its job to the fullest, the body will start eliminating elsewhere. In eczema, the rash is simply the body pushing its toxins out through the skin. However, the skin is not our best eliminator, so the eczema waxes and wanes rather than resolves entirely. By “tuning up” the body’s internal elimination of toxicity through the liver, kidneys and intestines, often the eczema resolves entirely (without topical steroids)!

 

The beauty is without us doing anything, the body inherently knows how to detoxify and drain itself.  But ~ and this is a very big “but” ~ it is vital we encourage the body daily to eliminate through the 5 primary exit doors. Think of it as a daily “spring” cleaning.

 

Believe it or not, your child doesn’t have have to go on a strange diet, use laxatives, or special products to cleanse. There are simple things you can do everyday to support detoxification and drainage.

 

1. Eat REAL Food Together. For the body to detoxify and drain, it has to be well nourished so that all systems are a ‘go’. Adding more toxins through consuming fake foods further burdens the body. So sit together to eat REAL food meals daily.

 

2. Drink Purified Water. Start the morning with a glass of warm lemon water. The juice of 1/2 of a lemon or lime in a glass of warm water first thing will gently help flush the liver and kidneys of accumulated toxins and waste. This is an easy and fun habit to do every morning. Also, while drinking too much water with a meal can interfere with digestion, have your child drink plenty of water between meals to help carry nutrients to the cells and carry waste out of the body.

 

3. Breathe Deeply. Teach your child Belly Breathing.  Have him put his hand on his belly and breathe in deeply, until he feels his belly get as big as it can. Then teach him to breathe out through his mouth while feeling his belly get as small as it can by pushing out all the air in his lungs.  The exhale breath should be twice as long as the inhale. Do this with your child a few times throughout the day.

 

4. Move and Play. The  body is designed to move so why not have fun while doing it. Moving the muscles is essential for lymph to be pumped through the lymph nodes, which store and neutralize toxins and waste products. One of the best exercises for moving lymph is gentle bouncing or jumping. Small rebounders (those little trampolines) are great for helping the body detoxify. Or, get your child to jump rope!  Any muscle movement will support the lymphatic system in detoxifying the body.

 

5. Sleep Soundly. Sometimes sleeping soundly and kids don’t exactly go hand-in-hand but helping children to get enough quality sleep each night is paramount to great health. Get in the routine of getting your child to bed early through a calming routine. One of the easiest things you can do, along with reading together, is a quick massage with Sleep, one of our favorite essential oils. This oil supports the body in relaxation and your touch supports your child’s emotional and physical health.  Even big kids and teens will appreciate a shoulder or foot massage.

 
We are merely a reflection of our environment. It is impossible to live in a bubble; we all have exposure to toxins. Pay attention to ALL that your child consumes. Reduce his toxin burden by using nontoxic personal care products (soaps, lotions, etc.). It’s better for your child, and our planet. Our favorite non-toxic cleaners are from Naturally It's Clean - the only enzyme-based cleaning line available for homes. And, we love Sprout Skincare - Your jaw will drop when you read the ingredients - rosewater, tea tree oil, raw apple cider vinegar, pure witch hazel, essential oils, shea butter, coconut oil, olive oil, sea salt, oat flour, almond flour, demerara sugar, and shredded coconut. Now that's REAL! We also protect our children in the summer with non-toxic 3rd Rock Sunblock and Buzz-OFF Bugspray.

 

 

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Susan McCreadie, MD is a Holistic Pediatrician and co-founder of nourishMD. She shows parents how to find REAL health for their child, so they can stop treating their child's symptoms and instead find solutions that help their child heal from the inside out.