Toxicity is all around us. The number of toxins we are exposed to both in our environment and within our bodies are numerous. The toxicity we are faced with on a daily basis is becoming a major problem and the majority of us are completely unaware of its effects on our lives and our health.
Smokestacks from tall chimneys in chemical factories disseminate the chemical residues of the plastic industry, such as dioxins and PCBs, into the air. These potent triggers of cancer spread in clouds to every continent on earth and into every water stream. From there they find their way into the soil, plants and animals, including humans, where they bio-accumulate in different tissues of the body.

We do not see, smell or taste toxins we are exposed to on a daily basis and we are becoming unknowing victims of their harmful influences.
Not all toxicity comes from outside of our bodies either; we are also burdened by internal toxins coming from the digestive tract and our teeth, medical implants, etc.

Toxins coming from the outside are called Xenobiotics. Xenobiotics are any substances that are foreign to the body and yet have biological activity, meaning our body needs to detoxify and eliminate them.

TOXINS IN OUR LIVES

The majority of conventionally produced food we consume today has been contaminated with chemicals and is nutrient deficient.
Chemicals called Phthalates outgas from plastic bags, Styrofoam trays, and plastic bottles and tubs that our food is stored in, leaching into the food. Other chemicals in our food include styrene and dioxins. The conventionally produced meat and meat products are full of antibiotics and hormones, chemical preservatives, colouring, flavour enhancers and other additives. Fruits, grains and vegetables are tainted with fertilisers, herbicides and pesticides.

Air pollution from industry and automobiles is full of heavy metals and volatile organic hydrocarbons like formaldehyde, benzene, toluene and other foreign chemicals. In our homes we are exposed to different kinds of plastics from construction materials, building products, furnishings, carpets, baby toys and bottles, kitchen appliances, computers and many more. All these chemicals make their way into our bodies where they must be detoxified.

Our water is full of toxic chemicals, even bottled water, unless it is filtered with reverse osmosis filters. Most drugs and medications, prescription or over the counter, are Xenobiotics and put additional stress on our bodies’ detoxification system. Every drug or medication has a half-life and must be detoxified, broken down and excreted from the body. This is known as the pharmacodynamics of the drug. Many drugs steal vital nutrients from the body in order for this process to take place.

We all have toxins in our bodies. Adipose tissue (fat in our body) surveys show that 100% of human fat biopsies have un-detoxified styrene residues. Styrene comes from the following: Styrofoam, plastic coffee cups, plastic wrap, appliances and any type of plastic. It can cause neurotoxic symptoms like convulsions, rashes, asthma spastic colon, to mention just some of them.

Other exogenous toxins like dioxin, xylene and 1,4-dichlorbenzene, are found in fat tissues as well. Xenoestrogens, PCBs, Poly Vinyl chloride, pesticides, herbicides, heavy metals and many more toxins can cause many harmful symptoms and chronic diseases if not detoxified and eliminated from our body.

Endogenous or auto toxicity is caused by the toxins produced from within the body. This can be an accumulation of the waste from normal physiology, or toxins produced within the body, especially in the intestinal tract. Normal biochemical processes in our body produce toxins in the form of free radicals which are a major cause of oxidative stress and chronic degenerative disease. Free radicals will block normal functions of the body if they are not eliminated by antioxidants. Large amounts of toxins are produced in our gut from maldigestion of our food and metabolic waste products from parasitic, bacterial or fungal infections in the Gastro-intestinal tract. They can cause inflammation and leaky gut syndrome in the GI tract. Our immune system will be compromised as well because over half of it comes from our gut. Other potential sources of toxicity come from our teeth if we have amalgam (Mercury) fillings, acrylates from crowns, bridges etc.  Other sources of endogenous toxicity are silicone from breast implants, titanium from hip and knee replacements or even heavy metals in hair dyes.

THE EFFECTS OF TOXICITY

The majority of the chemicals that find their way into our body are stored in fat, but they are not there forever. The stored toxins find their way into general circulation where it is a significant cause of disease and accelerated aging. They can cause any disease from hypertension, osteoporosis, high cholesterol, arthritis, Alzheimer’s disease, fibromyalgia, degenerating disks, depression, fatigue, diabetes, cancer, infertility problems in men and women; the list can go on and on.

HOW DOES THE BODY GET RID OF TOXINS?

The body has an intricate system to deal with toxicity. Unfortunately, it did not have time to evolve to deal with the enormous burden that modern life has placed upon it. Toxic compounds that the body is unable to detoxify and eliminate, build up in the body.
The major organs of detoxification are: the liver; the lymphatic system; the gastrointestinal tract; the kidneys and the skin. The immune system is one of the body’s most poisoned systems and it is very difficult to detect early damage to it. Early symptoms of compromised immunity can be symptoms of allergies or asthma, frequent colds and sore throats. The liver is the major organ of detoxification. If the liver becomes sluggish due to an overburden with toxins, symptoms and chronic diseases start to develop.

Functional Diagnostic medicine has the ability to discover early signs and malfunction in major organs of detoxification and has excellent protocols for detoxification tailored to specific organs and malfunctions in the body.

The protocols of detoxification will be discussed in the next issue of the Larnaca News.

By Dr. Mirjana Duvnjak-Dakos, MD - Functional Diagnostic Medicinal Practitioner