How To Detox Your Life - Now

Stress, unhealthy eating, lack of exercise, toxic relationships - sound familiar? Making the right choices and using the right intervention now will impact what we suffer from (or not) later on. Leading Melbourne naturopath Tim Altman gives us 15 ways to detox your life - so you can be your best self every day.

1. Reducing intake of sugars
Including refined carbohydrates or white flour and alcohol.

2. Reduce intake of stimulants
Caffeine, alcohol, drugs, tobacco etc. They all have a huge impact on your system.

3. Eat more fresh fruit and vegetables
The amount of research coupling a high intake fruit and veg with prevention of chronic illness is overwhelming.

4. Eat organic foods and drinks
Also use chemical free cosmetics, deodorants, soaps, shampoos, household cleaning products etc. to reduce your intake of chemicals that are seen as foreign to the body.

5. Read labels on food packaging
Avoid preservatives, additives, colourings, flavourings, MSG, trans fats etc. Or anything that sounds like it comes from a laboratory rather than the earth.

6. Go on a detox process for at least 2 weeks
There are many processes that are highly effective, but the best ones by far are those that are supervised by a health practitioner such as your doctor or naturopath. This involves eliminating many toxic foods and drinks and undergoing processes that enhance digestive function and eliminative organs.

7. Have regular saunas
They increase sweat and help eliminate toxins from the tissue underneath your skin (and the skin is the largest organ of elimination in the body). They also improve skin quality, immune system function, and help you sleep like a baby.

8. Reduce your exposure to radiation
Spending less time on the phone, in front of the TV or computer, microwave ovens etc. Or investigate methods and devices that reduce emissions from these devices. An effective method for doing this is by going on regular holidays or weekends where you either leave these behind or only schedule very infrequent and short exposure to them.

9. Buy a water filter
Drink filtered water at home and at work.

10. Drink beer and wine that contains no preservatives
There are options in most restaurants and bottle shops and it is always written on labels.