The Lymphatic (Lymph) System and a Simple Lymphatic Cleanse To Improve Health

The lymphatic system is a complex network of fluid-filled nodes, vessels, ducts and glands — including the spleen, thymus and tonsils — that bathe our cells and carry our body’s “sewage” away from the tissues and neutralize it. These elements of the lymph system work together to carry cellular waste to the bloodstream. The lymph system handles toxins that enter the body through external sources, such as foods or air pollution, but also handles internally produced toxins (endotoxins) that are the result of normal metabolic processes in the body.

The lymphatic system can be compared to the drains in your house and the blood to the faucets. If the drains are clogged in your sinks, you would clean the drains and not just the faucets. Without regular cleaning, the lymphatic system can stay clogged for many years thus forcing us to adapt to an environment of toxins that stresses and weakens immunity and other important pathways of detoxification.

The Lymph Stress Quiz

Take the following quiz to learn whether your lymphatic system could use cleansing.

1. Are you overweight or have belly fat?

2. Do you have cellulite or fatty deposits?

3. Do you suffer from various and sundry aches and pains?

4. Have you been diagnosed with fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, multiple sclerosis, lupus or another chronic immune system disorder?

5. Have you ever yo-yo dieted or are you always on some sort of diet?

6. Do you experience abdominal bloating?

7. Do you experience eye puffiness?

8. Do you have skin rashes or itchiness?

If you answered “yes” to any of the above questions, your lymph system could use tuning up. For generally healthy people, cleansing once or twice yearly (for two to three weeks at a time) usually is adequate. If you’re overweight or have an immune disorder, you may wish to cleanse more frequently or for longer periods, under the supervision of your health-care provider. (modified quiz from http://www.herbcompanion.com/Health/Love-Your-Lymph.aspx)

Learn About Lymph

A study by Elisabeth Dancey, M.D., author of The Cellulite Solution (St. Martin’s Press, 1997), found that women with cellulite showed lymphatic system deficiencies. Another study found that 80 percent of overweight women have sluggish lymphatic systems and that getting this system flowing smoothly is the key to easy weight loss and improved feelings of well-being.

If the lymph system is inefficient, you may see fatty deposits or cellulite or experience aches and pains. Conversely, if you improve the cleansing ability of the lymph system, it will be able to “sweep” away the toxins that are linked to pain, cellulite, fatty deposits and some autoimmune disorders.

A healthy lymphatic system also helps purify the blood through the largest mass of lymph tissue in the body, the spleen. The spleen fights infection and destroys worn-out red blood cells in the body. By cleansing your lymphatic system, your spleen will be better able to handle the retired red blood cells.

MOVE YOUR BODY: EXERCISE IS VITAL

There is three times more lymph fluid in the body than blood, yet the body has no organ like the heart to pump lymph. That means lymph relies on deep breathing and exercise to move. While cleansing the lymphatic system, be sure to increase aerobic exercise — try brisk walking, rebounding on a mini trampoline or jogging. Also, it’s important to take time to practice deep-breathing exercises to help pump the lymph with fresh oxygen.

Thoroughly cleansing the lymphatic system is the key to long- term and efficient weight loss and great health. It is also the key to experiencing great health and living without pain.

3 Major Causes Of Lymphatic Congestion

  1. Stress has been identified as the cause of about 80% of all disease. The chemistry of stress is degenerative and lymph congesting.
  2. Chronic Digestive Imbalances like constipation and diarrhea due to irritated intestinal villi are classic causes of lymph congestion.  As the majority of the lymph in the body surrounds the gut (Gut Associated Lymphatic Tissues or GALT), the quality of the villi are critical for proper lymph flow, detoxification, assimilation and immunity.
  3. Iodine Deficiency is also a common cause of lymphatic congestion. Iodine protects us from a toxic environment and supports the lymph at the cellular level. (link to nascent iodine)

Hydrate to De-congest and Cleanse Your Lymph

One of the most common causes of lymph congestion is dehydration. Water and only water can adequately re-hydrate the body. The best lymph moving re-hydration technique is to sip hot water every 10-15 minutes throughout the day. Do it religiously for one day. If by the end of that day you are experiencing a dry mouth and are now thirsty for this once tasteless sip of hot water, this is a good indication you are dehydrated and your lymph is congested. If this happens, try this re-hydration therapy: sip hot water every 10-15 minutes for 2 weeks straight. Keep a thermos of hot water nearby to make it easy to follow this protocol.

In addition to sipping hot water as part of the lymph moving re-hydration technique, try to drink 1/2 your ideal body weight in ounces per day for two to three weeks as well. For example, if you weigh 140 lbs, drink 70 ounces of water (almost 9 glasses) per day.

Red foods are excellent for the lymph system, with beets being at the top of the lymph-moving list. Even one a day, grated, raw or cooked, with a little lemon and Dijon mustard is a tasty lymph-moving treat. Beets also have one other very important property – they thin the bile. Bile is responsible for about 80% of the immune response in the gut, it regulates the stool, digests good fat and gets rid of bad fat.