Is Your Body Flooded With Toxins? 7 Telltale Symptoms
Being exposed to toxins in your daily life is almost unavoidable these days. After all, they are all around us - in the air we breathe, the water we drink, and even in the food we eat. While they are not always immediately harmful, these toxins can slowly build up in your body and adversely affect you in little ways you may not even realize.
Think
about it closely. Are you feeling worn out every day for no particular
reason? Have you been putting on extra weight despite working out? Are
you experiencing unusual skin reactions? If your answer to all these
questions is a yes, then it’s likely that your body is holding on to too
many toxins.
A
toxin is anything that is poisonous to the body. They are harmful
substances that can mess with your DNA and harm cellular function. You
can, of course, detoxify
your body and these niggling issues will disappear. Before that,
however, you need to first find out if your body is flooded with toxins.
Here, we will look at some subtle yet telltale signs of toxin overload in your body that you should certainly look out for.
1. You have brain fog
Brain
fog is the lack of a sharp focus or the inability to have a sharp
memory. If you are feeling regularly confused and are experiencing
memory loss, and an inability to stay focused, then these could be signs
of brain fog. This could be happening because of irritation caused by
chemicals and toxins that you are exposed to. According to health
experts, these toxins cause a sequence of reactions that dry up the
crucial vitamins, hormones, and minerals that the body needs. Remember
that a car breaks down when it has bad oil in it. Similarly, your body
will start breaking down if you fill it up with bad toxins.
2. Bad body odor
One
of the major warning signs of toxin overload in your body is unusual
smelling body odor. Thus, if you are experiencing staunch armpit odor or
if your breath smells bad even to you, then they are signs that your
body is trying to get rid of toxins. The explanation is simple: our body
creates gases and odors, which are by-products of metabolism and the
division of everything we eat, inhale, or are exposed to. When digested,
these toxins produce gases and odors, even as bad breath or in the
urine, and the body tries to dispose them off.
3. Aching joints and muscles
If
you suffer from unexplained muscle aches and pains you could have an
unusually high load of toxins in your body. Aches and pains are signs
that you could have unchecked inflammation in your body. This usually
happens when we make it a habit of eating fast food on the go which is
loaded with chemicals. A study
from the George Washington University states that foods that get
consumed at fast food places may increase the number of "health-harming
chemicals" or phthalates in the body.
Some
harmful toxins stir up the pain receptors in the muscle which then
leads to muscle spasms, knots, and general muscular aches and pains.
These toxins can have an immediate effect on your muscles or they may
act a little late. The best way to tackle this is to keep track of your
daily activities and understand the toxin or toxins responsible for your
body aches.
4. You’re constantly low on energy
If
you are sleeping well and yet waking up feeling exhausted, then toxin
overload could be one of the main reasons for it. Research has revealed
that there is a connection between chronic fatigue and toxin exposure in
the environment from things such as pesticides, solvents, and metals.
When our body gets overloaded with toxins, our kidneys and liver are
strained for getting rid of that extra waste. "If we put our kidneys
into overdrive it can get 'backed up' and cause toxin buildup, which in
turn causes the symptoms of fatigue and low energy," says Dr. Nesheiwat,
M.D.
Moreover,
a high toxin load can also be challenging for your adrenal glands
(triangular-shaped glands located on top of both kidneys that produce
hormones that help regulate your metabolism, immune system, blood
pressure, and other essential functions). Toxin overload can even lead
to adrenal fatigue which then results in the body feeling run-down and
exhausted.
5. Odd skin reactions
Your
skin is the largest organ of the body and is hence susceptible to
penetration of toxins. If your skin gets regularly exposed to toxins,
you may start noticing symptoms such as acne, rashes, puffy eyes, and
eczema, among others. Furthermore, products like shampoos, conditioners,
soaps, and lotions generally contain harmful chemicals that may lead to
odd skin reactions as well.
Also,
remember that your liver has to dispose of most toxins that you expose
your body to. But if it is overburdened by an excess of toxins, the skin
would have to perform that duty. This, too, can lead to skin rashes,
boils, or acne.
6. You’re putting on extra weight
You
are working out at the gym daily but you still keep accumulating extra
flab. Extra toxins could be the reason it hasn’t worked. Toxins can
negatively impact the level of certain hormones in the body,
particularly the ones accountable for maintaining weight. Moreover, many
toxins are lipophilic, meaning that they are stored in body fat. This
is most likely done by the body to get the toxic trash out of your
circulation and away from key organs. This leads to weight gain and also
complicates your weight loss endeavor because the body doesn’t let go
of the toxic fat it has stored so easily.
7. Constipation
The
processed foods we consume include harmful chemicals, preservatives,
colorants, and artificial flavoring. When we take these on a regular
basis, the intestines suffer and this could lead to an upset stomach or
constipation. If your bowel moment becomes irregular then it means that
the toxins inside your body are absorbed back into your bloodstream
instead of being eliminated every day, leaving you extremely toxic.
Health
experts recommend eating organic as much as possible, limiting alcohol
intake, and drinking plenty of water to help control your bowel
movements.