Sweating Is A Detox Tool
Detox is one of the most overused words in wellness — however, it is something your body is doing automatically ALL the time. Your body is constantly working to eliminate toxins that your own body produces as well as the toxins you encounter through the outside world (food, water, air, body care products, household products, etc). And your skin is your largest organ of detoxification.
What your sweat actually eliminates
Sweat is produced by two types of glands — eccrine glands, which cover most of your body and produce the watery sweat you have after exercise or from heat, and apocrine glands, concentrated in areas like your armpits and groin. It’s your eccrine glands that matter most for detoxification.
So what are you sweating out of your body? Well, published research dating back from 2012 from the Journal of Environmental and Public Health found measurable concentrations of heavy metals — arsenic, cadmium, lead, and mercury — in sweat! And surprisingly, these levels were sometimes at higher concentrations than in matched urine samples from the same individuals. This is quite important because these metals can accumulate in your soft tissue (causing a myriad of health problems) and can be difficult to clear out. Additionally, certain persistent organic pollutants including BPA and phthalates (which are hormone disrupting chemicals!) have also been detected in sweat.
Beyond toxicants, your sweat also contains urea, ammonia, and lactate which are metabolic waste products that your kidneys typically handle. When your kidney filtration is under stress, your sweat glands help out and partially compensate to remove that waste.
Summer gives you a natural detox advantage
Heat-induced sweating and exercise-induced sweating are both good for you and they also have some differences. The hotter weather we have during the summer certainly helps us sweat out more toxins! Additionally, the sweating that comes from exercise tends to contain higher concentrations of certain metals (perhaps due to increased circulation mobilizing stored toxins from your tissues).
For heat-induced sweating, the research on regular sauna use is quite impressive. Both Finnish and infrared sauna studies have linked frequent use (4–7 times per week) with reduced all-cause mortality, improved cardiovascular function, and lower inflammatory markers. While more frequent use is associated with more dramatic health benefits, 2–3 sessions weekly are sufficient to begin experiencing benefits such as lowered blood pressure, reduced systemic inflammation, better circulation,stress reduction, and improved sleep quality.
Making the most of it
Clearly there are health benefits to sweating. Here are some important takeaways:
- Sweat regularly and intentionally. Aim for at least 3–4 sessions per week of meaningful sweating through exercise, heat exposure, or sauna.
- Shower promptly after sweating. Compounds excreted through your skin can be partially reabsorbed through the stratum corneum if sweat remains on your skin — rinsing within 15–20 minutes matters (wiping sweat off with a towel unfortunately doesn’t prevent reabsorption of toxins).
- Replenish lost minerals. Sweat contains significant amounts of magnesium, zinc, sodium, and potassium. If you’re sweating without replenishing these minerals, you’ll feel it (muscle cramps, trouble sleeping, fatigue). A diet rich in fresh veggies and fruits, quality protein, and staying hydrated helps a lot with keeping your mineral levels replenished. If you are sweating for longer periods of time or frequently, consider electrolyte support (either DIY or a product).
- Support your liver too. Phase I and Phase II liver detoxification pathways process the compounds that eventually get excreted through your sweat. You can support your “detox team” through cruciferous vegetables (leafy greens, broccoli, cabbage, etc) — which upregulate glutathione-S-transferase), adequate protein (for glucuronidation), and B vitamins (for methylation) all amplify what sweating can do.
Hopefully you have a newfound appreciation for your sweat and how your body works hard to eliminate toxins and keep you healthy.
As a functional nutritionist, I don’t just help you to eat healthier: I help you create a healthier lifestyle.
If you’re ready to discover where your best health has been hiding, I’d love to connect with you!
Apply for a complimentary Unstoppable Health Discovery Session.
http://bit.ly/schedulinghealth (subject to availability).
Until next time, I’m wishing you unstoppable health,
~Rebecca
P.S. If you know someone who is ready to feel great & create health habits that stick, I would love to connect with them!
Please share my scheduling link with them so that they can schedule a complimentary Unstoppable Health Discovery Session with me.
As always, nothing in this newsletter is intended as medical advice. Please work with a qualified healthcare provider before making changes to any medications or treatment plans.
Vacation Gut: Your Gut Doesn’t Vacation When You Do
Going on vacation can be a lot of fun — especially when you feel good in your body! But I hear from SO many people that their digestion suffers when they take a trip…Bloating, constipation, or diarrhea can sure get in the way of what would otherwise be a great vacation.
Let’s look at 3 common reasons travel can disrupt your gut: circadian clock shifts, MMC stress, and dietary stressors as well as some helpful habits that can make a huge difference.
Your Gut’s Circadian Clock
Your digestive system runs on its own circadian clock. Specialized clock genes in your gut lining — including BMAL1 and CLOCK — control the timing of motility, enzyme secretion, and gut barrier function. Isn’t that fascinating?! When your meal timing shifts, your sleep is disrupted, or you cross time zones, these genes fall out of sync with your environment. The result is that your motility slows down or is erratic, you have reduced digestive enzyme output, and your gut lining is temporarily more permeable than usual. In a nutshell, your digestive system has less capacity and resilience than usual.
Your Gut’s Cleaning Crew
And there’s more. Your migrating motor complex (MMC) — the wave-like muscular contraction that sweeps the small intestine clean between meals that I’ve talked about in past newsletters — is particularly vulnerable. Your MMC depends on consistent fasting windows (vs grazing all day) and is suppressed by stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline, both of which tend to spike during travel. When your MMC stalls, undigested food and bacteria linger in the small intestine longer than they should, creating bloating and discomfort.
Dietary Stressors on Your Gut
Your microbiome responds quickly to changes in food, stress, and environment — sometimes within 24 to 48 hours. Studies on dietary shifts show that the ratio of Firmicutes to Bacteroidetes — two major bacterial phyla — can change meaningfully in just a few days of altered eating. Add in alcohol (which reduces beneficial Lactobacillus populations and increases intestinal permeability), lower fiber intake from restaurant meals, and elevated cortisol (which disrupts the gut-brain axis and alters secretory IgA, your gut’s frontline immune defense), and it becomes pretty clear why your microbiome may struggle just to keep up.
Helpful Habits to Travel With
- Keep eating times somewhat consistent. Even a loose window helps anchor your digestive circadian rhythm and supports MMC function. I’ve done plenty of traveling so trust me, I know that it can be easy to both skip meals or eat a lot more when you travel. Do your best to create some consistency with meal times most days of your vacation. Your gut will thank you.
- Prioritize fiber wherever you can. Fruit, veggies, nuts/seeds, avocado, legumes — even small amounts feed your beneficial Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus strains and help your microbiome to be more stable. Plus making sure to eat fiber with all your meals helps you to stay satisfied between meals and reduces food noise.
- Bring a probiotic. I’m a big fan of taking only the most helpful supplements with me on vacation–and probiotics are one of them! If you already have one that you love, great. If you’re wanting to get one that can help protect against traveler’s diarrhea, choose a multi-strain probiotic that has Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG and Saccharomyces boulardii (like BioMatrix’s Support Biotic)–they have the strongest evidence for reducing traveler’s diarrhea and general gut disruption.
- Stay ahead of hydration. If you are flying, airplane cabin humidity sits around 10–20% (well below the 40–60% your mucous membranes prefer). Staying hydrated helps protect your mucus layer and gut lining (dehydration causes that mucus layer to get thick and reduces healthy functioning). I highly recommend taking a good (non-plastic) water bottle on vacation with you–it makes all the difference to take it with you everywhere and refill throughout your day (stainless steel is a good lightweight option).
- Move your body. Walking stimulates the gastrocolic reflex (when the stomach signals to the colon to evacuate) and promotes MMC activity — take a short walk about 20 minutes after meals to support your motility (sooner than that for blood sugar benefits).
Doing these simple habits can make your whole trip more comfortable and enjoyable.
As a functional nutritionist, I don’t just help you to eat healthier: I help you create a healthier lifestyle.
If you’re ready to discover where your best health has been hiding, I’d love to connect with you!
Apply for a complimentary Unstoppable Health Discovery Session.
http://bit.ly/schedulinghealth (subject to availability).
Until next time, I’m wishing you unstoppable health,
~Rebecca
P.S. If you know someone who is ready to feel great & create health habits that stick, I would love to connect with them!
Please share my scheduling link with them so that they can schedule a complimentary Unstoppable Health Discovery Session with me.
Summer Superfoods: What’s Actually Worth Eating (And What’s Just Hype)
Every summer, the wellness world lights up with lists of “superfoods” you absolutely need to be eating. Acai smoothie bowls! Watermelon juice! Turmeric everything! Some are actually worth eating/drinking…and the majority is just clever, misleading marketing.
Here’s my functional nutrition take on what the real summer superfoods are and what you can feel free to skip.
Actually Worth It
Wild-caught salmon and sardines
Omega-3 fatty acids are among the most well-researched anti-inflammatory compounds we know of, and fatty fish are one of the best, and most highly-absorbable sources. In summer, these are easy to grill, easy to find, and genuinely powerful for reducing inflammation, supporting brain health, and balancing out the omega-6 load that we tend to eat in excess. Sardines in particular are an underrated nutritional powerhouse — rich in omega-3s, calcium, vitamin D, and B12.
Berries
Blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries are loaded with polyphenols and antioxidants, particularly anthocyanins, which have been shown to reduce oxidative stress (that ages our cells), support brain health, lower blood pressure, and fight inflammation. And a big overall health bonus: they’re naturally lower in sugar than most fruits and high in fiber. Plus, YUM!
Leafy greens (especially arugula and watercress)
I especially love eating fresh leafy greens when it’s warm/hot weather. Dark leafy greens are rich in magnesium, folate, vitamin K, and nitrates — the compounds that support nitric oxide production in your body (which means better circulation and lower blood pressure). Arugula and watercress are particularly high in nitrates (which your body coverts to nitric oxide) and also have natural compounds that support liver detoxification (by upregulating Phase II detoxification enzymes, helping your liver get rid of carcinogens, heavy metals, and toxins.)
Fermented foods
Summertime can be quite a gut disrupting season — more travel, more alcohol, more processed food at gatherings, more antibiotic exposure from conventionally raised meats, and more pesticide exposure from conventionally grown produce which is quite the insult to our microbiome. Fermented foods like kimchi, sauerkraut, miso (can be used in sauces or dressings), plain kefir, and plain yogurt deliver live beneficial bacteria that help maintain and restore your gut microbiome. A small serving daily goes a long way.
Watermelon
Watermelon gets dismissed as “just sugar and water,” but it’s actually a functional food worth including. It’s rich in lycopene — a powerful antioxidant linked to reduced inflammation and lower risk of heart disease and certain cancers. It also contains citrulline, an amino acid that supports nitric oxide production and healthy blood flow. Eat it as whole fruit (not juice) to get that fiber. Watermelon isn’t high in fiber, but every bit of fiber helps buffer the impact of fruit’s natural sugar.
Garlic and fresh herbs
Garlic is one of nature’s most potent anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial foods, and summer is peak season for fresh herbs like basil, parsley, rosemary, mint, and cilantro (personally, I can’t stand cilantro unless it’s in salsa and think it tastes like soap, but many people love the taste and I acknowledge that it has redeemable health qualities). These herbs are loaded with antioxidants, support detoxification pathways, and add great flavor without any of the inflammatory ingredients found in many bottled sauces and dressings.
Overhyped
Açai bowls (from a restaurant)
Here me out. Açai itself is a legitimate antioxidant-rich fruit. But most açai bowls you buy at restaurants or smoothie shops are usually loaded with sweetened granola, honey, sweetened coconut flakes, and more fruit on top — often adding up to 60–80 grams of sugar! That’s not a health food; that’s dessert. Make your own at home with unsweetened açai, a handful of berries, and some nuts & seeds for protein, fat, and fiber. If you are able to get these modifications from a restaurant, more power to ya!
Coconut water (most brands)
Coconut water has been positioned as a natural electrolyte drink and sports recovery beverage. And while it does contain potassium, most commercial coconut waters are also high in natural sugars (some even have added sugars) and low in sodium — so they’re not actually well-suited for electrolyte replacement after exercise. If you are lucky enough to get fresh coconut water straight from the coconut, that has more nutrients and enzymes than bottled coconut water. For hydration/electrolytes though, better to keep coconut water intake low and have plain water with a pinch of sea salt and some mineral-rich foods. All that being said, unsweetened coconut water is a far better choice than sodas or beverages that have even more sugar and artificial flavors and colors.
“Green” juices
As I brought up recently, juicing removes the fiber from fruits and vegetables — the very thing that slows down sugar absorption and feeds your beneficial gut bacteria. A green juice made with apple, carrot, beet, and a little kale can easily have 30+ grams of sugar (7+ teaspoons!). Your body doesn’t need all that sugar; it needs consistent daily support through whole vegetables, adequate protein, and reduced toxin exposure (organic is best). Eat the fruits and vegetables — don’t drink them. Or if you are going to drink them, have them blended rather than juiced and keep the serving size small to keep your total sugar load low.
The Bottom Line
The most powerful summer superfoods are natural and simple: berries, leafy greens, fatty fish, garlic, fresh herbs, and fermented foods.
Eat real food. Eat what’s in season. Keep it simple.
As a functional nutritionist, I don’t just help you to eat healthier: I help you create a healthier lifestyle.
If you’re ready to discover where your best health has been hiding, I’d love to connect with you!
Apply for a complimentary Unstoppable Health Discovery Session. http://bit.ly/schedulinghealth (subject to availability).
Until next time, I’m wishing you unstoppable health,
~Rebecca
P.S. If you know someone who is ready to feel great & create health habits that stick, I would love to connect with them!
Please share my scheduling link with them so that they can schedule a complimentary Unstoppable Health Discovery Session with me.
As always, nothing in this newsletter is intended as medical advice. Please work with a qualified healthcare provider before making changes to any medications or treatment plans.
