Your body’s self-detoxing method
The word “detox’ gets overused for all the ways in which we can try to be healthier, but your body truly can detoxify itself, without the need for expensive green juices. The lymphatic drainage system is a big part of how your body rids itself of toxins, all day, every day, and if you can encourage this system to function at its best, you have nature’s best technology on your side.
What is lymph?
Lymph is a fluid that contains debris, toxins and waste from your cells throughout your whole body. It collects around your cells and gradually drains into lymph pathways, collecting at meeting points named nodes, where lots of immune cells like to hang out to get the lowdown on what’s passing through. An adult human has several hundred of these nodes, which means your body is constantly being carefully monitored for invaders! The nodes also become swollen when fighting an infection, because so many immune cells and dead bacteria/viruses end up collecting here.
The lymph then eventually heads into your chest, culminating in a major drainage point on each side of your left and right. From there it gets flushed through into your veins and filtered along with the rest of your blood through various organs. An adult can produce up to 5 litres of lymph fluid a day, though may be even more during illness.
What happens when it doesn’t drain properly?
Sometimes, the lymphatic system can become a bit sluggish and clogged. We might feel heavy, bloated or sluggish ourselves. If the drainage pathways aren’t clear, then your cells sit and bathe in their own waste at a slightly higher concentration than they would like. This means nothing quite works at optimum, and the proper delivery of nutrients is impeded too.
Lymphatic drainage massage is one way to help the lymph drain - beloved of celebrities for its temporary slimming effects, it is also very useful for those with chronic fatigue, lymphedema, fighting off a comon cold, or other conditions that cause lymph to build up. Due to a lack of lymphatic drainage massage therapists in Australia, Dr Anna has developed a series of exercises and at home care that you can do to manage your own lymph system and encourage proper drainage.
How can I help encourage my lymph to drain?
Staying active, hydrating well and reducing sugar intake all help to encourage your lymph to flow healthily.
If you are feeling a little sluggish, bloated or just looking for a general detox, there are self massage techniques, and exercises, that you can do. Ask Dr Anna and she can show you how to do them for a daily immune boost.
One simple thing you can do that will aid your lymphatic drainage is belly breathing - just take 10 slow breaths, slightly deeper than normal, using your diaphragm. As you breathe in, your belly button should expand outwards, and as you breathe out, it should contract back towards your spine. The negative/positive pressure of using your diaphragm this way helps lymph flow through the main drainage points in your chest and the many nodes in your abdomen and other areas of your body. This type of breathing also has many other benefits for your postural muscles, vagus nerve and hormonal systems.
