Detoxing:Getting Started With A Detox Plan
From MercuryTalk
Contents |
A Common Question
One of the most common questions we get asked is, "How do I detox mercury?" Below is information that will help you get started in your quest for freedom from mercury toxicity.
Don't Start Too Early
If you still have amalgams in your body, we don't personally recommend that people start detoxing.
Because amalgams offgas mercury vapor 24/7 and because many chelation supplements can pull mercury out of the filling, we believe it's best to wait until all fillings have been removed before you begin a detox program. This includes waiting to take simple and common chelation supplements such as chlorella or ALA (Alpha-Lipoic Acid).
Starting Gently
Assuming you have to continue working and functioning while you're detoxing, a key to success is to detox in a way that does not interfere with your life. Having been through detox and having recovered from mercury toxicity after the removal of our amalgam fillings, we have found dramatic differences between methods of detox in terms of how they make you feel.
We prefer gentle, long-term detox plans over agressive short-term detox plans because we believe they are safer. Of course, the choice is yours, but always remember that safety is important because you are dealing with a highly-toxic substance that can permanently harm or even kill you.
Making A Plan
Detoxing is a long-term plan that you have to faithfully follow if it is going to work. Here are specific ideas to help you create a good detox plan.
Mercury detox is a two-tier project:
- Protection
- Mobilization (via Chelation)
First, you have to protect your body from the effects of mercury, then you want to "mobilize" the mercury, that is, you want to pull it from body tissue and get it out. Providing a balance between protection and mobilization will allow you to feel reasonably well while assisting the body in eliminating mercury at a faster rate than it normally would.
This balancing act is important because mobilizing too much mercury too fast can redistribute the mercury causing it to end up back in your body tissue causing more damage as it travels. If you mobilize too slowly, then mercury remains in your body longer than necessary.
A good plan will involve starting gently and becoming more agressive as you become stronger and healthier.
Protection
The suggestions in this section help by protecting your body from damage caused by mercury. This is a vital step in a successful mercury detox campaign.
Algin
We believe the single most important supplement you can take for mercury detox is Algin. Algin is too often overlooked or not known about by alternative health practitioners but it is much too important to forget.
Algin travels through the digestive system and powerfully absorbs mercury as it is thrown into the intestines preventing mercury from being reabsorbed into the body and redeposited into body tissue. Because Algin is so efficient at absorbing mercury, people usually report feeling considerably better taking Algin alone with no other supplementation. Of course, keeping mercury from redistributing itself back into the body is very important to prevent further damage to the body, especially while detoxing. Algin can be taken while amalgam fillings are still in the mouth because it isn't actually a chelator.
Vitamin E with Selenium
Mercury causes oxidative damage to the brain. Vitamin E with Selenium is a powerful antioxidant that helps prevent this damage and should be taken both before and after amalgam fillings are removed.
Selenium is a vital mineral necessary for numerous body functions and is rendered useless by mercury in the body. Selenium supplementation is beneficial for mercury toxic persons and should be taken together with vitamin E.
Vitamin C
Vitamin C performs countless functions in the body ranging from joint/ligament health to assisting the circulatory system. Because mercury causes oxidative damage to the body, a powerful antioxidant is necessary to counteract this.
We suggest taking a healthy dose of Vitamin C daily. We take between 1000 mg to 5000 mg daily. You should also take a C vitamin that contains Bioflavonoids which greatly enhance the availability and effectivness of vitamin c in the body.
Mobilization (via Chelation)
Protein
Once amalgams are out, you can start chelating (pulling mercury out of body tissues using chemical-binding). A gentle way to begin this process is with protein.
Most proteins contain an amino acid called cysteine. Cysteine contains sulphur and therefore provides a good binding site for mercury (mercury binds strongly with sulphur). This binding action provides a gentle form of chelation that can help pull mercury out of body tissue and into the intestines where is can be absorbed by Algin and carried out of the body.
For years, we have used (and still do) a whey protein powder supplement, called NutraBurn (Vanilla), which also comes in chocolate flavor (NutraBurn, Chocolate). We mix one scoop (provided) of this with 1/2 scoop of a "green drink" that contains chlorella (more on this shortly) 5 mornings per week.
Chlorella
A well-known supplement that mobilizes mercury is chlorella. We prefer to take chlorella in a "green drink" that provides numberous complementary ingredients that help both with mercury toxicity and with general health.
We personally use (and continue to today) pH Green Zone. I mix 1 scoop of protein powder (mentioned above) with 1/2 scoop of pH Green Zone into a cup of water and stir thoroughly. My friends call this mixture "Swamp Water" by it is my first food in the morning each business day (I take a break on Saturdays and Sundays) and make a big difference in my energy level right from the start. And, because it contains chlorella, I know that I'm detoxing mercury in a way that benefits my body.
Combination Mercury Detox Supplements
There are numerous supplements that can be used together to detox mercury, and the most convenient and economical way to get them is to take a combination forumla. Our personal favorite is simply called Heavy Metal Detox. Because of the complexities of mercury detox, there are some supplements that are best taken together. This combination has them all and in the right proportions.
Because this is a somewhat advanced detox product, it should never be used if you still have amalgam fillings in your mouth. To be extra careful, we believe you should also take additional Algin when you take this supplement. This supplement will mobilize mercury and having plenty of Algin to absorb it will help tremendously in controlling symptoms that can arise when mercury is mobilized.
There are other supplements that can help detox and/or rebuild body systems if you prefer to focus on parts of your body at a time. We will continue to add articles to this website to help you, so please feel free to contact me if you have questions regarding a specific health issues you are experiencing.
Customizing Your Detox Plan
As you begin to detox, you can adjust how agressively you mobilize mercury by paying attention to how you feel. You will, of course, have good days and bad days, but paying attention to how foods and certain activities affect you will help you tremendously. We even suggest you keep a journal and record how you feel each day, both physically and emotionally, and record you diet and basic activities. You will be surprised at how this can help you find patterns of diet and exercise that work for you.
As you begin feeling better on a specific detox plan, you may want to begin adding in additional mercury chelators/mobilizers to bring your detox to the next level. Several varied supplements to help you do this are available. The supplements you use are up to you, and we'll be writing more articles on this website to help you make informed decisions about which ones are right for you.
Aggressive vs. Slow and Gentle
There are different methods of detox and there are many variables. You will find that what might work for some won't work for others.
For example, if you mobilize small amounts of mercury over a long period of time, the ratio of the amount of mercury that will redistribute per time is small, and the way someone feels is dependent on this ratio.
If you mobilize a lot of mercury in a short period of time, a certain percentage of that mobilized mercury will redistribute, even in the presence of chelators. The ratio of the amount of mercury that will redistribute per time may be higher in this case, however some people will "deal" with this redistribution better than others.
Of course, the advantage to this method is that you're moving more mercury per time. The disadvantage for some may be that their elimination channels are slow, so they may experience horrible symptoms.
I compare this situation to phase I and II liver detoxification—In this model, phase I being mobilization and phase II being elimination. If phase I is faster, you'll have terrible symptoms. There are certainly other factors as well: APO-E genotypes, genetic predispositions, existing organ damage, other parallel toxicities, etc.
So if someone desires to try to detox quickly and use, say Cutler's methods, that's fine. In this situation, it's important to pay close attention to the body for signs of trouble. If someone needs to feel well because they have demands on their life during detox, it may be safer to go slow.
Since the liver processes 90% of the mercury dumping it into the intestines, the most important part of the process—in my understanding—is to prevent intestinal reabsorption. This is where Algin comes in.
In this "Phase" model (above), Algin essentially increases the efficiency of phase II making the detox experience less damaging, less symptom-prone and/or making more aggressive detox feasible.
Controlling The Symptoms Of Mercury Toxicity
Nearly everyone who has discovered that they have mercury toxicity did so because they had symptoms they were unable to get relief from. This is exactly how it happened for us. These symptoms range from digestive (IBS, constipation, frequent urination) to neurological (fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue, headaches) to behavioral (ADD, ADHD, depression, bipolar) to common (candida, fatigue, balding).
Getting relief from these symptoms is important, especially during mercury detox, so you can continue to carry on with your life. Numerous solutions in the form of natural supplements are available to help with these common, mercury-related issues and we have used many of them ourselves. Fortunately (unlike most pharmaceuticals), as you become more detoxed, symptoms often disappear and you no longer need the supplements. I personally went from about 30 natural supplements per day when my amalgams were still in just so I could work each day, to taking 0 (zero) to 5 per day now. I simply don't need all of them anymore now that I'm detoxed.
Please see the article entitled:
Controlling_The_Symptoms_of_Mercury_Toxicity
for information that may help your life be more tolerable or even enjoyable until you can become fully mercury-detoxed.
Disclaimer: We are not a doctors. We do not prescribe medication or practice medicine. No information we share is intended to prescribe medication or practice medicine, nor is it intended to prevent, treat or cure symptoms, conditions or diseases. We only express our opinions based on personal research and experience.
