Home » Articles

Articles

When Detox is Dangerous: What Methods Cause More Harm Than Good

Detox is a buzz word thrown around by many people these days. You see it mentioned in ads, on the news—detox even has its own section in most health stores. For decades, people have been trying to detoxify their bodies, and no wonder: we live in a toxic world. But to what degree is your method helping you, or perhaps harming you? Many of the modern ways detox marketed to consumers are rooted in methods that are ineffective at best and very dangerous at worst. Common ingredients like chlorella and cilantro are, in fact, not at all helping your body achieving the completed cycle required to detoxify itself properly and are often just making things worse. Today we are going to explore how detox can become dangerous, and how we can safely and adequately support our body's natural detoxification pathways.

Living In A Toxic World

Intuitively, many people understand that their body's natural means of detoxification are not adequate in modern times. Indeed, the cell is equipped to self-detoxify, because even without the advent of harmful chemical exposure, our cells create waste every time they convert nutrients into energy. Similar to how fire creates smoke to generate heat from burning wood, our cells form waste matter. They can quickly and efficiently get rid of this waste (processed out through the liver), but problems arise when we increase the toxic load so much so that the cell can no longer keep up with the waste elimination.

Top Sources That Require Detoxification

  • Metals
  • Mould
  • Hidden Infections
Your toxic load builds up over time and starts while you're developing in the womb. Led toxicity is prevalent with the firstborn child because stored led (among other things) are released from the mother's bones during pregnancy. Mold is another tricky one because people often don't know they are being exposed to it until autoimmune symptoms start creeping up. And then there are hidden infections (from bacteria or parasites).  This can be picked up even in the most pristine of environments. Unless you're growing your own food and living far from the city (and have your entire life), the odds are that you're overburdening your system with environmental toxins too. They're sprayed and injected into our foods, pollutants from cities (cars, etc.) are in the air and the water. They also come in most body care products, and from synthetic clothing, chemicals like glyphosate are even being found in the rain and permeated soils of organically grown produce. If you're living on the grid, there's little doubt that your body is overburdened with chemicals and needs assistance in the detox department.

Random Detox: More Harm Than Good

For the past three decades, we've heard that certain natural products help our body detox. Chlorella and cilantro are two major ones, and you can find them in most prepackaged detox supplements on the shelves on health stores. As Health Hunters, we've been through it all. I remember juicing bunches of cilantro daily, which triggered some of the sickest days I've ever experienced. But why? An analogy for toxins would be garbage out in the street. To properly clean up the street (your body), the trash needs to get picked up and properly disposed of. Unfortunately, many of these detox products act like big street sweeping machines that simply pass through with large bristles. They and move the garbage around—without actually removing it. Cilantro and chlorella, in particular (like many “detox” supplements) are not powerful enough to bind to the toxins until they are safely eliminated from the body. Instead of picking them up and throwing them out, they just redistribute them. This can cause them to penetrate deeper into our nerves, tissues, and brain.

Random detoxes are worthless at best and dangerous at worse.

Simply Googling “detox” generally won't yield results worth applying to your life. Many people don't understand the mechanisms in which the cell detoxifies, and so the supplements on the market rarely do their job. Let's explore the proper way to get the job done.

PompaCore Cellular Detox

Three main components set apart a real detox from a harmful one:
  • Applying the 5 R's principles as a roadmap to fix the cell
  • Opening and supporting critical detox pathways
  • Utilizing true binding agents to remove toxins from the cell
The first component is that all detox must address toxins at the cellular level.

If you're going to get well, you have to fix the cell.

Scientists understand detoxification on the cellular level. But,  most doctors (holistic or medical) actually have no idea how detoxification truly works—nor do they generally care. The method to understand is the same method by which the cell self-detoxifies itself from the waste generated when it produces energy.

This mechanism is what I call 5 R's, or:

The second component is opening up the downstream detox pathways.

After the cell can detoxify the matter, there is an entire team of organs and channels required to help these toxins safely exit your body. Your gut, liver, and kidneys are the leading players here If they are not opened up (functioning correctly), real danger can occur. One of these dangers is autointoxication, whereby you start to recycle and reabsorb the toxins.

The third component is using real binders.

Unlike cilantro and chlorella (which are very weak binders), a real binder will hold on tight to the toxins to make sure they make their way out of your body with a minimal amount of upset (Herxheimer Effect) along the way. Weak binders mostly pull chemicals out of the body and then drop them somewhere else, which wreaks havoc on the system.

The Three Phases

Now that you understand the three components, we can explore the three phases of detox. Simply diving in without a plan won't yield the best results, and might even be dangerous. These three phases ensure a smooth, safe transition to help support the body through the detox.

These phases include (1) a preparatory step, (2) a body phase, and (3) a brain phase.

The prep phase targets the detox as mentioned above, pathways to support and upregulate the cell function. The body phase is when we introduce a sturdy binder and set up a concentration gradient to move toxins from areas of higher concentration to lower concentration before removing toxins from deeper tissues, such as the brain. And finally, the brain phase is when we add a fat-soluble agent to support neurotoxin elimination. This final phase is the key to why so many “have tried everything” and still don't feel well. It's also a key to resolving the current hormone imbalance epidemic.

Four Products

These four products to help you navigate your way safely and effectively through the detox. (1) Cell CLR increases the cell's natural ability to undergo this natural mechanism, (2) Gut CLR and (3) CytoDetox enters the cell membrane and acts as a vehicle to getting rid of the toxins as we upregulate cell function, and prevent reabsorption, and (4) Brain CLR to support neurotoxin elimination.

Three components, three phases, with four excellent products: that's PompaCore cellular detox. It's what saved my life, and what I am blessed to share with the world.

If you are reading this and have many symptoms relating to neurotoxic illness, hormone imbalance, autoimmune, or other unexplainable illnesses, you will need a practitioner to coach you through the process. <<<Learn more here>>>

Diabetes: The Unspoken Solution, Prevention for Diabetes Diagnosis

Part 1 – Diabetes: The Unspoken Solution

 

True Answers about Diabetes and Dieting

and Prevention for Diabetes Diagnosis

 

It plays out like this several times every day. You go to your doctor with a concern for a particular symptom that appears to have come out of nowhere, but this time it is not going away on its own. You try over-the-counter recommended, and still the symptoms persist; or perhaps it was a simple routine check-up through which you found yourself in this position.

In any event, the doctor runs some tests and tells you that you have diabetes or pre-diabetes. He hands you a prescription with a smile on his face as if he just saved your life. At this point, there is a sense of relief because at least there is a reason for why you have been feeling so bad. The only appropriate reaction is to thank him. So why do you still have a concern for your new reality and the meds you are about to take? Next, you ask the obvious question, “How long do I have to stay on the medication?” His answer is one that stays in your head unrelentingly for weeks; “For the rest of your life, of course!!!”

So much for the feeling of relief you just had a moment ago that he found your problem. You think to yourself, “Surely there must be something I can do so I don’t have to be on the medication forever?” So you ask the doctor and his response once again is not one you were expecting. “You can try changing your diet and exercise, but you will need to stay on your meds!” Wanting some type of hope for a better solution, you ask him what you should eat and he hands you a pamphlet from the Diabetes Association outlining what appears to be a very solid program. It even comes with a website that gives you food choices. You walk out of his office with a mix of emotions and wondering if there is a better solution.

The Unspoken Truth

In the above scenario, there are unfortunately some who, when given the lifetime diagnosis and the reality of a life on medications, are encouraged and thankful there is an answer. What most don’t realize until later is that even though the medications keep blood glucose in the normal range, or at least somewhat lower, and some of the symptoms at bay, they remain in a state of accelerated decay. The truth is this: Diabetics age rapidly and die an early death despite taking their medication. Here are a few current statistics: 68% develop heart disease, 50% of all new cases of blindness are in diabetics and 70% develop neuropathies of which many end in amputations. As a matter of fact, 60% of all amputations occur in diabetics. Additionally, despite taking the medication, people with diabetes have a two-fold increase in dementia. Believe it or not, these statistics are right off of the American Diabetes Association’s website.

 

How is that for hope? No wonder it’s the unspoken truth; if that reality was given to any sane person, they would most likely tell the doctor where they can stuff their pills. Is there REAL hope? Yes, of course there is. I can tell you now it is not in some man-made concoction with a list of side effects so painfully long that you stop reading the label, or some other drug that has been given to millions of people in the hope of a cure and has now been taken off the market for causing cancer! I have recently heard of one of the most popular diabetes medications now being linked to bladder cancer. Other popular diabetes drugs are linked to heart disease, obesity and even death. What about the others? How safe are they?

 

There Is Hope

I did not give you this scenario to scare you or to destroy your hope. I told you this to move you toward a new hope as well as a solution. If you are reading this, most likely you are seeking another answer. I can tell you without a shadow of doubt there is one. I cannot tell you to come off of the medication and I WILL NOT, but I will say this: when you remove the interference from that “something” God has put in all of us that heals our bodies that in born (innate) intelligence can heal more than just diabetes. NOW THAT IS REAL HOPE! It is not going to found in me or any other doctor. It is in what He has already done. HE ALONE is the Author and Creator of LIFE, and I believe this principle in my heart. The power and ability already exists within each of us. I have lived it out in my own body (and life) and have seen it at work in hundreds of the people I coach back to health.

 

The Unspoken Solution

I have read estimates that 75-85% of Type II Diabetes is reversible with permanent life style changes. There are new studies showing that toxins are the cause of up to one third of all Type II Diabetes. What if we bring these two thoughts together: the correct diet and exercise (life style change), as well as the most effective of detox methods? I am not referring to a fad detox product that you pick up in a health food store, but truly removing the toxins that have bio-accumulated in the cells for decades. New studies, by the way, are showing that cellular toxicity can trigger certain disease states within the body, (which means to turn on our gene expression) of which diabetes is one of these diseases. Changing gene expression is new science and I believe it is absolutely part of a new solution. I will never use the word “cure,” but with the correct diet, the correct exercise and the correct detox, you can see there can be hope and, most certainly, a better solution.

 

There is a better yet “unspoken solution” that is rooted in science, but why isn’t it being talked about? You may think it is easier to take a pill and go about your lifestyle with the false hope that all will be well. Did you ever stop and consider the possibility of the drug companies that run health care not wanting you to know of a “solution?” Either way, there is a better option that really does work. There are incredible results coming from the doctors around the county who are doing what I call, “cellular healing” and “PompaCore Cellular Detox”, and they will attest to this process working. I am going to break this solution down in three teachings; the correct diet, which I call the “Cellular Healing Diet”, the correct detox, which I refer to as “PompaCore Cellular Detox”, and the correct exercise, which studies show is the only type of exercise that works for diabetes.

 

The Cellular Healing Diet

I believe that for a diet to be part of the solution to this epidemic, it must address the true cause of it in the first place. The Cellular Healing Diet does just that. This diet was developed around the science that shows inflammation of the cell is the true cause of diabetes and a growing number of other conditions. The Cellular Healing Diet down-regulates cellular inflammation by removing two of the three main causes of it and I will address those in a moment.

 

When we hear or read that inflammation is the secret killer; which by the way, was a 2004 TIME magazine cover (Inflammation the Secret Killer), it’s hard to grasp what that really means. We think of inflammation as that which occurs in a specific sore or painful joint. Although that is inflammation, it is not what is being referred to as the “secret killer”. What is being referred to would be cellular inflammation throughout the body that affects different cells of multiple organs or systems, which leads to many different types of conditions and diseases. More specifically, it is inflammation of the cell membrane that is the main problem.

 

The cell membrane is composed of two very delicate layers of fat and becomes inflamed and causes many of the basic functions of the cell to malfunction. I don’t plan on boring you with the science of biology, but I do want you to understand two really important points that are critical for you to understand why this diet and entire protocol (Diabetes Health Package) work while others do not.

 

First of all, once the cell membrane becomes inflamed, the good things needed for normal cellular functions such as producing energy, can’t get into the cell. This alone can affect your diabetes and lead to many different symptoms and conditions such as chronic fatigue, brain fog and hormone dysregulation. Once the cell membranes are inflamed, the toxins can’t get out.  This also includes the toxins which are made by your cells from cellular energy production. Anytime energy is made, toxins are produced. An example of this is a car exhaust or a fireplace. Imagine if either of those exhaust methods become clogged. You would most likely end up in a very toxic situation or possibly even death. It is no different when the cell membranes become inflamed and, therefore, clogged so to speak; toxins build up in the cell and lead to dysfunction and even cell death.

 

Studies show that the toxins that bio-accumulate within the cell can trigger or turn on a gene that predisposes you to diabetes; this is when you begin expressing the disease. The old dogma that your mother or father had diabetes and therefore you will end up with it as well, is now an outdated model of thinking. Today we know it is not so simple. The genes of susceptibility you may have inherited from your mom or dad alone do not cause diabetes or any other disease. It takes an environmental stressor such as a toxin to trigger them. Your DNA is not your destiny. The most exciting aspect of this new research is that we are learning new ways to change the gene expression back to its original purpose and for the good, which literally turns the “bad” expression of the gene off. I believe changing gene expression, which goes beyond diet, must be a part of a successful program.

 

The second point I want to make is that the receptors to hormones, including insulin, reside on the cell membrane. What this means is that when the membrane is inflamed, the hormone cannot communicate with the receptor and get its message into the cell where it needs to go for normal function. This is called hormone resistance, and in the case of diabetes, it’s called insulin resistance. Simply put, the cell cannot hear the hormone insulin in order to bring the glucose needed for energy into the cell. The glucose then builds up in the blood leading to elevated blood glucose. Elevated blood glucose causes many unwanted symptoms including rapid degeneration, more inflammation and premature aging. If you want to age faster than anyone you know on the inside and out, raise you blood glucose. Elevated glucose, and therefore insulin, also inhibits the conversion of thyroid hormone T4 to an active version of the hormone T3. It’s the active version that gives you energy and helps you burn fat for energy. If this conversion is being slowed due to insulin, you will gain weight and not be able to sustain normal energy. Taking a hormone replacement does very little because it is in the form of T4, and will not convert to the T3 that works in your cells to allow you feel good. Additionally, the fact that hormone resistance effects most hormone receptors on the cell (insulin, thyroid, estrogen etc.) and can cause diabetes and hypothyroid, the interference it has in the conversion from T4 (non-active hormone) to T3 (active hormone), adds to the fact that most diabetics end up with thyroid conditions.

 

Hormone resistance is the cause of the pandemic of hormone problems on the planet. The problem is occurring because most doctors are treating these hormone problems by giving more hormones. Whether it is thyroid hormone, estrogen, testosterone or others, it is not the need for more hormones that is missing. The problem is that the receptors to the hormones are not communicating properly causing the real problem. It’s like dumping gas all over the outside of your car because you were not able to get it into the tank. More gas will not help your car run if you cannot get it into the car. There is a time to use hormones, but when considering hormone resistance, which causes 95% of hormone issues today, and whereby the cell cannot hear the hormone due to a receptor that has been blunted by inflammation; giving more hormones actually makes the problem worse.

 

Enough biology, but now at least you see why a diet and protocol that addresses inflammation of the cell is the key. I stated earlier that the Cellular Healing Diet removes two of the three causes of cellular inflammation (the true cause of diabetes). Bad fats, elevated glucose and toxins are the three main causes and the first two are directly affected by this diet (toxins will be addressed when I discuss “PompaCore Cellular Detox”).

 

Dietary FAT, Friend or Foe?

Certain fats that will no doubt be a surprise to you, do in fact drive inflammation of the cell. However, I believe Fat is the key and the missing nutrient in the American diet which is needed to fix the epidemic of hormone problems…one of which is Type II diabetes. This is ironic because the diet recommended by the Diabetes Association is a low fat diet, which, by the way, has been shown to lead to diabetes and other hormone problems.for weight loss and the prevention of heart disease. The science does not support these claims and has been disproven many times over. Despite the research that proves the low fat diet promoted by the diabetes association is invalid, how is it working out for us as a country? What I am asking is this: since we started the low fat craze in the 60’s are we losing weight as a nation? Is there less heart disease and diabetes? The resounding answer is NO!

 

I already made the argument that to correct hormone problems you must fix the receptors to the hormones, which reside on the cell membrane. I also said the membrane is made of fat. Therefore, it would make sense that we would need fat if we were to repair the membrane and its receptors to the hormones. This is in fact the case. Studies link specific fats to dramatic improvements in diabetes and other hormone conditions. I had said that the type of fat in these studies would surprise you. Think of the first two fats that you would consider bad fats that cause disease. Most likely you thought of saturated fat and cholesterol. You’re not alone, but what is the truth?

 

New studies are showing that saturated fat and cholesterol are the two main fats needed in the hormone epidemic. Yes you heard me correctly; these two fats are a key component in the “unspoken solution”. I know that you have heard for over four decades that these two fats are the bad guys and you need to stay far away from them to prevent conditions like diabetes, heart disease and obesity. Don’t take my word for it; studies show that these fats not only prevent these conditions, but also can reverse them.

 

  • A December 2001 Harvard study showed a high fat diet consisting of saturated fats found in meat and dairy products actually had a threefold decrease and, therefore, improvement in diabetes.1
  • Another study indicated the more saturated fats the participants ate, the less their atherosclerosis progressed. As a matter of fact, those who consumed the highest levels of saturated fat in the study reversed their condition over time. The irony of this study was the fat that the American Diabetes Association promotes: “vegetable oil” actually caused atherosclerosis2. Vegetable oils are a fat known as polyunsaturated fatty acids, which oxidize very easily and causes inflammation3.
  • The Diabetes Association promotes the use of margarine instead of real butter to avoid saturated fats. Margarine and other trans fats are a known cause of diabetes. A study of over 84,000 nurses showed a substantial reduction in Type II Diabetes when other fats were increased and trans fats were removed from the diet.4 The study also showed the total fat and saturated fat intakes were not associated with an increased risk of diabetes, only the trans fats.
  • The Diabetes association promotes the substitution of real butter for margarine. Ironically a study from 1993 at the University of Pittsburgh indicated that frequent users of partially hydrogenated vegetable fats in the form of margarine had higher insulin levels in response to glucose load.5

If we simply do the opposite of the Diabetes Association’s diet, it seems we will find our way to the correct diet. In fact, I always say that doing a 180 degree (or opposing direction) of whatever the government is promoting will always land us closer to the truth.

 

Sugar: It’s Not What You Think

Elevated glucose (blood sugar) is the 2nd main reason for cellular inflammation that you now understand as the true cause of diabetes and other hormone problems. I am sure elevated glucose as a main culprit for inflammation is not a surprise to most of you. However, the real culprit of the epidemic of elevated blood sugar will most likely be another shocker.

 

It is true in many situations, and no different here, that doing the opposite of what the government is promoting will lead you to the truth. We are being told to eat more whole grains for almost every condition and from practically every establishment. Well it might surprise you that two pieces of whole grain bread raise blood sugar the same as a 12oz soda. The bowl of oatmeal you were told to eat in the morning to lower your cholesterol actually raises your blood sugar the same as a 12oz soda! It is not that I am against all whole grains; I would even argue that because they have more fiber than a processed grain such as white bread, it has some benefits. However, we eat far too many grains in our diet, which is the hidden, as well as, unspoken of sugar in the American diet.

 

Some whole grains are better than others, but the hybridization of whole grains has changed them from where they originally began. In the 1960’s and 1970’s a man named Norman Borlaug won a noble prize for the development of Dwarf Wheat. Dwarf Wheat was hybridized and crossbred to tolerate environmental stressors such as drought, wind, etc. and not surprisingly, as an answer to world hunger. Norman was successful and won a noble prize, but he fed another massive pandemic – “world obesity”. Prominent cardiologist and author Dr. William Davis M.D. tells the story well in his popular book “Wheat Belly”. Dwarf Wheat is now a staple food in most diets on the planet and causes obesity for two reasons. First, during the hybridization process, the wheat became a super sugar. It now contains more of a sugar called Amylopectin A. Amylopectin A raises blood sugar more than table sugar, making whole grains such as wheat the unspoken super sugar driving cellular inflammation and the diabetes surge.

 

The second reason these hybridized grains drive the obesity epidemic is from the creation of a denatured protein called “gluten”. Gluten is now a household word because of its widespread cause of symptoms and diseases like celiac, irritable bowel, weight gain, headaches and a long list of others. So what happened to gluten? Why wasn’t it a problem when we grew up? Good old Norman Borlaug, through successful hybridization, denatured the gluten and created a protein that our immune systems do not recognize as a normal food. These 14 new glutens have caused a surge of new diseases. The grains that contain these glutens are one of the most addictive foods you can eat. Have you ever wondered why it is so hard to stop eating bread? Gluten stimulates the same receptors in the brain that addictive drugs stimulate and is associated with psychological withdrawal symptoms, just like any addictive drugs. Whole grains, as opposed to processed grains, can actually contain more gluten and other toxins called lectins. Lectins are actually natural chemical pesticides that can be problematic for those who are in a state of inflammation.

 

When I hear people say, “But I do not eat much sugar,” my next question is how many whole grains do you eat? According to studies, diets consisting of more than 20% of the calories from grains begin to cause diabetes and obesity. If it is over 50%, then you are at risk of developing severe nutritional deficiencies and other degenerative diseases. As a nation, we are consuming around 60% of our calories from grain. Get rid of the grains and watch what happens! I know what you are thinking: how long do I need to do this for and when can I add them back in? The answer is simple: when your problem is solved. In other words, when the cellular inflammation is gone and cell function is restored. When you do add them back in, add in only ancient grains and they must be sprouted to decrease many of the anti-nutrients such as phytates and lectins. Be careful! You must find your genetic line of tolerance. Mine is very short and when I eat too much of any grain I get fat in my waist and have low energy. My father was the same way. To this day, even though I am healthy now, I eat very little grain and if I do, I try to always eat a sprouted, ancient grain. You can find a list of these in the Cellular Healing Diet book.

 

A last word on blood glucose as a cause of cellular inflammation – STOP ALL ARTIFICIAL SWEETENERS!!! Once again, if we do the opposite of the AMA’s diet we will get it right. They recommend artificial sweeteners, which cause more insulin and leptin (a hormone that tells your brain to burn fat for energy) resistance than regular sugar. You heard it right, you are better off drinking regular soda. Diet soda drives obesity and diabetes more than regular soda. I am not telling you soda, if it is not diet it is ok, it absolutely is not, but you get the point. The artificial sweeteners are actually toxins known as “excitotoxins”, which drives more inflammation than regular sugar and is the reason it causes more weight gain. My next teaching on toxins will make this fact much more clear, but more importantly, it will expose the greatest hidden causes of inflammation and diabetes, and give a new and exciting solution.

 

Article 1 of a 3-part Diabetes Series – Read Part 2 Now

 

References:

  1. Dariush Mozaffarian, Haiming Cao, Irena B. King, Rozenn N. Lemaitre, Xiaoling Song, David S. Siscovick, and Gökhan S. Hotamisligil TransPalmitoleic Acid, Metabolic Risk Factors, and New-Onset Diabetes in U.S. Adults Annals of Internal Medicine 2010 December. Harvard School of Public Health.
  2. Mozaffarian D, Rimm EB, Herrington DM. Dietary Fats, Carbohydrate, and Progression of Coronary Atherosclerosis in Postmenopausal.
  3. Nenseter MS, Drevon CA. Dietary Polyunsaturates and Peroxidation of Low Density Lipoprotein. Curr Opin Lipidol. 1996;7(1):8-13.
  4. Salmerón J, Hu FB, Manson JE, et al. Dietary fat intake and risk of type 2 diabetes in women. Am J Clin Nutr 2001;73:1019–26.
  5. Reuters (January 13, 2011): committee discussion held January 11-13 2011 Raleigh N. Carolina.

©2023 HealthCenters  • www.drpompa.com

A Five Day Water Fast: Fasting For a Purpose

Fasting For a Purpose: A Five Day Water Fast

You have decided to embark on your first five-day water fast! Congratulations! You may be experiencing many fears surrounding this. These fears are mainly because of all the unknowns. How will l feel? What can I expect each day? My best advice is to set your healing intentions and write them down. Focus on them, and truly believe that this is going to help you on your journey to feeling amazing!

‘Start the practice of self-control with some penance; begin with fasting.’ – Mahavira

In this piece, we are going to focus primarily on the positive changes occurring in your body each of the five days, and we will mention some of the symptoms you may experience, so you know what you are feeling is expected. This will hopefully help to motivate you and keep you going throughout the five days! Keep in mind that everyone experiences different symptoms.

If a full-on water fast seems too intimidating for you, we have another option to help you ease into fasting. It's called The Fasting Mimicking Diet. With this option, you are provided with the right amount of food to mimic fasting, and you still get many of the health benefits associated with fasting.

Join my FB group: Fasting for a Purpose. You can expect to receive an abundance of knowledge and support. It is a great place to share your journey with hundreds of other people who are also embarking on either a water fast or the Fasting Mimicking Diet, just like you! Have faith, stay strong, and read on!

What to expect on day one of a water fast:

Positive changes are occurring in the body on day one, even if you feel really hungry and irritable. Hang on through this, the body is slowly adjusting to these changes. The body is already switching its energy from digesting to healing. You are resting your digestion, and this is a good thing!

On day one of a five-day water fast, you may experience:

  • Significant white or yellowness in the tongue (I’ve even seen black with some people). This is a normal reaction to detoxing. The tongue changes can occur on any day during these (5) days, and the colors can change as well.
  • Your body will start to make more ketones. If you converted yourself to ketosis prior to the fast, you should be pretty fat adapted. Therefore, ketones may even rise faster for you on that first day!
  • Rashes are normal as well. Expect these anomalies and don’t be intimidated by them.

*Always check in with your doctor before stopping any medication. Some medications may still be needed, such as diabetic, and thyroid medications. These are okay to continue to take while fasting. With may find you need to take less of some medications. Always consult with your Doctor before changing doses or stopping a medication.

*Please note: very neurotoxic people (Lyme disease, heavy metals, autoimmune conditions, cancer etc.) may need a coach throughout this process-these people may not feel better during the fast and would benefit from following my multi-therapeutic approach, with a coach.

What to expect on day two of your water fast:

“Everyone can perform magic, everyone can reach his goals, if he is able to think, if he is able to wait, if he is able to fast.” – Hermann Hesse, Siddhartha

relaxation

Here are 5 amazing things that start to happen on day 2 of your fast:

  1. Cellular Autophagy: The body is getting rid of the ‘bad stuff', specifically white blood cells that have been around for too long.
  2. Rise in stem cells: your body creates new white blood cells and gets rid of bad proteins in the muscle, stem cells replace those tissues. Muscle fibers heal and adapt much faster.
  3. Reset DNA: We all have certain bad genes that are turned on. Fasting turns these off the most (obesity genes, allergy etc.).
  4. Reset microbiome: There is a change in cravings, and a change of the ratio of good/bad bacteria, to help with losing weight and keeping it off.
  5. Rests the Gastrointestinal Tract. Struggling with digestive issues? Resting digestion will give it the time it needs to begin healing.

On day two of a five-day water fast, you may experience:

  • More hunger and irritability-there are physiological reasons for irritability: your glucose will be lower, and you are not yet fat adapted.
  • You may experience a lack of brain functioning and increased brain fog. Your brain loves ketones, but ketones are not high enough yet. They will continue to rise throughout the fast, and you will feel better, give it time.
  • You may start lacking energy, especially if you are not used to fasting, or are not in a ketogenic state.

Hold tight! Day three is often when most people begin to feel better, as they are now making more ketones and able to start utilizing them as well.

What to expect on day three of your water fast:

Here are some things going on in your body during day three!

  • Your ketones will continue to rise on day 3. Your brain loves ketones! Ketones fix the brain. This is why we use them for seizures, neurodegenerative conditions, dementia, and Parkinson's. Ketones help to downregulate cellular inflammation, heal the gut, and also reset the DNA.
  • Hormone optimization: You start to get a growth hormone spike on day 3. On day 5 you will get the highest spike of growth hormone, but the hormones will begin to spike today. On day 3 you get more sensitive to all your hormones, and you may begin to feel better!
  • You should start overcoming headaches, weakness, and shakiness! Woohoo! It’s about time!
  • The body raises up the stem cells and knocks down the overreaction of autoimmunity.
  • You may have unexplained pains, meaning healing is occurring. For example, if you have an old knee injury, you may experience pain sensations in that knee. The body is ‘retracing' or going back through old injuries and trauma and healing.
  • You may have increased energy and creativity: Remember, your body is no longer focusing on digesting food. It can shift the focus to other areas, and direct its energy on healing. This can give you a whole new level of clarity that you have not yet experienced.
  • Hormonal changes may occur, as the microbiome re-sets. Big changes are happening!

You may feel colder than usual. Why are you cold? It’s normal to be cold! Hormone levels may go down, but the cells become more sensitive to your hormones. Fasting lowers T3 thyroid hormone, (innate intelligence playing out here) to spare your muscle. So we feel cold! The body knows exactly what it is doing. Although T3 lowers, the body is more sensitive to smaller amounts of hormone. Its able to utilize the hormones available.

  • Autophagy is in high gear! Bad cells are being destroyed.
  • Hormone optimization: You start to get a growth hormone rise on day 3 of the fast.
  • On day 3 you get more sensitive to all your hormones, and you begin to feel better.

Words of advice on those tracking ketones:

Don’t use urine ketone strips for accurate ketone measurements. Remember, your body is now using your ketones, so they won’t show in the urine. Ketones circulating in the blood may climb up at first, and then lower some as you are actually utilizing them in your body. Breath ketones are better because it shows the oxidized ketones or ketones you are actually using. You may notice ketones in your urine in the beginning, but remember your brain starts using them, so you don’t want to keep seeing them in your urine as you progress through the fast.

Your glucose to ketone ratio should be at a 1:1 ratio (millimoles per liter-can convert online) today. Tumors started shrinking massively with a 1:1 glucose to ketone ratio. This ratio also helps to achieve higher levels of autophagy. Sometimes ketones will register high, and glucose will be lower. Stress can raise glucose, but you should see a trending down of glucose and rise of ketones.

As for glucose, according to keto researcher Prof. Thomas Seyfried, the “target zone” is when glucose numbers are in the 60s with ketones 3.0 mmol/L or more. Hitting the target zone is telling towards the destruction of bad cells. If these numbers are showing up, the body is cleansing those bad cells in just fashion.

What to expect on day four of your water fast:

  • Continued autophagy and new stem cell growth.
  • The continued drop in glucose and rise in ketones.
  • Continued hormone optimization.
  • Increased levels of energy and better brain functioning.
  • An overall sense of well-being.
  • Decreased cravings, hunger, and irritability.
  • Cortisol increases glucose. Some ways to combat this? Don’t overtrain, increase your intentional prayer/meditation, or focus towards healing.

What are some signs you may need to break the fast sooner?

  • Tongue turns back to pink? Time to stop.
  • Hunger returns? Time to stop.
  • If you stop losing weight for 1-2 days? Time to stop.
  • When breath stops stinking and detox reactions are gone? Time to stop.
  • Fatigue that lasts beyond a single day? Time to stop.

Innate intelligence knows when to tell you to stop!

What’s going on with my sleep?

sleep loss during water fast

Sleep disturbances are common for the first few days. Hunger pangs can keep you up, and all the changes taking place can be disruptive to your circadian rhythm and sleep cycle. However, this should subside. Are you still having difficulty with sleep on day 4? Sleep is one of the things we look at for a diagnosis of neurotoxic illness. If your sleep is still disrupted on day 4, I recommended working with a practitioner to dig deeper. Disrupted sleep is also a sign your body is releasing toxins. So hang in there!

Remember, with every subsequent fast you get better, and feel better faster. Your sleep may not be good on this one, but the next it will be better. Just like pains will come and go as the body is getting better, so will sleep.

What to expect on day five of your water fast:

Yay! You made it to Day 5. Give yourself a big hug. Hopefully, you are feeling amazing at this point!

What to Expect for Day 5:

  • Stem cell production in high gear today (on day 6 when you feed the stem cells, the body will heal and create new white blood cells!)
  • Ketones may begin to drop, glucose may slightly raise
  • Massive growth hormone rise (goes up every day, but the highest surge is on day 5), and puts you in a fat burning mode for the next 36 hours to replace the glucose.

Break the Fast Safely!

Before you jump at the chance to throw a weeks’ worth of nutrition down your throat, remember that you’ve just been in extensive, quiet healing: the digestive tract is still in rest mode. A gentle transition is a key to getting best results from the fast and avoiding undermining efforts. My next piece will focus on how to safely break a fast, and what foods to introduce after fasting. In the meantime, check out my Fasting For a Purpose Facebook page and watch my videos to learn more about how to carefully break a fast!

References:

  1. Noboru, M. & Masaaki, K.(2011). Autophagy: Renovation of Cells and Tissues. Cell, Volume 147, Issue 4, 11 November 2011, Pages 728-741. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2011.10.026

  2. Chia-Wei C,  Gregor B.A., & Laura P. et al. Prolonged Fasting reduces IGF-1/PKA to promote hematopoietic stem cell-based regeneration and reverse immunosuppression. Cell Stem Cell. 2014 Jun 5; 14(6): 810–823.
    doi: 10.1016/j.stem.2014.04.014

  3. Trayhurn, P., Thomas, M. & Duncan J.S. et al. (1995). Effects of fasting and refeeding on ob gene expression in white adipose tissue of lean and obese (ob/ob) mice. Science Direct. Volume 368, Issue 3, 24 July 1995, Pages 488-490. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/0014-5793(95)00719-P

  4. Kohl, K.D., Amaya, J. & Passement, C.A. et al. (2014). Unique and shared responses of the gut microbiota to prolonged fasting: a comparative study across five classes of vertebrate hosts. FEMS Microbiology Ecology. Volume 90, Issue 3. December 2014, Pages 883-894. https://doi.org/10.1111/1574-6941.12442.

  5. Halberg N., Henriksen M. &  Söderhamn N et al. (2005). Effect of intermittent fasting and refeeding on insulin action in healthy men.  J Appl Physiol (1985). 2005 Dec;99(6):2128-36. Epub 2005 Jul 28. DOI: 10.1152/japplphysiol.00683.2005

Sautéed Daikon with Miso Glaze

Sautéed Daikon with Miso Glaze

Sauteed Daikon

  • 1 daikon radish, sliced into ¼” coins
  • 1 bunch kale, washed and torn into bite-size pieces
  • 4 Tbsp. coconut oil
  • Freshly ground pepper

  Miso Glaze

  • 2 Tbsp. chickpea miso
  • 2 Tbsp. water
  1. To make glaze, mix equal parts Miso and water in a bowl and set aside.
  2. On medium heat, liquefy coconut oil in stainless steel pan.
  3. Sauté Daikon coins until soft and golden on each side. Once done, place in bowl with Miso Glaze and stir to coat thoroughly. Set aside.
  4. In same pan, sauté kale, adding more coconut oil if needed.  Once softened, arrange kale on serving dish and top with glazed daikon coins. Top with garnish and freshly ground pepper.

Liver and Caramelized Onions

liver-and-onions
Liver and Onions
  • 1 lb. grass-fed beef liver
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 tsp. rosemary
  • 1 tsp. sage
  • 1 tsp. thyme
  • 1 tsp. oregano
  • 1 tsp. sea salt (or to taste)
  • 1 large onion, thinly sliced
  1. Place liver in glass dish and top with olive oil, salt, garlic and all herbs. Set aside to marinate.
  2. Saute onion over low heat in olive oil for about 20 minutes. Keep an eye on the onions to avoid burning!
  3. While onions finish caramelizing, place marinated liver in cast iron pan and saute until browned on both sides and cooked through.
  4. Place liver on plate and top with caramelized onions.
  5. Enjoy with your favorite vegetables!

R5: Dr. Pompa’s Wife’s Perspective – Reestablishing Methylation

R5: Dr. Daniel Pompa’s Wife’s Perspective

Reestablishing Methylation: Why Hormone Replacement Could Have Led Her to Cancer & How Stress Can Make You a LunaticAfter the release of my husband’s last article (R5 – Reestablishing Methylation ), it became apparent that more information is desperately needed on the topic of hormones and why they become so dysregulated. Also, how woman who under stress can become raging lunatics (or something similar, according to their husband and kids, mine included) and why many more seek prescription medication or hormone replacement therapy. It is for this reason that he asked me to write about my experience(s) as they relate to hormones and potentially reach even more women (and the men who love them) with information that not only will save their life potentially, but also enable them to be lived with more than 3.5 weeks of the month.

When my husband began understanding the role neurotoxins play in hormonal health, it became quite apparent there was much more to study and the level of research that he became involved in has led him to the understanding he applies each day as he coaches others back to health who have done “everything else.” It is impossible to not consider this path when desiring optimal, as well as preventative, health but unfortunately, I have yet to see anyone who has claimed a “bizarre and unexplainable” condition be restored without this consideration.

When I took the Urine Toxic Metals test, which revealed a lead level off the charts (and to this day, the 3rd highest he ever saw), I began to understand why it was so imperative that I address the source, which came to me initially in utero from my mom. I began by safely removing the 5 amalgam fillings (as they contain 50% mercury) that were in my teeth so that I could begin to use a true heavy metal detox agent, which is what my husband teaches, as the ONLY safe and effective way to remove heavy metals (neurotoxins). NO ONE SHOULD CHELATE WITH EVEN ONE SILVER FILLING IN THEIR MOUTH.)

Understanding the role hormones were playing enabled me to also understand why my mom had developed breast cancer in her early 50’s. Why 10 years later, after a lumpectomy and radiation, she was diagnosed with Stage 4 Uterine Cancer and within 2 years of that diagnosis she died; despite every hopeful effort, including a more natural approach at the Cancer Treatment Centers of America.

As I began to understand the role lead played on hormones, I knew I had work to do. I had not stopped to consider what lead did to a brain and never knew I had reason to. I always thought those exposed were, in some way, so obviously affected that I couldn’t possibly have cause for concern. But as I thought further, there were undeniable concerns that I needed to consider. I grew up in the same home as my mom with lead pipes and sat in gas lines in the 70’s that I enjoyed the smell of. Over time, other things also came to mind like the green crib I chewed on and liked the taste of as a toddler and even the soil I would taste from the garden as I dug up potatoes. I also remembered having difficulty learning even though I was always really smart, as long as I didn’t have to read to learn it. I would have to read and reread school assignments and it seemed as if my inability to absorb information was more due to my lack of interest rather than my level of intelligence. I now knew that was not the truth. As liberated as I began to feel, I also became more concerned.

The next test I ran on myself (Genova Diagnostics’ 24 Hour Hormone Test) and it was revealed that I had too much bad estrogen vs. good estrogen and that my methylation was so low that I could not get rid of toxic estrogen. This cannot be revealed from a standard blood test. Unfortunately, the doctors always told my mom that her blood estrogen levels were normal and in fact, they were. If she had taken this test, she would have learned her true hormonal reality and the root cause of her problem. She would then been able to avoid early death, not to mention the years of hormonal imbalances that caused other problems in her life.

I was heading in the same direction as my mom with the symptoms of hormone dysregulation including PMS. I was quick to anger, with no threshold for even small stressors. Although, knowing me and my life, you may think I have reason to be stressed and so let me qualify that I am referring to earlier in my married life. I was also intolerant some days but not others and during predictable times of the month, being more challenging on the members of the family as well as a vehement rejection of their accusations. Every aspect of learning about health has taken both my husband and myself on our own journey.

I couldn’t have imagined how much more there was to learn as we already have at this time in our lives prioritized our health; consuming only whole grains, eating raw dairy, avoiding processed sugars and buying almost exclusively organic produce. But there were a few things that further told my story and as I thought deeper, I realized that many of my issues/symptoms were not only presenting in childhood, but also as a new mother.

I was a vegan (consuming no meat or dairy) for a spell and during my first 2 pregnancies (Daniel and Izik), a vegetarian for about 4 years and for a period of time after. I nursed 4 months into my pregnancy with Izik and began to feel weird. I had an incessant tapping on my head that was right on the top and was absolutely maddening! I would tell my husband I felt as if I was a spectator within my own body, which was the only description I could give to him and I felt like a total crazy woman even saying it. I would go through the motions of my day but I was so distracted and frustrated with my own bizarre preoccupations that I had no joy during a time in my life when I should have had nothing but.

Danny would humor me, and over time became concerned enough. He and I would go to Barnes & Noble before becoming computer savvy and he would try to look up symptoms to find explanations for what I was feeling. It was evident that my symptoms were in some way related to my hormones, but ruling things out was the way we began to isolate some of the causes.

We learned that my symptoms were related to a lack of methylation, as well as being exacerbated by a vegan/vegetarian diet, even a healthy one, but we didn’t yet know why. It was an Easter Sunday and Danny’s dad made an amazing dinner and he suggested I try some of the roast. I remember not caring one way or another as my test buds were not any longer interested in eating meat, but from what some of my husband’s research was leading him to and uncovering, B Vitamin deficiencies are far more rampant with Vegetarian/Vegan diets. I suppose I could say that between my husband’s research and my desperation to feel better, I opted to taste the roast. It was the first time in MONTHS that my symptoms subsided! I couldn’t believe it! I ate steak every day (2x/day) for the next week and I remember that was the end of those crazy and unsettling symptoms. I also justified my decision to add meat as a mainstay of my diet because I learned that the reasons I was avoiding eating it were not actually issues to keep it from being consumed as part of a healthy diet, which cannot be attained any other way. It isn’t actually the meat itself that is the problem, but what man has done to the meat. There are ways to consume meat in which the practices of raising and slaughtering are done humanely and biblically (please check out Beyond Organic ). God gave us meat to eat. As time went on, I also learned from my husband’s research that the cholesterol that many fear is actually protective and keeps cellular function balanced. Fats and cholesterol stabilize the cell membrane and if the cell membrane becomes unstable, cellular function and detox of the cell become hindered. Once the membrane is affected, you become more susceptible to neurotoxic conditions (and therefore, hormonal imbalances) because the fatty layer on the outside (cell membrane) is where the receptors to the hormone are. As a matter of fact, it is cholesterol and saturated fat that stabilize the hormone receptor and, therefore, have a dramatic effect on your hormone health.

Danny also later learned that methyl groups are needed to get rid of bad estrogen as well as adapt to stress. I think being a mom of 2 young children qualifies. Between my childhood, restricted diet and stress, I qualified as easily suffering from having some toxicity issues to undo.

Obviously I am on this journey for as long as it takes and will stay the course understanding that it is a commitment well beyond a forecasted period of time. That may be one of the most difficult questions to answer when asked: How long until my body will be restored? No one truly knows. There is an average length of time of course, but there are variables that are impossible not to consider such as the ability of someone’s detox pathways to facilitate the process rather than hinder it and even genetic variability.

I have been diligently working for 5 years and while I cannot tell you when I will fully feel I am finished with detox, I can tell you that what I have done so far, under my husband’s direction and guidance, has worked! Each test I have taken, both the Urine Toxic Metals from Doctor’s Data, as well as the 24 Hour Hormone Panel from Genova Diagnostics have improved each time. I no longer do the exact specified cycle of detox (days off in between) even though I do still do at least 4 days on-cycle where as when I was more regimented (early on in the process), I did better doing a week on and a week off as well as 3 hour intervals as opposed to 4 which is standard. I am now able to recognize when it is time to begin and that is when I start. It can be weeks to a few months, and there have been a few times I went even longer and even thought perhaps I was finished, but my husband always says until 9 months to a year can pass without symptoms, there is still work to do. He also reminds me it can take up to 15 years to remove lead. The good news is that my body is working for me now as a concentration gradient becomes set in motion over time and facilities that detox process even more.

I hope you find some hope and encouragement in my story. If you care about your body and its ability to work for you rather than against you, pay attention to these issues and consider the possibilities as well as the consequences. While there is much to find when you begin researching, remember that there is no better resource to trust in other than the ones who have learned what they share because they have been through the pain because they lacked understanding at one time and it drove them to deeper places and that is where the answers were found. For us, it has been through knowing we were not able, but He is. When we remember this, we surrender and embrace our challenges and trust God. That is the place to be, where hope lies.

*The products that Merily and Dr. Pompa utilize on a day-to-day basis to support methylation, detoxification, cellular healing and cellular energy are contained in the Systemic Formulas CORE package. These products are only sold through Health Care Practitioners. Please call our office at 888-600-0642 or go here to learn more.

*The products that Merily and Dr. Pompa utilize on a day-to-day basis to support methylation, detoxification, cellular healing and cellular energy are contained in the Systemic Formulas CORE package. These products are only sold through Health Care Practitioners. Please call our office at 888-600-0642 or go here to learn more.

Please visit the following links to read all of Dr. Pompa's articles on the 5R's of PompaCore Cellular Detox and Healing:

R1:
Remove the Source

R2:
Regenerate the Cell Membrane

R3:
Restore Cellular Energy

R4:
Reducing Cellular Inflammation

R5:
Reestablishing Methylation