You don't need a product or plan to detox

True detox starts outside the body, and in the dirt

We often talk about detox as if it’s something temporary: 3-day juice cleanses, skin resets, clean-eating challenges. But detox is not a bio-hack. It's what your body does every day through these beautifully designed organs: the liver, kidneys, lymphatic system, skin, lungs, and gut.

Detoxification was built right into the whole magical design. There isn’t a hard cap on the number of toxins our body can filter, nor is there a workload limit on the liver. The body’s detox system is incredibly adaptive and resilient.

To be fair, though, the inputs have changed with modern life. We are now exposed to synthetic chemicals in our food, pesticides in our soil, microplastics in our water, endocrine-disrupting compounds… the list is depressingly long.

The issue with this inundation isn’t that our body stops detoxing from overload, and we need to gift it with a juice cleanse. The issue is that it becomes overburdened and dysregulated under chronic internal and environmental stress. The overburdened organs then slip into a state of inflammation or suboptimal function. This is especially true when the liver or gut lining is repeatedly asked to compensate for lifestyle choices that don’t support their natural rhythm.

So when we talk about detox today, we need to think bigger. Because your internal health is constantly responding to your external environment, it’s more than what you have (or don’t have) on your plate. It’s about what you allow (or don’t allow) into your personal ecosystem:

• your home

• your habits

• your environment

Your gut mirrors your environment

Over a decade ago, Dr. Elson Haas wrote in The Detox Diet that “gastrointestinal function and [soil] ecology are at the core of human health.” Back then, this perspective was still quite niche. Guts weren't trending, and “microbiome” wasn’t a household word. But the science has caught up. We now know that the gut plays a central role in immunity, metabolic balance, hormonal signaling, and even mood regulation. And it's not just what you eat, it's how your food is grown, what it is exposed to, and what microbial life still lives in or on it.

True detox starts with dirt

The health of our gut microbiome is deeply influenced by the health of the soil from which our food comes.

Microbial diversity in nutrient-rich soil closely mirrors the diversity in our gut. But modern agriculture is working against this.

Conventional farming practices like monocropping, over-tilling, and synthetic fertilizers destroy soil structure and microbial richness. Plowing breaks up fungal networks and releases carbon into the atmosphere. Monoculture depletes nutrients and fosters disease-prone crops that require heavy chemical inputs. Over time, this weakens the soil’s ability to support life, not just for plants, but also for humans who eat them.

Whole foods grown in healthy, living soil are fundamentally different from their industrial counterparts. They contain more phytonutrients, more microbial richness, and fewer synthetic residues. And when you eat them, you’re not just nourishing yourself, you are reinforcing your gut’s microbial network with the kind of diversity that promotes resilience.

“But organic is a scam!”

If I had a dollar for every Instagram reel I have seen espousing this belief, I could buy a yacht. Yes, organic can be inconsistently regulated. And yes, it’s been commodified in some circles. At its core, though, organic farming uses fewer and more natural pesticides and regenerative practices, which leads to healthier soil, which offers greater microbial diversity, which then leads to (you guessed it) a more diverse gut microbiome.

Ultimately, buying organic isn’t just a flex for almond moms. Choosing foods grown with care can protect your internal terrain from daily exposures that wear down your body’s ability to adapt and repair. But wait, there’s more.

It’s not just about what you eat, it’s what you absorb

Everything you put on your skin is all absorbed into your bloodstream and processed by your liver, kidneys, and other detox organs:

• beauty products

• cleaning spray

• face wipes

• laundry detergent, fabric softener, dryer sheets

• lotion, deodorant, perfume

• bottled water

Because our bodies are constantly working to maintain balance, it’s essential to support these systems as much as possible. And we can do that through micro decisions every day:

1. Eat whole, fiber-rich foods (preferably organic!): fiber helps bind and eliminate toxins from our system, and bonus, it feeds healthy bacteria in our gut.

2. Drink clean water: no-brainer, right? Just say ‘no’ to plastic bottles and filter wherever you can.

3. Use non-toxic makeup and healthcare products: eliminate anything with phthalates, synthetic fragrances, and parabens, as these are endocrine disruptors.

4. Detox your kitchen: BPAs, PFAS, and VOCs are all released from non-stick cookware and plastic food storage. Even the BPA-free plastic is toxic but that’s an entirely different post.

5. Avoid processed food: they contain emulsifiers and preservatives that are proven to induce inflammation and dysregulate our digestive process.

In conclusion

Detoxification should not be a quarterly protocol. It is a natural, ongoing function that requires support, not restriction. When you think of detox less as deprivation and more as nourishment and protection, we begin to see detox as a process of alignment between the body and its environment.

If you enjoyed this article, please consider leaving a like on your way out, as it’s one of the quickest and cheapest ways to support my work. In advance, I am incredibly grateful. If you found the information useful, I’d love to hear in the comments!

References

Averina, O. V., Poluektova, E. U., Zorkina, Y. A., Kovtun, A. S., & Danilenko, V. N. (2024). Human Gut Microbiota for Diagnosis and Treatment of Depression. International journal of molecular sciences, 25(11), 5782. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms25115782

Blum, W. E. H., Zechmeister-Boltenstern, S., & Keiblinger, K. M. (2019). Does Soil Contribute to the Human Gut Microbiome? Microorganisms, 7(9), 287. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms7090287

Chiu, K., Warner, G., Nowak, R. A., Flaws, J. A., & Mei, W. (2020). The Impact of Environmental Chemicals on the Gut Microbiome. Toxicological sciences : an official journal of the Society of Toxicology, 176(2), 253–284. https://doi.org/10.1093/toxsci/kfaa065

Craven, M. R., & Thakur, E. R. (2024). The integration of complementary and integrative health and whole person health in gastrointestinal disorders: a narrative review. Translational gastroenterology and hepatology, 9, 75. https://doi.org/10.21037/tgh-23-121

Haas, E. M. (2012). The detox diet: The definitive guide for lifelong vitality with recipes, menus, and detox plans (3rd ed.). Ten Speed Press.

Hampl, R., & Stárka, L. (2020). Endocrine disruptors and gut microbiome interactions. Physiological research, 69(Suppl 2), S211–S223. https://doi.org/10.33549/physiolres.934513