If it isn’t swine flu, it’s bird flu. Or maybe just a lousy cold. There’s always some germ lurking around, and the truth is that no one wants to get sick or feel depleted. Besides losing productive time and possibly jeopardizing a job, there are all those days of misery to contend with. So how can you best build and maintain a healthy defense against illness? Say hello to your lymph system!
The lymphatic system, to a great degree, governs the body’s immune system. Lymph, the whitish-colored fluid that continuously moves in a one-way direction throughout the body, filters out viruses, bacteria and even cancer cells before they can re-enter the blood stream. Tonsils, thymus gland, spleen and nodes are all part of the lymph organ system. Keeping it healthy and flowing is essential.
• Avoid iced beverages and chilled foods. The greatest sea of lymphatic tissue is in the digestive system. Healthy lymph feels like oily water and needs a warm, 98.6° environment to travel around the body in a fluid-like state. When you take in chilled foods and liquids, it stuns the lymph system. This causes the oily-water lymph to congeal into a more jello-like consistency, slowing it down like rush hour traffic on the 405.
• Watch your intake of herbal supplements. Many time-honored herbal formulas enhance lymphatic function—echinacea, goldenseal, red root, red clover, licorice root and astragalus root—which is why they’re often recommended at the first sign of a sniffle. These herbs generally do their work by stripping away a layer of debris from the lymph system’s filtering operation, but in the process they can dry out or deplete this system. Go ahead and use them, but not for extended periods of time. Most recommendations are 7-10 days.
Remove toxins with Ayurvedic Oil Pulling
• Try a lymphatic drainage massage. This type of massage specifically targets the lymph system. It aids in breaking up lymph congestion, tones and supports lymph nodes, and kickstarts the fluid’s movement throughout the body. Chi Nei Tsang, a type of massage that works directly on the digestive system, is designed to be self-administered, so once you learn how to do it, you’ll have a lifetime of free treatments. Deep-tissue massage is also great for releasing stored toxins, but for that you’ll need a practitioner.
• Get moving. Since lymph is pumped throughout the body by the movement of skeletal muscles, maximizing this effect is critical. There are many exercises that provide some lymphatic support, like swimming and aerobics. Walking is also great for the lymph system as it allows your body to work more efficiently, not harder; the more you move your body for extended periods of time, the more your body moves your lymph, allowing your organs to maximize toxic waste drainage. The T-Tapp exercise program is specifically designed to, among other benefits, drain the lymph system.
• Cold laser treatments support drainage and stimulate the natural healing process. Completely painless, cold laser often yields immediate positive benefits, and is safe even for someone already weakened by drugs or chronic illness. In addition to cold laser treatment centers, some acupuncturists, chiropractors and other alternative health practitioners offer cold laser treatments in conjunction with ongoing health care.
Also by Vaishāli: Discover Your Ayurvedic Body Type
KTLK radio host Vaishali, author of Wisdom Rising and You Are What You Love, is a certified practitioner of Chinese Medicine and East Indian Ayurveda.
1 Comment
Vaishali’s work is as fun as it is profound. I have been listeing to her weekly Sunday moring Radio show on KTLK for months now. I am glad to see her writing for Whole Life Times and sharing her vast array of information with its readers.