Alkalizing/Cleansing Reactions

You are very welcome! To understand the effect of the lemon and the greens, it is important to understand that a toxic, acidic body tends to retain toxins, waste and acids, in part because the system is overloaded, in part because the body is not working (detoxing) efficiently.

However, whenever you begin to hydrate and alkalize, this will allow the body to begin cleansing -- i.e., releasing acids and toxins, and dumping them into the blood stream for elimination. However, as these toxins and acids are moving through the blood stream toward your colon and kidneys, you may actually begin to feel *worse* before you feel better. When this happens, it is important to remember that this is a natural part of the cleansing process, and you can then explore ways to speed up or slow down the process, depending upon your cleansing preference.

With the chronic bladder inflammation, the lemon juice may seem to irritate the bladder and aggravate the symptoms simply because the alkalizing effect of the lemon juice allows the body to dump more acid into the urine for elimination. Hence the aggravation and irritation. In this case, super hydration is *essential*. You need to literally flood the acids out of your bladder. In fact, Dr. Young recommends *minimally* 1 liter of super Alkaline Water for every 30 lbs. of body weight -- even more if we're dealing with health challenges.

As for the cleansing reactions you have when you drink the greens (instantly sick - nauseous, weak, fatigued), this in, in part, related to the cleansing dynamic described, above. However, Dr. Young also explains it terms of basic chemistry: remember what happens when you pour baking soda into vinegar? You get an *instantaneous* churning, foaming chemical reaction!

The same thing happens when we pour super alkaline liquids into a super acidic body. A chemical reaction actually occurs as the acids are suddenly neutralized. This is why lots of folks who are very acidic don't like greens and cucumbers and salads -- they don't "sit" well in a super acid stomach!

The solution? Super hydration along with cleansing and gradual alkalizing....

In addition, there are a number of strategies you can use to minimize the cleansing reactions during the alkalizing process:
--> Super hydration, of course, to neutralize and "wash out" the acids.
--> Clay and good, natural unheated oils will bind with acids and help you eliminate them.
--> Sitting in an alkalizing bath with either:
` 1/2 cup baking soda + 2 cups Epsom Salts or
` magnesium chloride bath salts (ask me for more info)
--> Sitting in a sauna, gentle walking and rebounding will help you release the toxins through your skin and lungs.
--> Dry skin brushing can also help.
--> Of course, enemas and colonics are two of the best ways to eliminate the toxins most quickly, efficiently and effectively.

As for how fast cleansing and "die-off" reactions will occur, this is highly individual. But the strong, sudden reaction you've had to the greens sounds like a sudden neutralizing of acid, accompanied by a consequent release of accumulated toxins.

In contrast, triggering a candida "die-off" reaction usually takes more time, especially in cases of deep, systemic cnadida overgrowth -- but once enough of the candida "colony" has died, the candida "die-off" reaction can also manifest quite suddenly, too. (Google "herxheimer reaction" for more details about the symptoms of a candida die-off.)

Hope this helps! Tweet