I believe environmental toxicity is one of the biggest contributors to the rise in chronic illness today. And yet, because doctors don’t really learn about chronic toxic burden in medical school,  it’s now become somewhat of an elephant in the room.

The fact of the matter is when it comes to toxicity we mostly understand when it’s acute – when it causes sudden and definitive symptoms. However, most toxin exposures are chronic, involve more than one toxin, and happen after years, even decades of accumulation. This accumulation overloads the body’s detox mechanisms and causes symptoms such as:

• Fatigue
• Memory disturbance
• Sleep issues
• Headaches

Over time, if the environmental toxicity and detox pathways aren’t addressed, the toxic burden can lead to conditions like:

• Cancer
• Autoimmune disease
• Neurodegenerative diseases

In a 2015 review in the prestigious journal Carcinogenesis, researchers found that lifestyle factors are responsible for a considerable portion of cancers worldwide. Concluding that 7-19% of all cancers are attributable to toxic environmental exposures. On top of this, they examined 85 chemicals and found 59% of them exerted low-dose effects.

In my personal practice, I’ve seen the devastating effects of environmental toxin exposure.  Because the symptoms are chronic and multisystem it can lead to a perplexing situation for both the patient and the practitioner. I found the best method for helping a patient with a chronic condition is to reduce their levels of toxin exposure and improve detoxification to bring down their toxic burden.

So today I want to talk about different types of toxins, other factors that add to your burden, symptoms and conditions of suspected environmental toxicity, and detoxification.

17 Possible Environmental Toxins

Toxins can either be introduced to the body through external exposure or internal exposure.  I break different exposures down into exotoxins (external) and endotoxins (internal). A huge part of reducing your toxic burden is being aware of different sources of toxins so that you can avoid potential exposures. With that in mind the list below is meant to be a resource for different areas of your life that should be considered when you work to reduce your toxic burden.

Exotoxins:

1. Heavy metals – Can come from cookware, tap water, personal care products, and home furnishings.
2. Solvents/VOCs – Can come from cleaning products or off gas from new furniture or carpet. Oftentimes are indoor air is more toxic than the air outside.
3. Pesticides – As an exotoxin, pesticides affect people when they work with them either at their job or in their personal garden or lawn.
4. BPA – BPA is an endocrine disruptor and also found in plastics.
5. Phthalates – Can be found in personal care products, home cleaning products, and makeup.
6. Parabens – Also found in personal care products, home cleaning products, and makeup.
7. EMF radiation – This comes from electronics and Wi-Fi sources, so cell phones, smart TVs, microwaves, fitness trackers, routers, cell phone towers, and airplanes.
8. Heterocyclic amines – These are chemicals that are released from animal products when they are cooked at high temperatures.
9. Mold – I’ve written extensively about mold, if you’d like to learn more I encourage you to explore the rest of my website.

Endotoxins:

1. Intestinal bacteria – Such as endotoxemia from LPS.
2. Yeast/candida – Candida produce the toxin acetaldehyde.
3. Other infectious diseases – Common ones include Epstein-Barr and Lyme disease.
4. Food – Standard American Diet contributes to total toxic burden. Chemicals, food additives, and glyphosate all cause problems. When it comes to food your best bet is to eat as organic as possible.
5. Insulin resistance – When insulin resistance climbs in your body it causes stress. Work to promote insulin sensitivity instead.
6. Medications – Medications generally contribute to overall toxic burden.
7. Stress – Stress is an extremely powerful influence in your overall health and yet it’s often not taken into consideration.
8. Emotions – Emotions cause biochemical reactions in the body and are often overlooked.

What Else Can Add to Your Total Toxic Burden?

Besides toxins there are other things that can contribute to your total toxic burden that you might not have considered. This is because your total toxic burden includes all stressors on the body, which means things like emotional and psychological stress.

I mentioned stress and emotions above but it’s worth taking the time to dig a little deeper on each because they are all too commonly overlooked. They don’t fit our traditional idea of a toxin. A few potential stressors that are outright “toxins” include:

• Age
• Sex
• Financial stress
• Sedentary lifestyle
• Career stress
• Toxic personal relationships
• Significant life events, such as a death in the family or divorce
• Unresolved emotional trauma

25 Symptoms of Environmental Toxicity

Over the years I’ve noticed there are some symptoms that are more commonly seen in patients with environmental toxicity. If someone comes into my office with a few of any of the following symptoms I immediately start checking for sources of toxins and for ways to reduce their overall toxic burden.  

Here are 25 symptoms of environmental toxicity:

1. Fatigue
2. Muscle aches
3. Joint pain
4. Sinus congestion
5. Postnasal drip
6. Headaches
7. Gas/Bloating
8. Constipation
9. Diarrhea
10. Foul-smelling stools
11. Heartburn
12. Insomnia
13. Difficulty concentrating
14. Food cravings
15. Water retention
16. Trouble losing weight
17. Rashes
18. Skin problems
19. Eczema
20. Psoriasis
21. Acne
22. Canker sores
23. Dark circles under the eyes
24. Premenstrual syndrome
25. Bad breath

In addition to these symptoms there are a few conditions that are major red flags to me. These include:

• Immune system dysfunction
• Chronic infection
• Autoimmune diseases
• Endocrine disorders
• Multiple chemical sensitivity
• Infertility
• Adverse reactions to medications
• Allergies and asthma
• Obvious industrial or agricultural exposure
• Poor caffeine tolerance

5 Methods of Detoxification Support

Here’s the deal, we all need detoxification support. This is because we live in a time when we are constantly bombarded with toxins unlike any other point in human history. Tens of thousands of chemicals are introduced via our products each day and there’s very little oversight. Basically, we’re all human guinea pigs and we need to take steps to reduce our routes of exposure and support our detoxification organs.

• Glutathione – A master antioxidant which can be taken orally or intravenously. Glutathione reduces oxidative stress, is an intracellular antioxidant, and helps with detoxification of environmental toxins.

• Reducing medication use – Genexa Health has come up with a line of natural products for various ailments. I recommend most of my patients do what they can to address the root causes of their conditions so they can limit the amount of medications they’re on. Genexa Health is a great way to get people off of over-the-counter medications such as Advil, which only contribute to leaky gut and inflammation.

• Make sure you’re going to the bathroom regularly – To properly eliminate toxins in the body you need to be sure you are not constipated. Consider using an Elimination Diet to find any food sensitivities.

• Use detox binders – I recommend using detox binders like activated charcoal and GI detox. These bind to toxins and help your body eliminate them more readily.
• Take detox supporting nutrients:

1. • Chlorophyll  
   • Green Tea
   • Quercetin
   • Active B complex
   • Milk Thistle
   • Calcium D-glucarate
   • Curcumin  
   • Probiotics 50 billion CFUs

I’ve put together a thorough guideline with more detail to help you through the process of reducing your toxin exposure. You can find that here: Reduce Your Daily Toxin Exposure.

Resources:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26106142