Talk of herbal detox comes up every spring – some years, earlier than others. We field a lot of questions from people asking our opinions on detox protocols, bowel cleanses, liver flushes, you name it. So, in this episode, we’re giving you our fundamental thoughts on the topic.

Ryn wrote you a poem that sums up our perspective. Here it is:

The Don’t Ox

if you think you need a detox,
hear & heed the Don’t Ox –
listen well when he talks,
when he says:
Don’t.

don’t you doubt your liver!,
and the action it delivers
in concert with your kidneys
to clean your blood.

if you feed your body rightly
if you sleep you well a-nightly
if you walk when sun shines brightly
you’ll keep inner waters clear.

you don’t need to haunt the potty –
you just need to trust your body:
give it nicely more than naughty
without force and without fear.

if you taste a bit of bitter
eat some greens at every dinner
then you’ll run that inner river
in a flow, but not a flood!

now every day’s a detox
and our good old friend the Don’t Ox
is sure when we hear “purge” talk
we’ll remember:
Don’t.

Listen to the episode for the elucidation and explanation of everything that’s contained in this poem!

Perhaps you will adopt the Don’t Ox as a personal mascot, too. 🙂

For the full story, you’ll want to dig in to our course Elements of Detoxification. This course takes a fresh look at the concepts of “toxicity” and “detoxification”, a holistic perspective that goes beyond “cleanses” and products. Learn a memorable, practical model for understanding how the body’s detox functions work, along with the roles herbs can play in supporting them.

Like all our offerings, this is a self-paced online video course, which comes with free access to twice-weekly live Q&A sessions with us, lifetime access to current & future course material, open discussion threads integrated in each lesson, an active student community, study guides, quizzes & capstone assignments, and more!

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Our theme music is “Wings” by Nicolai Heidlas.

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