Getting Started with Purification Therapies
Sweating, as a natural method of purification, can be helpful for many people, espe-
cially those who smoke, drink, or use other drugs, suffer chemical exposures, or eat a
lot of salt. The complete recommended program is to exercise for 20 minutes, sauna
or steam bath for a maximum of 30 minutes, take a cleansing shower, and then
have a massage. Be careful as you emerge from the sauna or steam bath as you
may be weak, dizzy, or unstable on your feet. It is especially important that you
drink plenty of water throughout the program to replace the fluids that are lost.
Even after the sweat, fluid intake should be high, to continue the flushing out of tox-
ins and to prevent dehydration.
Steam inhalation is an excellent remedy for respiratory problems such as chest con-
gestion, bronchitis, bronchial cough, laryngitis, and sinusitis. Adding sage and euca-
lyptus to the steam is both soothing and antibacterial, which decreases the chance
of secondary bacterial infection in viral respiratory diseases. Steam inhalation can
be done with a commercial steam vaporizer or through making one’s own steam
tent. A towel draped over one’s head and over the top of a pot of boiling water is
quite effective. Great care must be taken not to set the towel on fire if the source of
heat is a gas burner.
Hot, wet compresses are good treatment for localized infections. Simply wet a towel,
wring it out, and heat it in the microwave. Care must be taken to avoid tempera-
tures hot enough to burn. Place on the infected area for 15 minutes at least three or
four times a day. Heat is also effective for sore muscles as well as menstrual and
intestinal cramps. This therapy can be accomplished with heating pads or with gel
packs designed to be heated in a microwave. Cold compresses are good for bruises,
sprains, traumatized joints, burns, bites, and stings. A package of frozen peas
wrapped in a towel makes a excellent cold compress. A home first aid kit should
include a gel ice pack that can be stored in the freezer until it is needed. For
campers, instant ice packs are available and simply need to be squeezed, stretched,
and applied. A cold compress will reduce leakage of fluid into injured tissues, reduce
swelling and pain, and slow the spread of any toxins into the system. It should be
kept in place for most of the first few hours and then used intermittently for 24
hours after the injury.
Intense sweating at the very start of a viral infection may greatly reduce the severity
of the illness. A sauna or steam bath produces the most effective sweating, but you
can approximate that kind of therapy at home. Try prewarming your bed with an
electric blanket or other means, and then fill the bathtub with comfortably hot
water between 102 and 104 degrees Fahrenheit. Submerge your body as much as
possible for 15 minutes, then towel off and jump into the prewarmed bed, covering300 ABSOLUTE BEGINNER’S GUIDE TOALTERNATIVE MEDICINE