Your skin is the body’s largest organ and the body’s first line of defense. It makes sense, then, that what we do to it and what we put on it affects other organs in the body. Dry skin brushing is one of the simplest, cheapest, easiest things that you can do to help cleanse and detoxify your body. It actually does more than just invigorate, stimulate and exfoliate your skin and give it a healthy glow. It also benefits your lymphatic system.

The lymphatic system is an important part of the body’s immune system. It is made up of lymph, a watery infection fighting fluid, small organs called lymph nodes (located in the armpits, groin, neck, chest and abdomen), and lymph vessels which, not unlike blood vessels, run through your body and branch into the body’s tissues. In fact, the lymph system is sometimes referred to as the “second circulatory system” of the body. Other organs that are part of the lymphatic system are the spleen, thymus gland, tonsils and bone marrow.

The main job of the lymphatic system is to serve as a defense system for the body by cleansing and filtering out disease causing organisms. The system also produces white blood cells and generates antibodies. It is also often referred to as the body’s garbage disposal system. With that in mind, you can guess how important good flow is to this very important system. Having a clogged and/or stagnant lymphatic system can result in fatigue, pain and swelling and lumps and bumps in lymph node areas. How does the lymph flow around your body? Interestingly enough, there is no pump, (like the heart) to move lymph around to all the tissues in your body. It relies on the movement and contraction of your muscles to “pump” it around. (Another good reason to exercise!) Massage can also be helpful in stimulating lymph. Things like stress, poor diet, and lack of movement or exercise contribute to having a sluggish, stagnant lymphatic system.

Even if you do exercise and get massage, skin brushing will enhance and speed up the body’s release of toxins by also encouraging exfoliation, blood circulation and new cell growth. This is especially true when you are doing any sort of cleanse with the goal of detoxifying. The brush you choose should have soft natural bristles, and a long handle to get to the hard-to-reach places. Always brush your skin dry, just before bathing, and keep the brush dry, except to rinse it once in a while with plain water.

Why not just do the brushing in the shower with some soap, and get it all done at once? There are several reasons: Brushing wet skin causes stretching and is not as effective for exfoliation as brushing your skin when it’s dry. Also, soap alone does not remove dead skin as well, even with a washcloth. Besides, most soap these days (unless made from only natural and organic ingredients) contains harsh unnatural ingredients that smell clean but will be absorbed by your skin. Fortunately, there are numerous natural soaps available online and in stores these days that are quite easy to find. A few of my favorites are Simply Divine Botanicals, Pangea Organics, and Terrasentials. When dry skin brushing you would only need to use these natural soaps in those places where you are really need it…(genitals, soles of feet, armpits, really dirty spots.)

How to do it:
Skin brushing only needs to be done once/day, preferably first thing in the morning, and really helps to wake up! If you are feeling sluggish, toxic, or ill you may want to do it twice a day.

Always brush from the extremities toward the core of the body in long uninterrupted strokes. For example, from the soles of the feet up the legs, from the hands to the shoulders, down the back and torso, up the buttocks and very gently around the breasts and neck. Be sure to try to get every surface, backs of arms, inner legs, etc.

Brush once a day for six days then skip one day.

After a few days you may notice a gelatinous mucoid material in your stools; that’s toxic lymph which has drained into your colon because of skin brushing.

For a thorough lymphatic cleansing, perform skin brushing daily for about 3 months.