Toxic Overload: A Doctor's Plan for Combating the Illnesses Caused by Chemicals in Our Foods, Our Homes, and Our Medicine Cabinets

This book is EXCELLENT! It is a five star book, all the way. I don't understand AJDs three star rating for this book. There doesn't seem to be a complaint about the information contained in the book. On the other hand, I totally agree with Amalfi Coast Girl. She has done a great job of synopsizing the book, so I won't do that here. I am an RN, who was forced to retire early, due to multiple debilitating illnesses. Which came first? The chicken or the egg? I suspect for me, it was multiple allergies, since early childhood, which led to a failure of my hypothalamus and hormonal and adrenal systems, which led to collapse of my immune system. However, I believe that the assault of environmental petrochemicals and toxic food additives, that have been introduced into our world, played a huge role in the collapse of my immune system, as well. I didn't really get serious, about researching this problem, until I was forced to stay home 24/7, due to Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS). I wish I had been armed with this information years ago. I would have, likely, avoided getting sick in the first place Dr. Baillie-Hamilton, has given me ammunition, with which to begin my battle, and continue it to completion and good health. When I was first diagnosed with MCS, I was told if I aggressively treated my allergies, all my immune system problems (including MCS) would go away . . . NOT! From Dr. Baillie-Hamilton, I have learned what I need to do to free my home of toxic cleaning products, my make-up drawer of toxic cosmetics, and my diet of toxic foods. I also learned what supplements will help my body deal with it's toxic overload. Whether you have a chronic illness, or not, you will want to read this book, as it can help you treat and/or prevent toxic overload in the polluted world, in which we live. The book also includes the author's website. If you write to her, with questions, she is quick to respond, and she encourages you to write to her, with your success stories, as well.

This book has everything you will need to know if you are worried about toxins.

This review is written from the perspective of a former hospital administrator that was lucky enough to be exposed to complementary medicine in one of my positions. This exposure has caused me to be interested in the concept of "green living". If you are at all interested in "green living" and reducing the toxins in the lives of your family this is a must read book. This book is divided into two general sections, how to reduce your toxic overload, and the chemical connection to chronic illness. In the first section (reducing the toxic load) the author outlines three steps, these are: 1. Supplementation 2. Seven-Day Desludge Diet 3. Chemical Free Home and Beauty Products. Under Supplementation the doctor outlines specific vitamins, minerals and supplements (and her suggested levels) and tells you why you need these things. I appreciated that she also identifies the food sources for these same substances. In the Seven Day Desludge Diet she outlines what to eat to assist your bodies own systems in purging toxins that are already present. This section recommends the usual suspects as far as consumables. What was unanticipated is the level of detail that the doctor goes into regarding preparing and storing foods. The discussion of Chemical Free Home and Beauty Products is just down right scary. I know that I got up to read labels no fewer than 6 times while reading this chapter. Considering the fact that I am not new to "green living" I was surprised to find a couple of products in my house that I needed to toss out. The remaining two thirds of the book is devoted to the Chemical Connection to Chronic Illness. This portion of the book was fascinating to me. If you are interested in improving your health you will get a lot of information from this section of the book. She covers the following areas in this section: 1. Immune system diseases 2. Neurological diseases 3. Digestive disorders 4. Hormonal imbalances 5. Cardiovascular diseases 6. Cancer 7. Multiple chemical sensitivity 8. Obesity & Musculoskeletal disorders 9. Childhood disorders Overall, I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in improving his or her health. I will caution you that this is not a casual read, and probably not one for young teens in the respect that it might frighten them. The first time I tried to read it I could not get through it, it just seemed far too alarmist on my first read. Apparently I was not in the correct frame of mind. I picked it up again this morning and went through it in two hours (even with underlining). I did a little research while reading the book and was able to corroborate many of the facts that I found contained in the book. I think this is a well researched, and well written book that everyone should read.

I want to say that this book was like a breath of fresh air to me. What is it about? The truth. Here is a book written by a doctor who tells the health hazards of the chemicals that surround us and are found in everything from the food we eat to the cloths we wear. I found it shocking as Dr. Hamilton exposed the dangers of these chemicals to the point of causing cancer, diabetes and respiratory illnesses, just to name a few. I was not surprised as I myself have suffered from what I now know, from the information I found in this book, Multiple Chemical Sensitivity. This is a disease caused by overexposure to chemicals where your body reacts strongly to smells and other chemical agents. What a blessing to finally have a name and a reason to what was happening to my body, and to know it isn't just all in my mind as so many people thought it was. Thank you Dr. Hamilton. The good doctor goes into detail about certain agents and what they do to our bodies, but she does not stop there. She also gives us some pointers on how we can counter-react these chemicals, what vitamins to take, which foods to eat that will flush chemicals out of our bodies and what to avoid, and how to detoxify our homes, and cleanse our bodies. The author covers every area you will need to help you move to better health and avoid contamination in the future. Excellent! I'll tell you the truth, this book was too long in coming and in my opinion should be read by every person on the face of the earth. The information will astound you and make you more aware of the dangers in the world you live in. I strongly recommend this work, you won't be sorry.