There are many toxins we may come into contact with throughout the day. Some of these come from our environment, while others are produced by our own body as a part its normal functioning.

External toxins have to be ingested or absorbed, like through our digestive system, skin or lungs. We can come into contact with contaminants from the food we eat and water we drink.

Toxins can also come from the air we breathe in our homes, offices and schools. It can come from makeup, household cleaners, the clothes we wear, packaging, and even smart phone cases.

Some-times medications are sources of toxins. Even our own thinking can create toxins in our body. Invading bacteria, viruses, and mold could all be considered toxins.

When our body creates energy it also creates internal toxins as a by-product of repairing tissue and generating new cells.

Our body is pretty amazing at dealing with most toxins in order to prevent buildup. This is happening all the time. When our total body burden of toxins gets to high, our body may not be able to keep up and problems can arise.

The liver is the body’s major detoxification system. It inactivates and removes toxins we have digested. It extracts from our blood the internal toxins we created. As food in our intestines is fermented and putrefied, the liver is busy removing the resulting toxins.

The kidneys have the chore of clearing out our blood from chemical toxins or those coming from medications. These are excreted through the urine. Proper hydration and blood pressure are important for proper detoxification.

Our intestines, in addition to processing and absorbing food, play an important role in toxin removal. The liver dumps the toxins it removed back into our digestive system through bile. This bile also in important in helping us break down fats.

The mucus membrane in our intestines acts as a barrier to toxins while appropriately allowing in nutrients. If this membrane gets damaged the filtering process does not work as well.

When passage of material through the digestive tract gets delayed, the fermenting process can create an environment not only toxic to our bodies but also to the bacteria in our gut. They may mutate and create even more dangerous toxins.

Our lungs get rid of toxins in the form of gas as we breathe and others when we cough. Our body can actually push toxins from the blood stream out through our lungs when necessary.

Usually our skin is a defense layer, but it also acts to release toxins. These are typically crystals from metabolic processes that are carried out when we sweat. Our lymph system also plays a role in detoxification. Like blood vessels, this network has the ability to carry away toxins that are excreted by cells.

Toxins also can have beneficial properties and well as detrimental effects, such as chemotherapy. Sometimes we need to choose the long term benefits despite the short term downside.

A group of toxins I find interesting are called mycotoxins. These are the chemical toxins that come from molds that colonize plants. These can end up in grains, wine, coffee and even supplements.

Mycotoxins can cause major problems to our health. They resist decomposition and are poorly broken down in our digestive system. Cooking and freezing can have little effect on these toxins.

Some uses of mycotoxins, like penicillin, can be useful, yet generally they are something that it is best to keep out of our bodies.

Because they affect our health in so many ways there is great effort to keep these out of our food. This can be done by growing and harvesting techniques.

This can also be done by binding them for removal or deactivating them with enzymes.

For example, specialty coffee is typically free of these toxins due to the high quality standards adhered to during growing and processing. The Food and Drug Administration has clear guidelines for the amount of mycotoxins allowed in our food and animal feeds.

Many factors affect how we will respond to toxic exposures. This includes whether the exposure is acute or chronic, our genetics, the strength of our immune system, and nutritional status. Stop on by to discuss this more.

Scott Porter, a functional medicine pharmacist, is the director of the Center for Functional Nutrition at Sandpoint Super Drug.