Lymph Care Using Foot Zone Techniques

The lymphatic system is a vital part of our circulatory and immune systems. It consists of a network of lymphatic vessels, lymph nodes, and lymphatic organs, including your spleen and tonsils.

How do I adequately describe the lymphatic system without needing as many pages as I print up when teaching about this body-wide system during the Foot Zone therapy classes that I teach?

Let’s begin today by imagining a team inside your body that is constantly working to keep everything—and I do mean everything!— in balance. That is our lymphatic system!

Unfortunately, the amazing lymphatic system has a downside, as well. Bacteria, viruses, and cancer cells that enter the lymphatic vessels can—and sometimes do, if the system is not healthy and working properly—use this system to travel throughout the body. This danger is supposed to be kept to a minimum as lymph fluid passes through the many lymph nodes situated throughout the body. If the immune system is healthy and the lymph fluid is moving as it should be, all will be well. Even cancer cells will be eliminated in an early, unnoticed stage. If not . . . .

Our lymphatic systems also contribute in very important ways to our ability to absorb dietary fats and fat-soluble vitamins. In addition, our lymphatic systems also transport cellular waste, debris, and toxins away from tissues, thus protecting tissues and organs throughout our bodies.

Caring for the various parts of the lymphatic system is precisely what we are doing during a very large portion of every foot zone that we give or get!

Some Simple Drawings of Foot Zone ‘Flows’ for Lymphatic Congestion as I Work Them.
(Shown only the right foot)

A Few Ways (Besides the Foot Zone) to Get Lymph Moving

1. Breathe deeply. There is approximately three times more lymph fluid moving through the body than there is blood, but the lymph has no pump to keep it moving. Deep breathing—the kind in which your abdomen moves with each breath, stimulates the flow of lymph, and energizes the immune system.

2. Add exercise to your breathing, and you will have turbocharged your lymphatic system and increased, in beneficial ways, your immune responses. A rebound exerciser is believed to be particularly good for your lymphatic system. Whole Body Vibration (I call it being jiggled and I love it!) seems to make my lymphatic system very happy. Involuntary muscle movement promotes lymph flow.

3. Drink plenty of water. Room temperature, or even hot water, sipped frequently throughout the day will re-hydrate the body and get the lymph moving.

4. Alkalize your diet. Simply eat more alkaline foods than you do “junk” or highly acidic foods. Avoid as much as you can sugary treats and beverages. Lessen the amount of meats, breads, grains, dairy, and processed foods that you consume each day. Eat more fruits and vegetables. Green, leafy vegetables provide chlorophyll, which will purify your blood and cleanse your lymph.

5. Add a few good-quality nuts to your diet. Raw, unsalted nuts and seeds are powerhouses of minerals, vitamins, protein, unsaturated fatty acids, and antioxidants.

6. Add herbs, especially lymph-building ones, to your life on a daily basis. A few suggested herbs include: astragalus, barberry, calendula, dandelion, echinacea, elecampane, garlic, ginger, goldenseal, myrrh, rosemary, sage, thyme, and white oak bark.

7. Use essential oils regularly. Regular use of essential oils helps to cleanse the body from toxins, free radicals, cellular debris, heavy metals, petrochemicals, bacteria, and a host of other unwanted things. Suggested oils include cypress, orange, grapefruit, rosemary, peppermint, lemon, and blends such as Butterfly Express ^LeSolace, ^LeAgeless, ^LeCherish, ^LeCinnamonBear, ^LeEndoRelief, ^LeLiteN, ^LeReflections, ^LeMillenia, ^LeRevitalize, ^LeSunburst, ^LeSynopsis, ^LeUnDone, and ^LeVitality. Which oil to use will depend a lot on where in the body the lymph clogging is most prevalent and what else needs to be accomplished.

8. Clay baths and foot soaks use the pores of the skin, especially the large pores of the feet, to cleanse the liver and move lymph fluid.

9. Gentle massage. It is believed that a gentle massage can push up to 75% of stagnant lymph back into circulation, freeing up trapped toxins.

10. Keep your skeletal structure aligned through chiropractic and/or the regular use of ^LeMillenia essential oil. ^LeMillenia, added to the bath or shower, can help the body realign itself or maintain a chiropractic alignment for a much longer time.

11. Dry skin brushing, especially before showering. Use a natural bristle brush. Brush your dry skin in circular motions upwards from the feet to the torso and from the fingers to the chest. The point is to work in the same direction that our lymph flows—toward the heart.

12. A shower in which hot and cold are alternated every few minutes. (Sorry, this one is not for me!) Heat dilates and cold contracts. The lymphatic and circulatory systems run alongside each other in the body. Alternate hot and cold increases both circulation and lymph drainage. Contraindicated for pregnancy and heart conditions.

See the full list of topics.

In This Issue

^LeSolace Essential Oil Blend
Grapefruit Pink Essential Oil
TLC & LT Herb Combinations

^LeSolace Essential Oil Blend

I did not, personally, create ^LeSolace. A very talented, long-term (very early on in our company history) employee did. This is an incredible blend! Sometimes I reach for it because of the powerful impact on negative emotions such as mental exhaustion and tension. For the last year or so, I have kept it diffused or on my body to alleviate the grief that has accompanied our son’s death and the grief I see in his wife and children. ^LeSolace is the perfect name for this blend!

If you have studied the Chakra System of the body and work with it, you will come to love this blend as you utilize it in your work with feet! ^LeSolace connects the base chakra (protection, filling basic needs, feelings of ‘there is not enough for both me and you, and I must hoard what I have instead of sharing with you and others’) by involving the heart chakra. A balanced heart chakra loves others with the true meaning of that emotion. Out of balance, the heart chakra looks loving but is merely playing a part.

This blend balances being practical and down-to-earth with being able to listen to the inspiration provided by the Spirit and to do so with love and acceptance of ourselves and others as we all strive to walk more perfectly through the ups and downs of life.

Physical aspects: ^LeSolace has a dramatic effect on the lymph system and lymph drainage, even when the lymph clogging is very dense and even hard. I can attest to that personally (but I will leave that story for another day, perhaps, when this blend finishes the work it is doing on a personal and long-standing lymph clogging I’m working on in my own body!) Many of the essential oils contained in this blend inhibit mutant cell growth, so this blend can be beneficial for helping to restore normal cell function.

Grapefruit Pink Essential Oil

Grapefruit is uplifting to the mind and spirit. It is hard to be negative or anxious in the presence of this oil, because it promotes feelings of joy, confidence, and spontaneity. One of my favorite uses for this oil (when one of my sons lived far enough away that flying to visit him and his family was necessary) was to alleviate the symptoms of jet lag.

Grapefruit detoxifies the lymphatic system. This makes it a useful tonic for many body systems. It is specific for water retention and the dissolving of cellulite. Grapefruit aids with gallstones and with kidney and liver disorders, and with migraine headaches that often accompany problems with the kidneys and the liver. Grapefruit, diluted in water, can be used as an astringent face wash for acne. Grapefruit is one of the best oils for premenstrual water retention and headaches.

Grapefruit essential oil comes down to a preference of smell. Grapefruit Pink has a slightly sweeter aroma, while Grapefruit White is more tart.

Featured Herbal Combinations

TLC (formerly Total Lymph Care)

As you might have surmised from previous comments in this blog (and in the March newsletter, if you follow me there),  I struggled with lymphatic issues almost from birth. Any condition associated with the lymph system or the kidneys that I experienced in my youth and childhood, I am happy and proud to say, has been—for the most part—eliminated. The blend, ^LeSolace (discussed above), is taking care of that recently acquired issue!

All the herbs in this blend (a total of 12 herbs) are excellent anti-inflammatory herbs and improve venous insufficiency. This blend helps support the body’s natural lymph cleansing process and has antioxidant properties to prevent or reduce damage caused by oxidation.

TLC will stimulate the immune system and can be used to help prevent illness or be helpful when recovering from illness. This blend will help reduce edema and aid the kidneys in filtering blood properly. This is an excellent formula to add to any cleanse program. Use with CD, KB, LC, and RC for a wonderful whole-body cleanse.

LT (formerly Lymph Tonic)

The lymph system is a valuable component of the body’s immune system. The tonsils, adenoids, thymus, spleen, lymph vessels, and lymph nodes help protect the body from infections and disease. There are even important lymphatic tissues that are found in the small intestine and in many parts of the body not listed above.

This body-wide system also plays an important role in maintaining healthy fluid levels of all sorts throughout the body. It does this while removing cellular debris and other harmful substances from the tissues. The absorption and utilization of fats—that consumed and even the extra being carried about by the body—is another important function of this critically important system.

LT should be utilized with infection-fighting tinctures and essential oils at the very onset of any illness or whenever the lymphatic system seems to be in need of assistance. Most of us, living in our modern environment and eating quite a bit of processed food, are in need of assistance with lymph drainage.

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Additional Essential Oils for the Lymphatic System

Lymphatic Congestion (Physical and/or Emotionally Based)

^LeAgeLess, ^LeAmplify, ^LeAutumn, ^LeCherish, ^LeCinnamonBear, ^LeDeeper, ^LeDeliverance, ^LeEndoRelief, ^LeHousewarming, ^LeKey to My Heart, ^LeLiteN, ^LeReflections, ^LeRevitalize, ^LeSolace, ^LeSunburst, ^LeSynopsis, ^LeUnDone, ^LeVitality, Birch, Lemon, Orange Sweet, Ravensara

Possible Emotions of the Lymphatic System

The lymph system has a two-fold role to play. The first is the removal of waste products from the body. The second is the isolation and destruction of foreign invaders. These rolls are reflected in the emotional patterns behind lymphatic stagnation.

The first function is reflected in the emotions of the lymph system (and, therefore, the immune capabilities of the body) in the display of an inability to distinguish between what is good for oneself emotionally and what is not. Poor decision-making skills and a tendency to make the wrong friends or marry the wrong people, over and over, are seen here.

The second pattern manifests as constantly feeling like one is being attacked and that one must fight to be able to maintain independence and a sense of self.

Additional Herbals for the Lymphatic System

Unlike the heart, the lymphatic system does not have a pump. Exercise is vital to the movement of lymph fluid.

Vitamins/Minerals/Foods for the Lymphatic System

Vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin D, B complex vitamins, lemons, cabbage, Cloves, Echinacea, Elderberries, Parsley, carrots, honey, mustard, onions, Watercress

Herbal Remedies for the Lymphatic System

Enzymes, Combination LT, Bayberry, Burdock, cabbage, Calendula, carrots, Cleavers, Cloves, Dandelion, Echinacea, Elderflower, Goldenseal, Licorice, Mustard Seed, Myrrh, Nettles, onions, Oregon Grape, Parsley, Plantain, Pleurisy Root, Poke Root, Red Clover, Red Root, and Watercress.

Wormwood is recommended on some lists for really serious conditions. Wormwood should be used with great caution and as a small percentage in formulas with other herbs taking the lead. Vitamins A, C, D, and B complex are also essential.

Hormones and Lymphatic Congestion

Menstrual Cycles and Menopause

Many women who suffer from uncomfortable and painful menstrual cycles in their teen years go on to experience even more problematic periods during their childbearing years, as well as difficult pregnancies and/or problems with fertility. As time moves on, these same women experience the more difficult aspects of menopause.

We have been told, and it has long been believed by medical personnel in our part of the world, that these types of problems are hormonal in nature. Really?

The Question should be, “What fouled up the hormones in so many women in today’s world?” Birth control pills are frequently prescribed as a solution for painful periods. For menopausal women, bio-identical hormones have been considered the best solution for the symptoms considered normal at menopause.

The many problems with bio-identical hormones have been identified and acknowledged in recent years, and young women who took birth control during their teen years statistically later have trouble achieving proper hormonal balances to conceive and carry a child to term.

Interestingly, in Eastern cultures and in Ayurvedic medical protocols, the lymphatic system is looked at and treated first in problems of both menstruation and menopause. In many cases, these problems have shown themselves to not be hormonal at all or, at least, out-of-balance hormones are the result of clogged lymph and not the original cause of imbalances.

The lymph channels are the largest circulatory system in the body. They are designed to drain waste from all parts of the body. This waste drainage is critically important for good health. When congestion occurs in the lymph system, it takes a toll on all of the organ systems.

At the beginning of the menstrual cycle, lymph drainage increases. According to Ayurvedic medicine, when women menstruate, much of the reproductive waste is removed through the lymph as an important companion system to menstrual bleeding. If the lymph is congested, the menstrual cycle may become painful, irregular, overly heavy, or go missing altogether. Congestion in the lymph can bring about the typical PMS-associated symptoms of breast swelling or tenderness, temporary breakouts of acne, diarrhea or constipation, bloating, water retention, headaches, and an increased tendency to colds, sinus issues, and other respiratory issues.

Consideration of how the lymphatic system works makes these symptoms a very logical result of lymphatic congestion. Let’s take these few symptoms one at a time:

Swollen breasts—The breasts are a place in the body where lymphatic tissue and lymphatic fluid are highly concentrated. If the state of the body between menstrual cycles is already congested, the additional stress of reproductive waste trying to move through the lymphatic system will logically create further congestion. The cyclical additional load on the lymph system can create congestion of the concentration of lymph vessels and fluids in the breasts, and this will naturally result in swelling and tenderness.

Acne and other skin issues—We know that when the eliminative organs of the body become congested, the skin is often used as an alternative eliminative organ. There is lymphatic tissue located just below the surface of the skin. This lymph tissue is the body’s first defense against any toxin, bacteria, virus, or parasite that tries to penetrate the skin. If the lymph is already clogged as menstruation begins, these lymphatic tissues may also become clogged. Instead of allowing waste to be picked up by the lymphatic system to drain through normal channels, the pores of the skin are utilized, and acne, eczema, and other types of skin irritation occur.

Diarrhea/Constipation/Intestinal Issues—Much like the skin on the outside of our bodies, the lining of the intestinal tract—called the epithelium—is drained by a large concentration of lymph structures. The Peyer’s patches are a large part of this system. This is the highest concentration of lymph tissues anywhere in the body. At least 80% of the body’s immune responses originate here, making it critically important to keep this lymph tissue clear.

Long-standing constipation, diarrhea, or other digestive issues can seriously compromise the free flow of fluid in this important lymph area. During the increased load on the lymph brought on by menstruation, the lymph tissue in the intestinal tract can become clogged. The results can be any combination of bloating, Candida overgrowth, extra belly fat, allergies, joint issues, fatigue, headaches, edema, and reproductive issues.

The respiratory system is also lined with lymph tissue. Increased lymph clogging during menstruation can result in sufficient irritation of the mucus membranes of the respiratory tract to predispose a woman to colds, allergies, sinus issues, or asthmatic flare-ups.

PMS and the menstrual cycle, viewed in this way, offer a monthly opportunity to evaluate the overall function of the lymph in the woman’s body. If any of the symptoms discussed above are experienced or become worse during menstruation, lymphatic congestion may be the root of the problem.

The Zone—From a foot-zonist’s perspective, this means that issues connected with menstruation and menopause may need to be evaluated according to the symptoms of lymphatic clogging, and if other symptoms are there they will best be treated by working the lymph in addition to attempts to balance the hormones.

Further signs of lymph congestion may include ovarian cysts, uterine fibroids, and polycystic ovarian syndrome, fibromyalgia, fibrocystic breast disease, cellulite, rashes, edema, joint pain that is typically worse in the morning, weight gain, extra belly fat, and swollen glands.

The Immune System and Pregnancy

During pregnancy, several changes occur in the function of the immune system—some normal immune functions are enhanced while other functions are suppressed to some extent. These changes are designed to protect the fetus from infectious diseases and to prevent the fetus from rejection as something that is foreign to the mother’s body. Well-balanced lymphatic and immune systems can accomplish this without drastically compromising the defenses that keep the mother healthy. Statistically, however, the reality is that the incidence of viral illness, the intensity of the viral attack, the severity of the illness, and even the rate of death (still low—very low overall) are all higher in pregnant women than in non-pregnant women.

In light of these statistics and recent research findings, the importance of healthy and properly functioning lymphatic and immune systems cannot be overemphasized. The time to prepare for pregnancy, nutritionally and lymphatically, is during adolescence (or maybe even before that). In addition, a pregnant woman should always respond immediately to any sign of illness with appropriate herbs, essential oils, and homeopathic remedies.