As we have reached the end of the year and many of us are taking time off, it’s the perfect time to reflect and prepare for the next year. Many of us might be thinking “man, I really gotta get my diet in order. Maybe I should try a detox especially after all the holiday binge”. If that’s you, keep reading.

What is detox?

Originally, the word “detox” referred to medical procedures whereby life threatening levels of alcohol, poisons or drugs are removed from the body. Usually this happened in hospitals and included a combination of medication and therapies.

However, what we see nowadays is very different. It is now used to target health conscious individuals – yes, possibly you too – and get them to open their wallets for some fruit juices, shakes or chicken broth. Very different from real detoxification procedures, these are usually done at home by yourself and supposedly help fighting symptoms such as  headache, bloating, joint pain, fatigue and even depression. The products needed are not available by prescription but you can either buy them at a local retail store, online or direct mail. While some are targeting special organs, other “clean” your whole body.

 

Thank you Hollywood

Detox diets have gotten very popular and mainstream after some Hollywood celebrities tried them and were used for advertisement. Problems are:

1. Hollywood stars are not doctors, nutritionist or particularly educated in that field – at least not more than the average Joe
2. Some of them get paid a huge amount of money for giving their name to some detox diet advertisement or showing up in some commercial
3. They are normal people and fall for the same scams everyone else does

Example of a Hollywood Detox Diet

Here’s the basic recipe for the Master Cleanse: You take a small amount of warm salt water in the morning (delicious!) followed by a mixture of water, lemon juice, maple syrup and cayenne pepper that you sip throughout the day. And to before you finish for the day, you’ll have a cup of laxative tea in the evening. And you do that for at least 10 days.

This diet supposedly helps you restore energy, lose weight, and relieve symptoms of chronic conditions like arthritis and fibromyalgia.

 

Risks of Detox and Cleanses

Unfortunately, there is absolutely no scientific evidence to support the claims. What studies have shown though is the following:

• Extremely low calorie diets like fasts/juice/tea detoxes lower the body’s basal metabolic rate as your body struggles to conserve energy
• Most weight loss is simply from dehydration and loss of fluids due to the low carbohydrate intake (remember, your body needs water to store carbohydrates?)
• Increased risk of diarrhea thanks to salt water and laxative tea consumption
• As soon as you return to a regular diet you’ll put on a lot of weight again.
• The diet lacks essential fatty acids, essential amino acids (protein) – there’s a reason they are called essential!
• Messed up metabolism as your daily calorie intake is only around 600 kcal. Even a female at 45 to 50 kg with low physical activity levels still requires about 1500 kcal a day!
• Dehydration and depleted electrolytes can cause cramps

Oh, and this one is my favorite: If you jump repeatedly into this diet unprepared, you run a high risk of developing metabolic acidosis. Acidosis is a disruption of the body’s acid-base balance, which results in excessive acidity in the blood. In cases of severe metabolic acidosis you might end up in a coma or even dead.

 

Use Your Body’s Detox System

Ok, so if all the stuff they are trying to sell you is crap, then what is your alternative? Actually, your body is really good at getting rid of “toxins”.

 

Your kidneys are doing a great job at filtering out waste substances and moving them out of your body.

Your liver is the biggest filter you have. Just think of alcoholics and their liver. Their liver gave up after they consumed so much alcohol that the liver just couldn’t keep up with it – alcohol is a poison! Your liver also creates proteins called metallothioneins. They help you filter out substances such as lead, cadmium, mercury etc. On top of that, the enzymes your liver produces filters out harmful chemicals

The immune system sole purpose is to recognize foreign substances entering your body and fighting them as soon as possible.

There are even lymph nodes in the small intestines that filter out all kinds of parasites and other substances before entering your bloodstream from the colon.

Your nose or better the respiratory system. The fine hairs on the inside of your nose are there to trap dirt and other large particles that may be inhaled. The stuff that still makes it into your lungs gets then rejected again through mucus.

Last but not least, your skin. Your skin is the biggest organ and it is there to protect you from harmful substances, bacteria and viruses but also heavy metals and chemically harmful substances.

 

Bottom Line

Your body is really awesome and can protect you from harmful substances etc. without any problems. Important though is that you take care of your body on a regular basis. Eat healthy, drink enough water, by physically active, sleep enough and get checked by your doctor regularly.

 

Here’s the best prescription to detox your body: stop eating so much crap in the first place. Then you won’t have to “clean” your body.