“Detox”, “cleanse”, “7 day detox plan”, “colon cleanse”, ever came across gimmicks like these? I’m sure you have.
Detox is a humungous multimillion dollar industry in itself with variety of products like teas, pills, smoothies, powders and what not.
But do detox really work? What is the science behind it? Let’s dive deep into this.
What is detox diet?
Detox diets are generally short term dietary inventions that just sounds healthy. Most detox/cleanse diets will have you fasting for 1-3 days and then consume nothing but a set of juices for 3-5 days.
Some diets even prescribe that the juices should be consumed in a particular order as mentioned in their health pack.
Here are some most common claims made by any detox/cleanse product – You’d hear things like, “Our product will”:
- Flush out toxins that have accumulated inside your body over the years
- Gives your organs a rest
- Help you lose weight
- Improve blood circulation
- Promote toxin eradication through feces, urine, sweat
- Provide your body with healthy nutrients
Detox: The biggest scam
Wait, but so many companies are selling products in name of “detox” and “cleanse”, there has to be something tenable behind the whole concept, right?
SNIPPET: Absolutely none. Detox is a gargantuan industry that has been debunked implicitly by medical science. There is zilch scientific evidence to show that detox/cleanse diets and supplements have any effect on removing toxins from your system.
While it’s true that your body do produce toxins that needs to be flushed out, it doesn’t mean you need someone’s help to accomplish that. Your body itself is capable to flush out toxins using it’s organs like liver, kidneys, lymphatic system and gastrointestinal system.
These organs are working day and night just like your heart to get the job done. A detox diet does not aids your kidneys or liver to do their job any better.
If you’ve healthy and well functioning kidneys, your detoxification is being taken care of completely. And conversely if you do not have healthy well functioning liver and kidneys, boy/girl you have much bigger problems than choosing the best green detox-juice plan in market.
Detox diets could potentially harm you
Most of the detox plans put the individual on ultra low calorie diet. As a result, these “diet plans” have people consume way less calories and nutrients than they actually need.
No wonder, people on ‘detox diets’ do lose significant weight in a short time span. For an average guy oblivious of the fact that “energy balance” is what ultimately determines weight loss, this is miraculous.
Little do they know, that losing weight on such ultra-low calorie diet can not only mess up their metabolism and hormones, but can also ruin their body-composition by losing muscle mass.
CONCLUSION
As Edzard Ernst describes it:
“There are two types of detox, one is respectable and other isn’t. The respectable one is medical treatment of people with life-threatening drug addictions. The other is word hijacked by snake oil entrepreneurs, quacks to sell a bogus treatment that allegedly detoxifies your body of toxins you’re supposed to have accumulated. It’s a scandal”
To live a healthy life, you really have to create long term habits of:
- Eating a nutrient dense diet
- Get proper sleep
- Exercise regularly
- Do not smoke or drink excessively(people who smoke tobacoo and then buy detox diet plans are the most hilarious creatures you can come across)
DONE.
That’s all about today’s blog, see you all in my next blog. Till then, stay healthy, keep exercising and be benevolent towards others.
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Fitness Aficionado 