Hmm.. to detox, or not to detox, that is the question...

Tammi140

I have heard that a body cleanse/detoxification has many benefits. Looking for your input and personal experiences.

If you have done it, and would recommend it, what method or brand would you suggest???

Thanks Much!

melsinct

My stock answer to MFP questions on detoxes:

1. There is no (zero, zip, nada) credible scientific evidence that cleanses or detoxes do anything. No toxins magically get released from your body because you drank a juice, didn't chew any food for 3 days, took a pill, etc.

2. Your liver and kidneys detox your body, day in and day out. That is what they are designed to do.

Use common sense, eat real food, and your body will thank you.

Tammi140

My stock answer to MFP questions on detoxes:

1. There is no (zero, zip, nada) credible scientific evidence that cleanses or detoxes do anything. No toxins magically get released from your body because you drank a juice, didn't chew any food for 3 days, took a pill, etc.

2. Your liver and kidneys detox your body, day in and day out. That is what they are designed to do.

Use common sense, eat real food, and your body will thank you.

Thank you. So, people claim to lose a little weight, feel really good after detox, and boast healthier looking skin. Does anyone detox? If so, what benefits are you seeing?

melsinct

Oh, you can certainly lose weight. You'll just gain it right back when you eat real food again. People may have improved skin due to inadvertently cutting out ingredients/foods that weren't doing them any favors to begin with (food additives, sodium laden packaged foods, maybe an undiagnosed dairy intolerance, etc). There is also something to be said for the placebo effect.

There is a lot of money to be made off of people looking for quick fixes, "re-starts," or any sort of silver bullet to cure their ills.

rockymtnlove

the only "detox" I do is taking a weekly super hot bath with hydrogen peroxide and epsom salts

lmr9

Bump! Curious to see the responses...

evileen99

Any feelings of well-being are likely placebo effect. I mean really, who wants to admit they spent time and money on something thzt was useless? The're primed to get results even though there are none.

Tammi140

Oh, you can certainly lose weight. You'll just gain it right back when you eat real food again. People may have improved skin due to inadvertently cutting out ingredients/foods that weren't doing them any favors to begin with (food additives, sodium laden packaged foods, maybe an undiagnosed dairy intolerance, etc). There is also something to be said for the placebo effect.

There is a lot of money to be made off of people looking for quick fixes, "re-starts," or any sort of silver bullet to cure their ills.

So, is it a quick fix, "re-start," or a sort of silver bullet??? I can see that in your opinion it is, but I am asking all of MFP for their thoughts, and past experiences with detox.

Its ok, debates are fine, but I would like to get more opinions on the subject if possible. Or, maybe it is not as popular as I thought, maybe just new to me...

peggymoney

You can do a detox bath, I've not heard using peroxide. I've used apple cider vinegar and epsom salt and that helps draw out toxins and apple cider vinegar helps balance your PH levels.
I agree that your body is designed to detox naturally. You should not have to do a reset but some people swear by them. I have heard friends who've done the "lemonade" detox have fewer sugar cravings and more veggie and fruit cravings and of course "Fat, sick and nearly dead" is a great doc about juice fasting.

But for a normal person just abstaining from processed foods and adding more veggies and fruits will cause the same results of clearer skin, normal digestion and weight loss. Detoxes can do more harm because you aren't eating enough and usually will crash and eat all the things that hurt us (carbs/sugar)

LessMe2B

My stock answer to MFP questions on detoxes:

1. There is no (zero, zip, nada) credible scientific evidence that cleanses or detoxes do anything. No toxins magically get released from your body because you drank a juice, didn't chew any food for 3 days, took a pill, etc.

2. Your liver and kidneys detox your body, day in and day out. That is what they are designed to do.

Use common sense, eat real food, and your body will thank you.

^^^^^This^^^^^

Read up on medical sights...NOT sights that sell detox programs. You will hear over and over again that detox juices and pills and diets work only to make you drop a pound or two that comes right back. Your body has organs that detox for you; just feed your body healthy foods and let it do its job.

TrailRunner61

Do a search on the forums here.

What exactly are you trying to get rid of??
Your liver, kidneys, spleen, and lymphatic system do a fine job of 'detoxing' your blood. So does sweating...
Removing waste from your body makes you lose weight. Your intestines are nearly 30 feet long, so they can hold a lot of *kitten*.
Eating food again makes you gain the weight back because you refill your intestines.

You will waste your money, become weak and in the long run, do absolutely nothing for weight loss by doing a 'detox'.

iwantniceabs

I recommend reading the book "Clean" by Alejandro Junger. It's got some really interesting ideas in it - he basically suggests doing a lot of juicing (not solely drinking juices) for 3 weeks in order to give your bodies natural detoxing organs and systems a little break and a jump start. The liver and kidneys DO detox our bodies for us already, but nowadays we eat so much food that the body is busy breaking down all that food all the time when it could be using that energy to help heal and maintain our body. As with any book or article, take it with a grain of salt. No one is right about everything, but he makes some good points. Good luck

*I should say that I have followed a lot of his suggestions for several months and notice a HUGE difference in how I feel and how much energy I have, but I don't follow it to a T or anything.

melsinct

Oh, you can certainly lose weight. You'll just gain it right back when you eat real food again. People may have improved skin due to inadvertently cutting out ingredients/foods that weren't doing them any favors to begin with (food additives, sodium laden packaged foods, maybe an undiagnosed dairy intolerance, etc). There is also something to be said for the placebo effect.

There is a lot of money to be made off of people looking for quick fixes, "re-starts," or any sort of silver bullet to cure their ills.

So, is it a quick fix, "re-start," or a sort of silver bullet??? I can see that in your opinion it is, but I am asking all of MFP for their thoughts, and past experiences with detox.

Its ok, debates are fine, but I would like to get more opinions on the subject if possible. Or, maybe it is not as popular as I thought, maybe just new to me...

It is fine to get opinions, but I think you are misunderstanding mine. A detox is NOT a quick fix. You will regain back any weight you lose and the results will be either from eliminating something from your diet that wasn't good (see my previous post) or all in your head (aka the placebo effect). Again, there is zero credible scientific evidence stating that detoxes do anything, which is why I am surprised so many people fall for it. I am just trying to save you time and money, but by all means go ahead and do one if you are so inclined. It likely won't do any damage, other than lighten your wallet.

Edited to add, iwantniceabs had a great post above, and eating clean is probably the best thing you could do for your body. It isn't a "detox" but it lets your body do its thing naturally, as it was designed to do.

fitbum19

I am doing the BeachBody Ultimate Reset RIGHT NOW!!! look it up!

evileen99

I recommend reading the book "Clean" by Alejandro Junger. It's got some really interesting ideas in it - he basically suggests doing a lot of juicing (not solely drinking juices) for 3 weeks in order to give your bodies natural detoxing organs and systems a little break and a jump start. The liver and kidneys DO detox our bodies for us already, but nowadays we eat so much food that the body is busy breaking down all that food all the time when it could be using that energy to help heal and maintain our body. As with any book or article, take it with a grain of salt. No one is right about everything, but he makes some good points. Good luck

*I should say that I have followed a lot of his suggestions for several months and notice a HUGE difference in how I feel and how much energy I have, but I don't follow it to a T or anything.

Your liver and kidneys do not need a "break." Even if you're not eating, all your cellular functions are continuallly creating waste and by products that yorur organs process around the clock. The idea that they need to "rest" is preposterous. Does your heart need to rest from all that pumping?

Tammi140

Thank you all. Basically, from what I am hearing, detox is not something most of you would do. Thanks for your posts.

I guess I was not planning on spending money on anything, since there are plenty of natural detox solutions. The benefits that I have read about seemed logical to me, but again, I am just one person Thanks for your input!

t0yoda

personally I didn't believe in lemon cleanse aka master cleanse at first, but I felt so much healthier after doing it. I was about to go into detail about it but there are already threads on this forum on it after searching...
I swear it cured my acid reflux and bloatiness. It must've cleaned my intestines out of something nasty stuck in there for years. I lost 10 lbs in the first 3 days. However, I expected to gain the weight back after easing back into solid foods.
It costs money for the lemons and the expensive grade B maple syrup (around $30), water and cayenne....but you would spend all that money going out to eat anyway or on your other meals. It isn't for everyone, but it's worth a shot even for the 3 or 4 minimum days to detox.

Codefox

If you're looking for people's opinions on detoxes, then the only opinion on them is that they are awesome and will make you feel amazing, look amazing, lose weight and every other good thing you've heard.

If you're looking for facts on them...they're a total waste of time and money.

lmr9

I recommend reading the book "Clean" by Alejandro Junger. It's got some really interesting ideas in it - he basically suggests doing a lot of juicing (not solely drinking juices) for 3 weeks in order to give your bodies natural detoxing organs and systems a little break and a jump start. The liver and kidneys DO detox our bodies for us already, but nowadays we eat so much food that the body is busy breaking down all that food all the time when it could be using that energy to help heal and maintain our body. As with any book or article, take it with a grain of salt. No one is right about everything, but he makes some good points. Good luck

*I should say that I have followed a lot of his suggestions for several months and notice a HUGE difference in how I feel and how much energy I have, but I don't follow it to a T or anything.

Your liver and kidneys do not need a "break." Even if you're not eating, all your cellular functions are continuallly creating waste and by products that yorur organs process around the clock. The idea that they need to "rest" is preposterous. Does your heart need to rest from all that pumping?

I agree with the first poster that our organs and digestive system can use a break now and then. Less energy spent on digestion and ridding the body of chemicals and unnatural things - the more time the body has to focus on healing other parts of the body. Kimberly Snyder's book, The Beauty Detox Solution" is another good reference. She swears by a plant-based diet, and her famous Glowing Green Smoothie is great.

You are going to get tons of people on here who are anti-detox of any kind. It's like a wall goes up when they read the word detox. Some are gimicky, yes, but not all are bad. I say research it, read about it, educate yourself, and if you see nothing wrong with it - then try it. Personally I'm not going to consume only lemon water and cayenne pepper, but that's just me. Good luck to you! :flowerforyou:

AnvilHead

You can do a detox bath, I've not heard using peroxide. I've used apple cider vinegar and epsom salt and that helps draw out toxins and apple cider vinegar helps balance your PH levels...

What specific toxins does a "detox" draw out of one's body? I've seen this question asked many times, yet no detox advocate has ever provided a specific answer for it....just "u no...teh toxinzzz!"

Also, if these toxins are circulating through your bloodstream or in your digestive system, how specifically does a bath draw them to the surface and remove them from one's body? Is it by some osmotic process? I'd really like to know.

To the OP: Here's a thread further discussing cleanses and detoxes in more specific/scientific terms - and also contains a link (near the end of the post) to one poster's experience with the Master Cleanse:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/821828-detoxes-and-cleanses

SideSteel

Please read Anvilheads link. Then, please disregard the ridiculous notion that you need to detox. And I don't say this to judge you, I'm trying to save your toilet paper budget and adherence to your diet.