By Jennie

My head is not easily turned by the latest diet fads – eat carbs, don’t eat carbs, eat fat, but not that kind of fat, stand on your head, don’t eat after 6:00 p.m. unless you live below sea level, etc. I have known for a long time that the “secret” to weight loss is this: expend more calories than you take in. How you do that is up to you, but it’s more about doing it in a healthy and sustainable way than about some miracle way of eating that will “unlock the secret to losing weight.”

Why then, do I find myself so drawn to the idea of detox diets? (Oh, not so drawn that I’ve actually ever tried one. Baby steps here, people.) There are endless variations on the detox diet out there, but the basic idea is simple: modern living, with its processed foods and environmental toxins, has left our bodies in a sorry state, burdened with chemical deposits that we have no way of ridding ourselves of and which may be harming our health. The detox diet generally emphasizes the consumption of only organic food (and often eschews solid food entirely and relies only on liquid nutrients), promotes foods high in vitamins and antioxidants, and emphasizes the consumption of large quantities of water and fiber in an attempt to rid the body of these toxins through the elimination of waste. The recommended length of the diet is usually somewhere between seven and 30 days. Advocates believe that we can “clean out our systems” by following one of these detox diets.

This ignores the fact that the body already has organs (the kidneys and liver) that function as filtering systems. But what about the people who report great results – increased energy, better skin, cessation of headaches – following a “cleanse?” Well, it may be that these people are regularly consuming things such as alcohol, caffeine and greasy foods in quantities that aren’t good for them. When they start a detox diet and eat and drink the stuff they should be eating and drinking all along, they feel better. There’s no mystery there. It’s not “toxins” leaving your body; it’s akin to ceasing to bang your head against a wall. Of course you’re going to feel better. Once you go back to your old bad habits, the negative side effects will return.

Are these detoxes harmful? Well, it probably depends on the specific plan one follows and how long they follow it for. Certainly, many of them seem to be missing some of the nutrients needed for optimal health. Some, with a few tweaks, could actually serve as a blueprint for how to eat healthy on a regular basis. Others are little better than starvation plans and can certainly do damage if followed for too long or too frequently. None of them, from a scientifically-proven standpoint, actually cleanse or detox your body in a significant way.

What’s the appeal? For me, some of the terminology is attractive – words like “flush” or “reset” suggest that I am actually going to be able to clean my insides, rendering them as pristine as a toddler’s. I just don’t like the idea of organs sitting inside my body, yet not really under my control. It’s a little upsetting for a worry-wart, slightly controlling, semi-clean-freak like me. It’s as if I knew there were dust bunnies under my bed but I had no capacity to access them, ever. So being told that I can, in fact, sweep up the dust bunnies, so to speak – well, it’s really an attractive notion. Even if I know better.

The other aspect that I think gets to some people – me included – is the idea of a quick fix. Sure, I may have made a mess of this body – drank too much, ate the wrong foods, lived in the city and breathed in the carcinogens lurking in the air. But there’s hope for me yet. I just need to detox and get all of the detritus of my bad choices out of my body, and then, when I’m as good as new, I will change my ways. If not, there’s always another detox!

Have you tried a detox diet? If so, how did it work for you?

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