What is a detox and what does it do?

[Indadhanu]

I get the general idea of 'detoxing' but I always thought that a 'detox diet' is pretty useless and making sure you get at least 2L of water everyday enables your body to get rid of toxins more effectively than a one-off detox?


Anyway, I can't remember if I read it somewhere or was told sometime, but yeah, what's the deal with detoxing? Does it actually do anything for your body?

[AllisD]

I also would love to hear from someone who has completed a detox and the in's and out's of the whole thing!

I am on Weightwatchers to lose weight so not looking for an answer to that problem but just wondering if it is beneficial and does it make you feel good?

[Amaunet]

They did a detox segment on "Whats good for you" and it found it was actually BAD for you

The factsheet from the TV show website is below

Does detox work?
Host: Lyndsey Rodrigues
Tuesday, November 17, 2009

When you're busy it's all too easy to put your health on hold. A few too many drinks and takeaways and before you know it you're feeling pretty average. So we reach for a detox kit; a fresh start in a box — or is it?

There are dozens of detox diets on the market, many claim to increase kidney and liver function to help flush any toxins out of the bloodstream. But do they actually work?

Detox shopping list
The experiment
We got together a group of six healthy people in their twenties. We put three of them on a commercially available seven-day liquid detox diet. The other three acted as the control group and continued to eat their normal diet. At the beginning and end of the experiment we weighed everyone in the group and gave them blood tests to check kidney and liver function, cholesterol, blood sugar and insulin levels.

Results

Weight loss One member of the detox group dropped out on day four as she was experiencing dizziness, headaches and nausea. In this time she lost almost 3kgs. The two other members of the detox group lasted the week — and lost 2.5kg and 4kg each. Our expert, Associate Professor Katherine Samaras of the Garvan Institute, believes the weight loss will be put straight back on. Plus the diet may have also altered the detoxers' metabolisms making it more difficult for them to lose weight in the future.

Blood tests The blood tests showed decreased liver function in all members of the detox group. Their livers were shocked by the strict diet and weren't functioning very well. The blood tests also showed an increase in triglycerides (the bad blood fats that predict our risk to heart disease) and a decrease in the protective cholesterol.

Conclusion
Within our group of six people the liquid detox diet did not help the body eliminate toxins. In fact, the diet did them more harm than good! The body is fantastically designed to eliminate by-products without needing any assistance at all. If you have overindulged, Professor Samaras recommends a light healthy diet for one or two days to let your body recover.

I also found this linked from the above page

Are detox programs good for you?
Wednesday, August 6, 2008

Detox programs come and go like new diets. Here are some pros and cons for the health conscious.

By Linda Cumines

Cleansing and purifying food restrictions are often touted as giving health benefits. We may eat too much and do too little exercise, but do we need to go to extremes of detox? There is no scientific evidence to support the benefits of intense detoxifying or fasting and most dieticians don't promote routine fasting or extreme forms of detoxing.

Detox is the informal word we use for detoxification, representing a range of ways to rid waste and toxic substances from the body. Medically it's the term that refers to getting rid of harmful or excess drugs, such as alcohol or illicit drugs, from the blood stream. Detoxifying from these substances should only be instigated with professional help of a doctor, plus a drug and alcohol rehabilitation program.

Fine line between hazard and health
Fasting for 24 hours is not dangerous for a healthy person who is drinking water. During this period you may feel great and the feeling of empty can be a positive experience if you prone to constipation or eating too much on a regular basis.

Prolonged fasts, on the other hand, of 48-72 hours or programs based only on water, lemon juice, vinegar or restricted vegetables are hazardous. Early signs of lack of nutrition are dizziness, mood swings, irritability, lethargy and headaches. Frequent episodes of fasting might lower your metabolic rate, so that the benefits of any weight loss are reduced each time you try and fast.

It's also important to not fast or detox without medical supervision. This is especially the case if you are on any medication or have raised blood pressure, heart disease, hypoglycaemia, diabetes, insulin resistance, vitamin or mineral deficiencies, kidney stones or disease, ulcers or if you are pregnant or elderly.

Five easy detox steps
Here are some recommendations on how you can help cleanse and purify your body in a safe way. Use these guidelines as a long-term platform on which to build healthy eating habits.

1. Eliminate non-essentials such as alcohol, caffeine, fried foods, takeaways, processed foods, soft drinks and lollies, as well as extra vitamins and minerals, unless you have a proven deficiency. You do not need to eliminate everything straight away. Reduce at a pace that doesn't stress you out!

2. Add the liquid to rinse. Think of hosing out the gastric tract in an easier way than colonic irrigation. The best for this is drinking tap water. No fancy waters or other drinks are needed. Make sure you drink at least two litres throughout the day.

3. Add fibre such as psyllium seed husks, bran or commercial products like Metamucil and Benefiber.

4. Reduce the volume. Don't overfill your body. Stop eating at the first sign of satisfaction or allow at least 15 minutes before taking that extra serving.

5. Continue to eat the essentials — they are vital for the body to work. Include vegetables, fruit, wholegrain cereal, legumes, lean protein like fish and meat, low-fat dairy and healthy oils like olive, rice bran or canola. Your biggest challenge is to avoid processed foods — try to eat and cook from fresh foods, make your own cereal blends, casseroles and soups rather than the pre-prepared options in the supermarket.

Detox to kick-start weight loss
After conquering the above steps, you will need to add cardiovascular and resistance exercise routines to your daily and weekly schedule. You may also need to think about how you balance volumes of foods balanced with exercise. While you should not expect a weight loss greater than 0.5 kg per week long-term, you will most likely loose more some weeks.

Detox for healthy bowel habits
The extra fibre, legumes, vegetables and water will have a positive impact on regular bowel habits, plus help you fight long periods of constipation, bloating and discomfort.

Detox to max up energy
Maintain a balance between physical and mental energy via regular exercise and adequate sleep. Learn and practise relaxation techniques and eat regular meals without too much snacks in-between.

Detox myths
Grapefruit juice, lemon juice or vinegars don't burn fat.

Now when you are on the pathway to a cleaner and healthier diet, remember that no food needs to be banned for life — allow yourself a nice cuppa or a glass of wine every now and then!

Hope this is helpful

K

[Lulu]

I think it is beneficial - but I would never follow a fad type detox, it's something you have to be careful about.

Ones that go for a week are just stupid (imho). Although the Liver Cleansing Diet was so freakin beneficial for me and exH I can't sing the praises enough. Reducing fats and dairy whilst eating tasty, tasty yummy FRESH foods changed the way I looked at my liver and how important it is.

[The[cookie]Doctor]

I interpret detoxing as getting rid of the bad things from my diet myself...

When we 'detox'ed last, it was cutting out soft drink, and chocolate etc and stacking up on healthy veges, fruits, etc. More of a lifestyle change. I found it very beneifcial - but it's hard to get through - if for eg you are a big coke drinker - you will get terrible headaches from lack of caffeine and sugar - but it feels good - and the crap you cut out tastes crap when you go back to it later. Not sure if that makes sense, but this is what i have done and it feels good to do.

[Indadhanu]

Ok cool, yeah I thinkt heres a big difference to a detox that cuts out food groups, and even solid food and a 'diet detox' which I would think is detoxifying your diet (like dragoncookie and Lulu said).

Thanks for those articles CF - thats what I thought about the 'detox in a box' ones.

[squidipa]

i have done a 3 week detox before,

my under standing was it cleans out impurities that get build up in the body. I took the blackmores one i think....and i took tablets for liver funtion and other ones. I ate healthy food on it and i lost weight. Since then i have done my own detoxes just by eating non processed foods and trying to eat raw and drinking lots of water.

[AllisD]

Wow - thanks for the info! I have been contemplating doing one but I think not anymore!

Might just keep eating healthy

[squidipa]

Wow - thanks for the info! I have been contemplating doing one but I think not anymore!

Might just keep eating healthy

i found it easier just eating non processed food and no yeast in bread it was great so no sauces on my vegies i felt great skin looked better and even tho i was infact eating more food i was loosing weight so all in all done me a world of good as i was over weight.,

[Visitor7]

It's probably almost over, but there is a segment on TodayTonight right now about detoxes.

[Lulu]

Learning to cook without fats and cutting dairy out completely for awhile is hard but worth it. You feeeel so good!

[The[cookie]Doctor]

We cook nearly entirely without oils and sprays and food tastes much better. Believe me a cheeseburger tastes full of oil after a decent detox. They're feral. And my DF used to eat double Quarters and then they made him so sick when he ate them. Bleurgh. Whoops off topic - just an example.

[smiles4u]

WOW Leasha i can't believe it as i was going to put on a similar thread very soon ,,,, so thanks for this one

... i met a couple many years ago whom both would do a detox-weekend once in a while ... they would start it Friday night and finish it Sunday night ... what they would do is seriously drink only warm water with lemon in it and if they wanted something solid to eat the only food they would allow themselves was barley sugar lollies (the old-fashion twist ones) ... i at the time couldn't understand the actual benefit out of doing that other then to feel slightly ill but they didn't seem to mind doing it !!

[ladybird11]

We have a massage place in a nearby shopping centre that claims to detox while you put your feet in a spa massager thingo .

The water changes colour after 30mins if toxins are released, I believe they scrub the feet with something before hand and depending upon the colour of water afterwards it'll show what toxins were eliminated....

I've been thinking that it can't be too harmful, I'm not changing my already healthy diet, and it's just putting my feet in water...right?

[Lulu]

hahahaha - ask them how the liver cleans itself through your feet for me!!!

[Nicole Tracy]

Hey Everyone,

This is a great thread - it seems that you have all worked out that fad detoxes are pretty crappy and often dangerous. The word 'detox' is certainly popular these days, and many companies are making big bucks from detox-in-a-box type products... even though they don't really work.

Now... I want to put my two cents in... if that's okay...

In my opinion, a well designed detox is based around removing the foods and substances that put extra stress on our bodies (especially our liver). Our bodies are truly amazing and have the ability to detoxify and heal if given half the chance. The detox programs that I put my clients on are focused on removing certain substances from the diet/lifestyle, which in turn frees up the bodies energy to detoxify itself. My view of a good detox is one that is filled with beautiful fresh wholefoods, lots of water (33ml per kg of body weight per day), herbs to support the function of the liver and repair the gut wall, good quality protein, and plenty of moral support! I don't like people to feel hungry or too deprived during a detox, and I tailor programs to suit each individual.

I usually remove all stimulants (tea, coffee, nicotine, chocolate, sugar), alcohol, dairy products, red meat, grains (bread, biscuits, pastries etc.) and most oils (cold-pressed olive & coconut oils are fine). Usually a detox like this will last for two to three weeks, and most people usually integrate many of the food choices and recipes from the 'detox' into their everyday diets. One of the many benefits of these programs is that afterwards, people view their food choices much more clearly, are more aware of what/when/why they eat certain foods and often make permanent healthy changes.

I personally like to do a detox program myself twice a year, and ALWAYS feel so much better during and afterward. I still put off the beginning of a detox for as long as I possibly can... because I am human and I love all the culinary delights that this planet has to offer... but two weeks is not long, and the benefits are huge... And, you can reward yourself with a lovely glass of red and some blue vein cheese once the detox is done

Sorry for the rant, I could go on for so much longer but I'll spare you... feel free to ask any specific questions you may have.

Detox or no detox, it's all about sensible eating of unprocessed foods and not eating too much.

xxx

[The[cookie]Doctor]

Thanks for posting that nicole