Do Detox Diets Work? Don’t be Fooled by the Detox Marketing Scams

The term “detox” used to only be associated with weaning a heavy alcohol or drug user off their vice of choice.

During the detox process, the body is forced to excrete toxins, like alcohol or drugs, to start fresh and renewed. drug or alcohol free.

This gives addicts clean, toxin-free bodies and puts them on a more positive road to recovery and better health.

A clean toxin-free body sounds appealing to anyone wanting to re-examine their nutrition and think consciously about what they’re eating.

I get it… you want to eat healthier, so you feel the need to get rid of all the unhealthy food in your system and start over. We all want that fresh and renewed feeling that gets promised to us from every angle when anyone pitches us on a “detox.”

The health and weight loss industry has completely exploded the concept of detoxing to include anything from juicing and colon cleanses to yoga and detoxing kits.

But instead of detoxing in a medically regulated facility (like an addict would), all of these new detox methods are available over the counter. You may find doctors selling their own detox versions in their offices, but you don’t have to see a doctor for a prescription before trying any of the products currently available on the market.

Do detox diets, cleanses, juices, or even kits really work? Are they safe? Or are they just another clever marketing tactic guaranteed to leave us with false hopes and let-downs?

First, let’s define what detoxification is.

What is Detox?

A quick Google search provides me with 43 million results and a definition of detox that states, “A process or period of time in which one abstains from or rids the body of toxic or unhealthy substances.”

Two things stand out to me: there’s no mention of weight loss and there’s no clear definition of what toxins actually are.

One definition tells us that a toxin is “an antigenic poison or venom of plant or animal origin, especially one produced by or derived from microorganisms and causing disease when present at low concentration in the body.”

So when we detox, what toxins in our bodies are we really ridding ourselves of?

What are toxins?

Toxins in general are completely different than toxins in our bodies. The first category has to do with poisonous substances found in plants, animals, or even in high doses of some medicines, alcohol, and drugs.

However, the second category of toxins, according to Gaiam, can range from:

Judging by that long list, I can understand why many people feel the need to detox. Without a detox, our bodies are basically working in a toxic paradise.

But wait a minute…

Aren’t our bodies designed to cleanse and expel waste on their own?

Ridding Your Body of Toxins

Technically, your body is always eliminating toxins. Your kidneys, liver, and lungs are constantly working hard to remove waste and toxins without you even noticing. If we didn’t have these natural filters, we’d never survive.

Many people think that sweating is a natural way to excrete waste, but that’s not exactly correct. The American College of Sports Medicine explains that sweat is the body’s natural reaction to a rise in temperature.

The ACSM elaborates that sweat is made up of “water, sodium, and other substances that help cool the body down.”

What are those other substances? Many people believe those substances are toxins. Now, I can’t imagine that our bodies would release toxins to help cool us off. It just wouldn’t make sense that something negative like a toxin could be used as a positive.

But yet, hot yoga studios are more popular than ever. Some of these places advertise eliminating bodily toxins by raising temperatures to a scorching 104 degrees to force excessive sweating. These studios promote that stretching in such high heat leads to weight loss and detoxification.

Once you know why we sweat, you’ll have to question this theory. Sweat was designed to cool our bodies down, not expel toxins.

In search of an answer, I came across this article from the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences.

“Sweat is 99% water combined with a small amount of salt, proteins, carbohydrates and urea. Therefore, sweat is not made up of toxins from your body, and the belief that sweat can cleanse the body is a myth,” according to UAMS family medicine physician Dr. Charles Smith.

Smith continues on to say, “By forcing your body to perspire through heat exposure or heavy exercise, you can cause your kidneys to save water and actually hang on to any toxins that may be circulating in your system.”

That sounds like the complete opposite of what a detox is supposed to do.

What about removing toxins by juicing or going on some other kind of cleanse?

Detoxing with kits, Diets, Juicing, and Cleanses

Just like most of us on the health conscious path, I watched the documentary Fat, Sick & Nearly Dead, too. Believe me, I was hooked. I was so impressed with how juicing changed the lives of Joe Cross and his truck-driving buddy.

I started using my juicer way more often.

Juices make more sense as a means of replenishing the body with nutrients, not as a way of expelling toxins from the body. But companies like BluePrint, a system of juices aimed at detoxing the body, are on the rise and promote “cleansing” properties.

But what does science suggest? Are these results real?

Harvard Health Publications explored another popular detox diet, the Master Cleanse. To follow this, you start your day with a cup of warm salt water in the morning, drink a mixture made of water, maple syrup, cayenne pepper, and lemon juice during the day, and have a cup of laxative tea at night.

Doesn’t that sound appetizing?

Despite the clear lack of nutrients, the Master Cleanse is supposed to be repeated over a 10 day period.

I don’t know about you, but following this cleanse sounds like 10 days of poor health and sheer torture to me.

And the results may be the complete opposite of what you’re looking for.

According to the Harvard Medical School: “There are no data on this particular diet in the medical literature. But many studies have shown that fasts and extremely low-calorie diets invariably lower the body’s basal metabolic rate as it struggles to conserve energy. Once the dieter resumes normal eating, rapid weight gain follows.”

So instead of expelling toxins, you’re essentially depleting your body of the energy it needs to survive and may cause your body to eventually gain weight back, potentially resulting in you weighing more than when you first started.

What about those fancy colon cleanses?

For starters, it’s absolutely ludicrous that anyone would attempt a colon cleanse at home given the risk factors of severe dehydration, loss of essential electrolytes, and impaired bowel function.

This type of procedure should only be done by a doctor and under professional medical care.

But, as I mentioned, many of these cleanses are over the counter options and available without a prescription.

So the question is, do they work?

Most of the intestinal cleanses on the market contain a combination of herbs, enzymes, and laxative teas, as noted by Harvard Medical School. The article stressed that “there’s no medical evidence for the cleansing procedures as a whole.”

And that’s not the only research to support this claim.

As the US National Library of Medicine states, “There is preliminary evidence to suggest that certain foods such as coriander, nori and olestra have detoxification properties, although the majority of these studies have been performed in animals….no randomized controlled trials have been conducted to assess the effectiveness of commercial detox diets in humans.”

This study was published on December 18, 2014. We still don’t have enough information to prove the efficacy of detoxing. We need more human studies to support these claims.

A third source, LiveScience, interviewed Stella L. Volpe, a professor and chair of the department of nutrition sciences at Drexel University in Philadelphia, and found pretty similar results.

They State: “There is no scientific evidence that any of these so-called cleanses really benefit a person’s health.” According to Volpe, “Our livers and kidneys, if healthy, do a great job of cleansing our bodies on a daily basis.”

Volpe recommends that, “increasing fruit and vegetable intake, whole grain intake and drinking more water over sweetened beverages would go a lot farther to improve someone’s health over the long-term than a ‘cleanse.’ ”

With that said, the only detox I believe in is giving your body the tools it needs to function properly so it can expel wastes and “toxins” on its own.

Detox tools for everyday use

Here’s my recommendation: Focus on eating a healthy diet as a means of detoxing everyday.

First, start your day with a nice cup of warm water with a fresh squeeze of lemon. The lemon helps to wake you up and jump starts your digestive tract, helping it move waste along.

Next, eat a breakfast that’s packed with protein and fiber. This combination not only keeps you full, but also helps your body remove additional waste that may have been left behind.

As for lunch and dinner, aim to eat as many green, leafy vegetables as you can. These are packed with folic acid, B vitamins, and antioxidants that aid the natural detox process. Also include 2-3 servings of fresh fruit, and consume whole grains throughout the day so you have enough energy to accomplish your goals without feeling sluggish.

Milk thistle for liver, kidneys, and gallbladder support

Sometimes I let my healthy eating habits slip up a bit. When this happens, I like to supplement my diet with milk thistle.

Milk thistle is an herb that helps support the liver, kidneys, and gallbladder. It’s not going to detox your system, but it will fill in the gaps missing from your diet so your organs can function at their best.

The liver, in particular, is responsible for filtering out substances in the body and metabolizing fats, so it’s important to keep it healthy if weight loss or living healthy are your goals.

According to the Harvard Medical School, “Several studies suggest that milk thistle, which is often included as a supportive supplement, may improve liver function with few side effects.”

I take my milk thistle along with my vitamins in the morning and I’m good to go.

So before you start spending money on detox kits that don’t work, please understand that the majority of them are just marketing scams. You’re much better off eating a whole foods, unprocessed diet, drinking plenty of water, and avoiding things like sugar, alcohol, and caffeine. Additionally, you may want to add milk thistle to your vitamin routine – you can’t go wrong with a healthier liver.

Have you tried a detox or juice cleanse? What was your experience like?