When asking someone who in the midst of doing a juice cleanse; ‘What are toxin is the juice trying to get rid of?’- they become dumbfounded. Alike to many other cleanses diets, the objective is to drink only the juice of vegetables or fruit for a certain number of days. People believe that this is a way to get rid of toxins within their body, but many people don’t need to get rid of any, some don’t even know that toxins get naturally extracted. Toxins are biologically defined as anything that harms our body from the inside. Our natural detoxers- our kidney and liver, care for us just fine. They pull the toxin out of the bloodstream then dispose of them through feces or urine. When it comes to doing a juice detox, they may end up damaging the body more than improving it.
To begin, the majority of juice cleanses claim to rid the body of toxins, without specifying the toxin they are doing away with. In the article “Fancy Juice Doesn’t Cleanse the Body of Toxins” from the New York Times, they talked about the common misconception that juice cleanses can ‘detoxify’ organs. When in reality, its removing helpful lining from the body. Take for example the colon, it has a lining that receives many benefits from stool, in spite of the fact that many people try to do colon cleanses to dispose of the stool. Meanwhile, they are only getting rid of this valuable component. Dr. Grendell, chief of the division with reference to gastroenterology, hepatology, and nutrition at Winthrop-University Hospital in Mineola, N.Y., says that “It’s hard to understand because there is no good scientific evidence that a juice cleanse, or any other food for that matter, is particularly relevant to removing toxins,”. He then goes on to say that drinking juices might provide vitamin-rich and antioxidant advantages, but it is nonetheless related to destroying harmful toxins.
One particular research article from Harvard Health Publishing, titled “Juicing–Fad or Fab?”, underlines the evidence that juicing take out the majority of healthful components of the fruits and vegetables. The juicing machines used are made to extract the juice out of this fresh produce, leaving the pulp behind. What is leftover in the juice is healthy antioxidants, minerals, vitamins, and soluble fiber. Certain juices have potential health benefits such as carrot juice, which lowers the oxidative stress in cells in order to prevent breast cancer in women. Although what is left behind in the pulp has much more value. For instance, once an apple is peeled, it had much less antioxidant, vitamin and mineral content because of the fact that it is missing the skin. Another key element in the lost pulp is insoluble fiber. This fiber promotes bowel regularity, lower cholesterol, satiety (a sense of fullness), and regulate blood sugars. The research says an “Excessive intake of juice may cause weight gain and be dangerous for people with diabetes because juice is a
concentrated source of calories and sugar.” These juices that claim to detox the body are just taking money from consumers; the intestines do daily ‘detoxes’. Not only is this natural detox effective, but it is also safe. The article concludes by explaining that juices are a good way to incorporate more vegetables into an everyday diet. Although this may be true, it should not replace the item in full.
The next passage that provided much information is “Detoxes” and “Cleanses” by the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. The main highlight of this literature is the safety hazards in reference to the juice cleanse drinks. This government article advises that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, also referred to as the FDA, and the Federal Trade Commission has found companies that were marketing detox/cleansing items that had potentially harmful or even illegal ingredients, that had false claims as to treating severe diseases. In addition to that, it informs consumers that particular juices that haven’t been pasteurized or treated in certain ways can make people sick. This is due to the fact that the process of pasteurization kills harmful bacteria, such that targets and can severely sick children, elderly and people with weakened immune systems.
Another concern illustrated by the NIH is the mass consumption of juice by people with kidney disease is risky, considering it is very high in oxalate. Oxalate is a chemical naturally found in many foods, and it contributes to the worsening of kidney problems. Many detoxification procedures have side effects that have the ability to consist of headaches, fainting, weakness, dehydration, an abdominal pains.
The final analysis source is information from an article labeled “You Asked: Are Cleanses Healthy?” from TIME. This breaks down the idea of weight loss and the placebo effect via the beverage cleanse. Dr. Joy Dubost, a dietitian, food scientist and spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, makes a very good point “if you’re eating a healthy diet packed with fruits, vegetables, whole grains and lean protein—the kind of sustainable diet that will help keep your weight down and lower your risk for many diseases—your body has no use for any radical detoxification measures. And if your diet is poor, pounding juice for a week isn’t going to do you any good.” No matter the lifestyle, no person should have a reason to detox. In the event that someone does choose to follow through on the diet for the purpose of losing weight, what will happen is the person will only drop a few pounds due to the loss of water (water weight). Although, those pounds will quickly be obtained once started a normal diet again.
When undergoing a cleanse diet, it must be noted that the severe calorie restriction can result in extreme fatigue, muscle breakdown, cramping, and diarrhea. Plenty of people do say they feel amazing after doing cleanses, but based on Dr. Fabrizio Benedetti, a professor of neurophysiology at University of Turin Medical School in Italy, “Feelings, perceptions, and a sense of well-being are very much influenced by placebos,”. Placebo is a pill, normally made of sugar, that is given to test subjects that are told it would do a specific duty for their body. The truth is it doesn’t do anything, but trick the mind into thinking it will. Once the subject comes back, they will more than likely say that they felt the way the pill was said to make them feel. The placebo effect is apart of the everyday life of a human, and it is undeniable that it could have the same effect on people drinking juice cleanses.
All in all, juice cleanses are not ‘all that’. They can be very misleading about the information they give, and do not flush out the toxins in a positive manner. The process of doing a detox is accompanied by terrible symptoms, for the reason of calorie deprivation. A preferable alternative to juice dieting is eating a healthy balance of fruits and vegetables each day. On average, 1 in 3 adults actually eat the suggested amount of vegetables each day. Many people trust that the product they are consuming is doing its designated job, but sometimes its just a marketing tactic- that ends up working.
