You don’t need to buy a special juice detox to cleanse your body.
It’s springtime in the Northern Hemisphere, when people start thinking about shedding that layer of winter fat acquired during the long coat season to look presentable during tank top and shorts season.
People are ripe for any quick-fix diet plan that comes along because they realise that any moment now (sometimes without warning!), the weather will warm up and force those flabby arms and bellies out of hiding.
What Is Detoxification?
Detoxification means the removal of toxic substances from a living organism.
Guess what?
Your body does it every day.
The liver and kidneys filter the blood, the lungs filter the air you breathe from pollutants, and the digestive system clears anything toxic you ingest.
I agree that most peoples’ diets are overwhelming their organs of detoxification on a regular basis.
Most people eat too many processed foods, consume too much sugar, and are exposed to too many toxic substances (cigarettes, household cleaners and other pollutants).
You should definitely try to eliminate as many of these as you can, but there’s not need to do anything drastic.
You don’t need to:
- drink only water
- drink only juices
- eliminate meat (although processed meats like cold cuts aren’t doing you any favours!)
- spend a fortune on “Detox kits”
The Meat Debate
There’s a lot of misinformation out there (mostly from the vegan/vegetarian community) that meat somehow clogs up our systems and rots/putrefies in our guts.
This isn’t true.
The mix of hydrochloric acid (HCL) and pepsin in the stomach is perfectly capable of digesting meat.
Humans are omnivores, capable of living on and digesting meat and vegetables.
The problem is that what most people think of as meat these days is a processed food product containing some animal parts.
There’s a difference between the processed pepperoni on your pizza or a processed cold cut meat and grass-fed beef or a whole chicken.
Reducing the processed stuff is generally good.
Eating minimally-processed whole meat is helpful.
Don’t get me wrong, I fully support anyone who goes vegan or vegetarian for ethical, religious, or environmental reasons.
Just don’t try to tell me that my body isn’t capable of digesting meat.
It is.
It’s actually perfectly designed to do so.
Juice Detoxes Mess You Up
I’m not a fan of detox juice fasts.
You’re basically drastically reducing your calories for a period of time and doing it all with sugary carbs.
That’s a recipe for blood sugar issues, dizziness, and rebound binge-eating.
Yes, it’s possible to lose weight with juice detoxes.
Any diet that drops your calories down to about 800 calories a day (typical of most packaged detoxes) is going to help you lose weight initially.
The trouble comes when you start eating real food again.
Here’s an alternative:
The Easiest Detox
If you’re looking to give your overwhelmed body a break from all the harmful substances it’s exposed to (for your health and/or to get leaner) then reduce your consumption of those substances.
Sure, there are some things you can’t eliminate, like air pollution, but the most obvious impact on your health and waistline is going to come from food.
Eat real, whole foods like vegetables, grass-fed meats, nuts, seeds, some fruit, fish, eggs, and even unsweetened dairy if you tolerate it.
I’m not saying you can only ever eat these foods (there’s room in a healthy nutrition plan for chocolate and cheesecake!), but if you insist on doing some kind of detox plan then this is a great way to do it.
Drink plenty of water and you’re all set.
Don’t buy into all the hype about detoxes.
Keep it simple and you’ll get better results and train yourself to eat better.
