Body Detoxification For Weight Loss

Nearly two-thirds of American adults are overweight or obese, according to a 2007 to 2008 survey conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. If you fall into this category or simply want to lose weight, you may have come across advertisements stating that body detoxification will make you lose weight fast by purging your body of toxic buildup.

Description

While body detoxification programs vary greatly, the basic premise remains removing toxins from the body. Body detox often consists of consuming only liquids for the first one to two days, then slowly including fruit, steamed vegetables and steamed rice in your diet gradually over the rest of the week, according to KidsHealth.org. Some detoxification diets even advise the use of colon cleansing through pills, enemas, herbs or other supplement. The typical detox diet lasts from seven to 10 days, but some last two to three weeks.

Detoxification Weight Loss

Body detoxification may allow you to lose weight quickly while following the diet. However, after resuming your typical eating style, you may gain back all of your lost weight, if not more than you lost, according to the American Heart Association. The extreme calorie restrictions associated with most detoxification diets cause the body to enter into a starvation mode, which drastically lowers the metabolism, explains Dr. Michael Hall, a family physician for the DuBois Regional Medical Center in DuBois, Pennsylvania. These diets may even cause your body to use lean muscle tissue for energy, which further lowers your metabolic rate. Hall goes on to state that a slower metabolic rate means your body burns fewer calories each day. As a result, your normal diet may cause you gain weight.

Safety Concerns

Body detoxification can have negative effects on your body. These diets can cause anything from nausea and headaches to electrolyte imbalances and nutrient deficiencies, advise Keri Glassman, a registered dietitian who spoke on the CBS "Early Show." She goes on to state that long-term use of body detoxification can cause serious health problems and even death as the result of dehydration and starvation.

Scientific Evidence

Scientific research neither supports nor denies the effectiveness of detoxification diets, except for removing specific toxins, such as arsenic or led from the body, according to Aurora Health Care. Proponents of detoxification justify their use on the concept that pollutants and food processing cause you to consume toxins daily. Your body, however, can naturally rid itself of toxins through waste products produced by the liver and kidneys, eliminating the need for detoxification programs, according to the Mayo Clinic.

Considerations

While detoxification diets may lead to rapid and unhealthy weight loss, they can also have advantages. A healthy detox diet that promotes consuming plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole grains and liquids, while limiting alcohol, caffeine, nicotine and simple sugars will allow you to gradually detox your body naturally, according to Hall. This type of diet helps eliminate extra calories and help with weight loss. Hall warns that a rapid detoxification diet requiring extreme calorie restrictions may help reduce cravings for sugars and other unhealthy foods, but should not be followed for more than one to two days.