Foreign chemicals enter your body each day through the foods you eat, the air you breathe and the household products you use. Some alternative medicine proponents believe that these chemicals act as toxins, causing a variety of medical symptoms. A juice cleanse supposedly removes these dangerous toxins from your blood, liver and other organs. Juice cleanse practices can be dangerous, so talk to your doctor before beginning a cleanse.
Purpose
A typical American diet often includes additives, preservatives, hormones, artificial sugars and other chemicals added to foods. Conventionally farmed produce may be exposed to pesticides, fertilizers and other toxic chemicals during the growing season. Alternative medicine practitioners believe that these chemicals enter your cells and cause ill health. The purpose of a juice cleanse is to clear your body of dangerous toxins, boost cellular health and improve your well-being. According to the website Healthy Juice Info, a juice cleanse detoxifies your liver, kidneys, lungs, colon and other organs while providing your body with beneficial nutrients.
Types of Juice Cleanses
There are dozens of juice cleanse plans that claim to detoxify your body of damaging chemicals. One popular juice cleanse is the Master Cleanse, developed by alternative medicine proponent Stanley Burroughs. The Master Cleanse is a 10-day cleanse that requires dieters to drink a special beverage made from purified water, pure maple syrup, cayenne pepper and fresh lemon juice. Other juice cleanses feature homemade juices made from beets, green leafy vegetables, spinach, pineapple, berries, carrots, celery and other produce. Several companies offer specialized juice cleanse plans with fresh juices delivered to your door.
Features
A juice cleanse typically lasts from seven to 10 days. Before beginning the cleanse, a dieter eliminates processed foods, alcohol, cigarettes, caffeine, animal products, sugars and wheat from her meals for several days. Cleanse practitioners recommend drinking four to eight cups of fresh juice per day in addition to water. Juices made from fresh fruits and vegetables contain valuable enzymes that purportedly detoxify your body. No solid foods should be eaten during a juice cleanse. Some cleanse plans require dieters to perform enemas or take herbal laxatives to clear the colon of waste.
Warning
Juice cleanses significantly restrict your daily caloric intake, which may cause fatigue, headaches, abdominal pain, nausea, severe cravings, vomiting or irritability. Mayo Clinic nutritionist Katherine Zeratsky warns that there is no scientific evidence to suggest that a detox diet plan eliminates dangerous toxins. Your kidneys and liver naturally neutralize toxic chemicals and remove them from your body, making a juice cleanse unnecessary. Before starting a juice cleanse plan, talk to your doctor to ensure it is safe for you.
References
- Net Places; Juice Fasting: Controversial Cleansing; Carole Jacobs et al
- Healthy Juice Central: Juice Detox
- The New York Times; The Juice Cleanse: A Strange and Green Journey; Judith Newman; Oct. 2010
- MayoClinic.com; Detox Diets -- Do They Work?; Katherine Zeratsky
- The New York Times; I Heard It Through the Diet Grapevine; Lola Ogunnaike; Dec. 2006
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