Week of April 4, 2011
Decoding Detox Diets: Are they safe?
I am sure many of you have heard about a detox diet in one way or another. It seems like almost every celebrity is doing one or has done one recently. And I can’t count the number of times a patient has asked me in the past about doing a detox diet. So let’s examine what a detox diet entails, if it’s safe, and should you try one?
The Detox Diet Claims. Detox diets have become synonymous with words like miraculous, great, and simply amazing. But what does it “claim to do?” The underlying concept is simple: the human body has become full of toxins. Those toxins might be from smog, pesticides, processed foods, preservatives, artificial sweeteners, sugar, alcohol, saturated fat, stress hormones, and other things we encounter in our daily living. Detoxing allows the body to simply purge and start clean again. Like other fad diets, some other detox declarations include losing weight, flattening your belly, beautiful skin, looking, feeling, and performing better.
The Master Cleanse. AKA the Lemonade Diet. This detox diet has been making the rounds ever since the 1970s. The Master Cleanse diet got a huge ego boost when Beyonce Knowles raved about it on The Oprah Winfrey Show, claiming that it helped her lose 20 pounds in two weeks. However, what didn’t get the huge ego boost is what she said after completing the diet. She did the diet to drop weight quickly for her role in Dreamgirls and reported feeling cranky during the diet and that she regained her weight when she stopped. She actually warned dieters from the regimen, but that statement wasn’t as publicized as the statement of how she lost the weight. The Master Cleanse requires dieters to drink 6-12 glasses of a beverage consisting of water, lemon or lime juice, maple syrup, and cayenne pepper and then chasing that awful-sounding drink with salt-water in the morning and a laxative tea in the evening. No solid foods while on t his diet and it’s recommended that you eat between 600-1200 calories per day.
The Detox Data. But are we just looking for that magic bullet? As a dietitian, I obviously don’t believe in diets. I believe in
eating food and making healthy lifestyle changes. Beyond my opinion though, what does science tell us? While a detox diet may help you to jump-start your weight loss, what happens long-term is more important. The body thinks it’s going into starvation-mode and may actually hold onto more calories (burn fewer calories) than necessary producing less than optimal results. Many people following a detox diet notice the weight loss stops before they expected; most likely due to the body thinking it is starving. Then once you return to a normal diet (eating plan), you pack on the pounds. Just like when you cut out carbs and then ate that first piece of bread and immediately gained 10 pounds.
The Dirty Detox. Some other complaints related to following a detox-type of diet include: frequent liquid bowel movements, 
vitamin deficiencies, muscle loss, weakened immune system, hair loss, a pale complexion, headaches, acne, irritability, and even brain damage. Those who follow extreme raw food detox diets are at risk of deficiencies related to iron, calcium, zinc, and vitamin B12. A couple of these by themselves are enough for me to not follow a detox diet, but add in the complex nature of a weight loss surgery (WLS) patient and its really not a healthy choice. Detox diets also typically induce dehydration; which is a concern for patients with high blood pressure, diabetes, or heart disease.
The use of laxatives in detox diets is a health concern of its own. I am waving my red flag – can you see it!!! Laxative abuse is commonly associated with eating disorders (when not used for medical purposes under a supervising physician). Laxatives are not useful for weight control, and in fact, are quite dangerous. Laxative abuse can lead to dehydration and heart or colon damage. Using colonic irrigation, another part of some detox diets will put yourself at risk for bowel perforation or infection, or both which can lead to death.
But why do people swear by it? It is important to think about other reasons people may claim “feeling better” following a detox diet. Fewer headaches can be linked to other lifestyle changes including a reduction in alcohol and caffeine intake. Clearer skin may be a result of improved hydration. Less bloating may be from eating less food or less sodium. The boost of energy some claim while following a detox diet is a common sensation reported by those fasting and is actually a reaction to starvation. This probably stems from our hunter-gatherer days to help us avoid threat and locate food.
WLS patients are already at risk for vitamin deficiencies and should try to eat as balanced as possible to further reduce their risk of deficiencies. WLS patients commonly experience hair loss and I can’t think of any patient I have met that would want to increase that risk. Muscle loss is also very concerning. Muscle helps maintain a higher metabolism (the amount of calories you burn a day). By losing muscle mass, you lower your metabolism, and you will burn less calories per day, making it even harder to lose weight or maintain that weight loss.
Detox Judgment. The verdict is in. Although a detox diet promises fast weight loss, among other things, I think the risks outweigh the benefits. Especially knowing you gain the weight back right away and I will have lost some of my muscle mass that
I have worked so hard for. Also, the human body is an amazing thing; it is designed to remove toxins and impurities on its own, without help from a “diet,” “purification,” or “cleanse.” The body uses the liver, kidneys, and gastrointestinal tract to eliminate toxins from the body within hours of consumption. There is no scientific evidence that following a detox diet will assist or speed-up the body’s natural detoxification system. If you follow a diet plan that recommends consuming less than 1200-1500 calories per day, you should see your physician to maintain optimal health and well-being.
Besides, what would one learn from a detox diet? Making lifestyle changes is what our journey to wellness involves and immediately following a detox diet you go back to your normal way of life and eating. So once again, I have to say, everything in moderation. There is no quick fix and we have not found the magic bullet. Eating healthy, staying active, and exercise are some of the best tools we can combine with weight loss surgery for success!
Author: Heather Mackie, MS, RD, LD
