Do You Need a Detox Diet?

January 21st, 2010

Detox plans and Cleansing Diets are all the rage.

From short 3 Day Cleanses and Coffee Enemas to The “Master Cleanse” and everything in between.

Celebrities swear by them. Beyonce once boasted about losing 20 lbs through cleansing. Oprah has also talked openly about her cleansing plan.

Shock jock Howard Stern’s sidekick Robin Quivers was a huge proponent of the “Master Cleanse” which is a combination of 2 tablespoons lemon juice, 2 tablespoons organic maple syrup, a pinch of cayenne pepper and one cup of water. Ads boast you canlose 20 lbs in 10 days just by drinking this “tasty” concoction throughout the day.

And then you read reports like the one where John Wayne died with 40 lbs of fecal matter built up in his colon! Gross, right?

If it were true, yes.

But it’s not.

It defies what the human body is possible of and is an internet hoax that is often pushed by different groups promoting their own “cleansing” products.

What’s the truth? Isn’t cleansing a great way to lose weight? And doesn’t the liver need to “detox” from all the junk we eat?

We hear this all the time.

The body is in fact fantastic at cleansing itself – eat more fiber and that helps “move things along” very nicely. Eat more high nutrient fruits and veggies and the body will respond by looking and feeling better.

Will a 7 day cleanse give you a weight loss jumpstart? No doubt –you’re starving yourself. But it’s far from sustainable.

There are much better ways to lose weight…

…what good is starving for 1 week if you’re then just going to binge later on when the cleanse is over?

But our goal is to try to find the positive in everything.

So maybe we can meet in the middle and look at it from the perspective of detoxing from all the junk that permeates the typical diet.

Try this “Mohr Cleanse” for 1 week – eliminate:

• Added sugar
• Soft drinks
• Fast Foods
• Candy, cookies, or any other dessert foods
• Trans fat
• White flour

Very simply — CLEANSE YOUR CUPBOARDS AND KITCHEN OF CRAPPY, OVERLY PROCESSED FOODS!

And replace all those with fruit and veggies – aim for 10 total per day – use tea and water with lemon as your only beverages, and eat nothing that comes out of a box, can, or is handed to you through a window.

Sound extreme? Maybe sipping on maple syrup and cayenne pepper is "sexier."

Eat real foods. Don’t subject yourself to a coffee enema. “Cleanse” yourself from the junk in your diet with only clean eating.

You’ll lose weight doing this, too!

Want more ideas on the best foods to eat to detox the body?

Remember that your thoughts can help you lose belly fat!