Detox diets - helpful or harmful? | Guiding Instincts

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By Sam Mauzy (Guest Author);

Detox diets are getting more attention as a way for people to quickly lose weight and feel healthier. However, some people are concerned that detox diets and cleanses may be bad for you, or not work at all. What determines if a detox diet is good or bad for someone depends on what their goal is and what specific diet they are following. People with unrealistic goals or who do not follow diets that are well thought out are not likely to have good experiences. On the other hand, detoxing can be beneficial and lead to weight loss and improved health when done right.

When most people think of detox diets, they think of fasting, or only drinking juice or a herbal formula. While there are some cleanses that do follow similar plans, not all detox diets forbid eating. The idea behind a detox is to get rid of toxins and contaminants in the body that build up over time. Many people believe that the chemicals, preservatives and additives that are found in many of the foods that we eat can have harmful effects over time, and they believe that cleanses help the body eliminate them.?

There are a variety of detox goals, and the type of cleanse that a person is going for will determine what their detox diet involves. For example, for people who want to improve their digestive systems, detox diets will involve eating only foods that promote digestion and are easy for the body to process. Some of these detox diets may require that people only drink juice, while other digestive detoxes involve eating lots of fiber rich foods to help clean out the colon. Another common cleanse is a fruit and vegetable diet. These diets are said to help get rid of toxins in the body since there are essentially none in fresh produce.?

Therefore, we can see that not all detox diets require people to fast; however, many people find that cutting certain foods out of their diet can help them feel better and kick start a diet. For example, most people who eat processed foods or foods with added sugar find that cutting those out of their diets improves their health and energy. Studies have also shown that many people who follow a gluten free diet see improvement in their digestion and overall health. These types of detoxes can help people lose weight and improve their energy levels by changing their eating habits.

Even detox diets that involve only consuming fluids are not necessarily bad for people. Fasting has been around for centuries, and many people swear that fasting for a few days helps to clear their minds and improve their overall mental health. Still, even though there are a large number of people that promote fasting once or twice a year, there are very few people that recommend long term or frequent fasting.?

Overall, people who chose to follow detox diets with the goal of improving their health by cutting bad foods out of their diet find them to be very beneficial. Still, detox diets can be harmful if someone is simply trying to lose weight quickly and with no regard to their health. It is not good for people to completely cut food out of their diet for an extended period of time. Therefore, when looking at detox diets, it is important to consider both long term and short term effects.

Your question(s): Have you benefited from a detox diet? (post your comments below)

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Sam is a health and fitness writer who is commonly searching for healthier ways to live. He has tried many detox diets himself and is still looking for the right one for his fitness goals.

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