Alvin H. Danenberg, DDS         January 3, 2016

 

Your body knows how to detoxify. With the New Year, there are so many claims by so-called experts who want to sell you their special detox diet or cleanse kits. Detox diets and cleanses are not for me! A published review of the literature in 2014 showed that claims by these detox diets are very questionable and not well substantiated.

 

I have written about this before.  Your body has many well-designed systems to get rid of the junk.

 

Individual cells have genes that create natural biochemicals to rid your body of unnecessary and damaging elements by way of the Nrf2 pathway. Your liver is the primary organ that performs detoxification. Then there are the kidneys, gastrointestinal system, skin and lungs that all play a role in the elimination of unwanted and toxic substances.

 

Therefore, it is critical to provide the nutrients necessary to maintain a healthy functioning body. Healthy food choices give your body the nutrients to successfully manage most toxic loads. Healthier lifestyle choices can avoid and eliminate most other stressors. A primal or Paleo diet and lifestyle are the means to the end – the end being to make your body function as it was meant to function.

 

Special cleanses that are touted to detoxify your body are not the answers, in my opinion. There has not been any well-designed, published research in peer-reviewed journals proving these are effective. I believe the answers lie in what you eat, in what you don’t eat, and in how you take care of the rest of your body.

 

What these cleanses apparently do very thoroughly are to remove dollars from your wallet.