"Detox Diets are a Complete Con", page 1/

"Detox Diets are a Complete Con"

news.bbc.co.uk

A woman was left disabled after following a "detox" diet which involved drinking large quantities of water.

Although doctors stress the need to avoid dehydration by drinking enough fluids, drinking more than enough is a different matter...

...the evidence supporting the whole "hydration industry" [is] flawed...

..."It's just a great marketing opportunity, nothing more."

(visit the link for the full news article)

Apparently they've even found a way to turn water into snake oil.

Who should we blame, the marketing people or the people who swallow their hype? I suggest it's difficult to blame the public - the idea that constant rehydration is essential for good health has been promoted so ubiquitously that it has seemingly gone beyond urban myth into the realms of unquestionable fact...

news.bbc.co.uk
(visit the link for the full news article)

reply to post by Karlhungis

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Thanks for the level-headed response.

This does make you think, though:

Ursula Arens, a dietician, said: "The body already has perfectly good ways of getting rid of toxins - mainly in the liver, and it's hard to see how consuming more water would affect these."

Others are more scathing about the fashion for both detoxing and taking frequent sips from an ever-present bottle of mineral water.

Kidney specialist Professor Graham MacGregor said there was no evidence that either had any benefit.

Source: original article above

There is indeed such a thing as too much water and in fact it can be poisonous. It is called water intoxication, hyperhydration, or water poisoning. If you are consuming more water then your body can remove then the electrolytes, primarily sodium, in your body become diluted.

Much more interesting and detailed information can be found here:
Water Intoxication

But just in case your worried, here's a snippet to calm your nerves.

Normal, healthy (both physically and nutritionally) individuals have little to worry about accidentally consuming too much water. Nearly all deaths related to water intoxication in normal individuals have resulted either from water drinking contests, in which individuals attempt to consume more than 3 gallons (10 litres) of water over the course of just a few minutes, or long bouts of intensive exercise during which electrolytes are not properly replenished, yet massive amounts of fluid are still consumed.

[edit on 23-7-2008 by deadboi]

reply to post by deadboi

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Nice addition to the discussion. I seem to remember Margaret Thatcher's son almost ended up killing himself in this way after his rescue from the desert during the Paris-Dakar motor rally several years ago (-couldn't find a reference online, though).

I don't suppose many people would end up in that state due to a 'detox' - although the woman in this article apparently ended up with brain damage.

There is, however - if the article is to be believed - the definite hint of a conspiracy to defraud with respect to these widely-respected 'health' programmes.

reply to post by pause4thought

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Hey, P4T! What I am about to say isn't aimed at you but at the article.

The way the article addressed the issue made it very misleading. Of course drinking too much water can lead to problems (and even death in extreme cases) but that doesn't mean all detox is bad or that all detox includes drinking insane amounts of water.

There are many ways to detox the body and it has so many health benefits- not just weight loss. It helps with energy, metabolism, skin, etc.

I am a detox fanatic and do just about everything under the sun regarding detox for health, skin, and 'anti-aging' maintenance. Detox foot pads worn while sleeping, herbal teas, an ionic machine that draws the toxins out through my feet, and herbal detox vitamins. Also sauna use, drinking plenty of water (but not too much), and focusing on cardio. Not to mention eating whole foods whenever possible. Of course I do not do all of the above every day because that would be way too much but you get the point. lol

The article made it sound like it was all about water and appeared to give off the logical fallacy of all water = detox therefore all detox = water. And too much water = danger therefore detox = danger. At least that is what I got from the article.

Detox for weight loss has some logic to it but that can be a lot of hype. Losing toxins and water is not fat loss so I can understand that angle of 'hoax' but many people including myself do it for health benefits and to maintain skin vibrancy, youth, energy levels, and overall optimal body function.

Please correct me if I misunderstood the article.

reply to post by burdman30ott6

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How much do you charge for your programme?

Only kidding. But you can see where there's plenty of room for charlatans. What you say sounds pretty impressive. Conversely there seem to be those in the medical profession questioning much of what is being promoted in this sphere.

reply to post by pause4thought

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Any naturopathic medicine or holistic health center worth their salt should be more than happy to discuss any questions or concerns that you have and most of them would probably even provide you with recipes to mix your own juices together, especially if you bought your probiotics and suppliments from them. I've never used the commercialized stuff like Colon Cleanz, or EZ Detox because if you look on the label you see that some of the ingredients are of the same nature as what you're trying to remove from your body (food colorings, chemical preservatives, etc.) Go with 100% natural juices like Knudson or better yet find an organic shop and buy produce to make your own juice. It isn't cheap, but then again it isn't something I'd suggest you do more than once every 6 months or so. Then once a month try to have at least one day where you just eat some fresh organic fruits and veggies, frink your water, and definitely up that fiber intake! Fiber is nature's scrub brush and you'd be shocked at how much your overall health improves simply by eating plenty of fiber and drinking enough water to flush it through your system every day.

reply to post by bakednutz

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Really? It has been my experience that water intoxication is not commonly known about and most people I've talked to about it seem to think it means you can "drunk" (like alcohol intoxication) from drinking water. It may be common knowledge to people who are into being physically fit and people who pay attention to what they put in their bodies but I think the majority of people out there do not have a good understanding of or just don't care about what they put in their bodies.

I do not agree with the OP that all detox diets are cons but detox diets have become a big fad recently and with all fads a lot of people rush in without doing any kind of research on their own. They just want to jump on the band wagon and go for a ride cause it's the cool thing to do. Unfortunately, like all fads this leads to:

1) Scams and cons to milk people out of their money.
2) People who have good intentions but lack real education in the field.
3) People who despite having proper instruction decide to over do it. eg: "It says take one tablet ever 4 hours but I'm going to 5 because it will work better".

In all cases people who go in without any real understanding of what they are doing can get injured or even die.

[edit on 23-7-2008 by deadboi]

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