[0:00] How good exactly are
[0:01] detox diets or cleanses
[0:03] and are they actually worth doing?
[0:05] Well today we’re
[0:06] gonna learn a bit more about them,
[0:07] what the actual science says,
[0:09] and how I personally rate them
[0:11] on a scale between zero and ten
[0:13] PicFit points. Let’s get started.
[0:14] Now detoxes
[0:15] and cleanses
[0:16] have been all the rage
[0:18] for quite some time now despite
[0:20] receiving continuous pushback
[0:22] from the scientific community.
[0:24] To be upfront,
[0:24] there’s just not much in the realm
[0:26] of scientific evidence
[0:27] to support the supposed benefits
[0:29] of detox diets.
[0:30] And, in a way,
[0:31] it seems that people who are pro-detox
[0:34] and cleanses
[0:34] kind of rely on
[0:36] just feels and vibes
[0:37] rather than any measurable benefits.
[0:40] Now, the reason for the lack of evidence
[0:42] largely comes down to the fact
[0:43] that there’s
[0:44] no one detox diet out there and detox
[0:47] companies can’t seem to agree
[0:49] on what foods are best.
[0:50] Some allow eating only fruits
[0:52] and veggies.
[0:53] While some actually ban
[0:54] certain fruits and veggies.
[0:56] Others ban almost all protein sources.
[0:58] While others are actually protein-rich.
[1:00] And, of course, many companies
[1:02] also require you
[1:03] to purchase and consume
[1:04] their own little special juices,
[1:06] pills, and shakes.
[1:07] One company
[1:08] even requires you to consume their juice
[1:10] and nothing else.
[1:11] So unsurprisingly it’s
[1:13] hard to research something
[1:14] with so much inconsistency
[1:16] across the board.
[1:17] And inconsistencies
[1:19] also expand to what exactly
[1:21] these diets are supposedly detoxifying
[1:24] from our bodies.
[1:25] Some claim to detoxify
[1:26] heavy metals, others
[1:27] claim to detoxify processed
[1:29] food waste, and others claim to remove
[1:31] synthetic chemicals like BPA.
[1:33] Some even claim
[1:34] to cleanse certain diseases.
[1:36] But, again, there’s simply
[1:38] no evidence
[1:39] showing these diets
[1:40] can detoxify anything.
[1:42] And really,
[1:43] we gotta give our bodies
[1:44] a bit more credit.
[1:45] Organs, like our livers
[1:46] and kidneys,
[1:47] have evolved to be highly effective
[1:49] in managing, filtering,
[1:51] converting, and excreting
[1:53] many potentially dangerous substances.
[1:55] It’s not a perfect system, of course,
[1:57] but it’s still pretty darn great.
[1:58] But, if we really wanna be more proactive
[2:01] about detoxification,
[2:02] then perhaps we should do something
[2:04] that’s actually scientifically supported.
[2:06] One is to simply exercise more
[2:09] because sweating
[2:10] can also eliminate a good deal of toxins.
[2:13] And, if we wanna take things
[2:14] even further,
[2:15] then we should step into a sauna
[2:18] ‘cause some studies suggest
[2:19] the sweat produced
[2:20] in saunas excrete
[2:22] even more toxins
[2:23] than sweat from exercise.
[2:24] Just make sure you properly hydrate.
[2:26] Now, it might seem like everything
[2:28] discussed so far
[2:29] is painting detox diets
[2:31] in a pretty bad light,
[2:33] and that’s because it is.
[2:34] And even though there’s
[2:35] not a lot of research
[2:36] on specific detox diets,
[2:37] there are research reviews
[2:39] in 2015
[2:40] and 2022
[2:41] that analyzed these diets
[2:43] in a general sense.
[2:44] Both came to very similar conclusions,
[2:46] and that is that there’s, again,
[2:47] no compelling evidence
[2:49] to support the use of detox diets.
[2:51] But they also pointed out
[2:52] potential dangers to these diets
[2:54] since some of these diets,
[2:56] which are supposed to improve our health,
[2:58] ironically provide
[2:59] very little nutritional value.
[3:01] It might also be a potential risk
[3:02] to consume any propriety
[3:04] detox juices and supplements
[3:06] since they often go completely unchecked.
[3:09] In fact,
[3:09] there was a case in Spain
[3:11] where many people experienced
[3:13] severe illnesses,
[3:14] including one death, after consuming
[3:16] proprietary Epsom salts
[3:18] from a cleansing program
[3:19] because the salts were
[3:21] accidentally prepared
[3:22] with the wrong compound.
[3:24] Overall, both reviews concluded that,
[3:26] based on its current
[3:27] standing, detox diets
[3:29] should be discouraged.
[3:31] And now with all that said,
[3:32] how exactly would I personally rate
[3:35] detox diets or cleanses?
[3:37] Well, with the lack of data
[3:38] and basically everything else,
[3:40] I give detox diets
[3:41] a solid 1 PicFit point out of ten.
[3:44] Now, the only thing
[3:45] saving detox diets
[3:47] from being an absolute zero
[3:49] is the fact that I do think
[3:50] it’s a good idea
[3:51] to promote using nutrition
[3:53] to potentially eliminate dangerous toxins
[3:56] and improve our health.
[3:57] The thing is, based on some preliminary
[3:59] evidence certain
[4:00] nutritional components
[4:01] might indeed carry
[4:03] detoxifying properties.
[4:04] Citric and malic acids,
[4:05] for example,
[4:06] both common in fruits, are associated
[4:08] with reduced levels of aluminum.
[4:10] Chlorella from algae
[4:12] is associated with reduced levels
[4:14] of lead and mercury.
[4:15] And even coriander has been associated
[4:18] with reducing cadmium.
[4:19] So it’ll be great
[4:20] if we keep seeing more research
[4:22] developed in this area.
[4:24] That said,
[4:24] we don’t need
[4:25] detox diets to take advantage
[4:27] of these potential benefits.
[4:28] And if these diets do end up
[4:30] causing more harm than good,
[4:32] then we’re best to skip them entirely.
[4:35] Now if you made it this far,
[4:36] please please
[4:37] let me know what you think about this
[4:39] whole ratings video format.
[4:40] I really wanna give this format a shot
[4:42] since it kind of presents health
[4:43] and fitness content in a different light.
[4:45] Not all things are so cut and dry
[4:47] in fitness, ya
[4:47] know, ‘cause it depends,
[4:49] so rating things might be a good idea.
[4:51] In this case,
[4:52] it was a bit more cut and dry,
[4:54] but if you have certain topics
[4:55] you want to see discussed in this format,
[4:57] please let me know that as well.
[4:58] Other than that,
[5:00] if you enjoyed this video, then please
[5:01] give it a cleansing
[5:02] thumbs up and share it
[5:03] with your detox-loving friends.
[5:05] Subscribe for more
[5:06] and let me know what you think
[5:07] in the comments.
[5:07] As always,
[5:08] thank you for watching and don’t
[5:09] forget to get your protein!