Detox Diets: Helpful or Harmful?

When a person decides they want to lose weight they put themselves on some sort of diet. Dieting can be one of the most stressful schedules and routines a person can put their body through. In the health and fitness world there are thousands of diets recommended to the general public. The post popular in today's diet gossip is the Detox diet.

The Detox diet is believed by many to remove toxins from your body caused by the food you consume on a daily basis. The belief is that some foods contain harmful substances and toxins that can cause your body to have symptoms such as; headaches, nausea, fatigue, and even disease. Detox diets involve giving up foods that are believed to be bad to the body such as; sugar, meat, certain grains, dairy and caffeine. Once rid of these toxins one is to replace them with raw fruits and vegetables, juices and water. In some diets the use of herbal laxatives, antioxidants and enemas to cleanse the colon, usually the time frame is about 10 days.

Research done by Mayo Clinic has shown there to be no evidence of Detox diets having any effect on your body's health and some cases Detox diets where even more harmful to the body than they were helpful.

Most of the toxins consumed are broken down by the kidneys and liver and exited properly through your urine and stool. Studies have shown people feeling lighter as they continue the process of this kind of diet. They believe they have become more focused and energetic in continuing with their everyday lives.

Researchers at the Mayo clinic believe that this is due to the fact they believe in their minds they are doing something good for their bodies and in turn makes them feel metal well off. They have stated that a person who has taken in fewer calories this way can have high feelings of psychological well- being.

Side effects of Detox diets can include headaches, low blood sugar, anemia, and irregular heart beat.

Researching on Web MD similar information can be found on there as well, as well as consumer experiences with the diets.

In my research and findings of the subject "Detox dieting" I have come to the conclusion that most doctors do not believe that this method of dieting is relevant to healthy weight loss and at times can do more harm than help, and as a result of their statements and research I have found that there isn't one Detox diet better than the other.