BLISSFUL BALANCE

DO CLEANSES REALLY CLEANSE?

BY CINDY DECAROLIS

Google “detoxification” and you will get more than 200,000,000 results for detox cleanses, diets, teas, supplements, and books. A lot of people are making a lot of money selling cleanses.

Traditionally, the word “detox” referred to a medical procedure to eliminate dangerous, often life-threatening quantities of alcohol, drugs, or poisons from the body. Recently, the term has been used to market products meant to purge toxins from the body to the health conscious.

According to the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, there is no convincing evidence that detox diets or cleansing programs actually remove toxins from your body or improve health. Both the Food and Drug Administration and the Federal Trade Commission have taken action against some companies selling detox products because they contained illegal or harmful ingredients and / or made false claims that the products could treat disease.

Many people will do a cleanse to lose weight. The reason cleanses result in weight loss is due to the extremely low calories. However, it is mostly loss of water and sodium and not fat. Therefore, the weight is usually gained right back when you eat again. Doing a cleanse doesn’t teach you good habits, so most people revert back to unhealthy habits. Cleanses can lead to a yo-yo dieting cycle that stresses the body. Everything I have said above aside, I recently did a three-day juice cleanse at the cost of $200 for 18 juices. I did the juice cleanse primarily to have a personal experience from which to write this column.

During the juice cleanse you drink six

cold-pressed juices a day for three days, with a light dinner like a vegetable soup or greens for dinner. It was easy not to eat during the fast because it is a lot of juice and it is filling.

During the first day I had a headache that was about a nine on a scale of 10. The second day I had a mild headache all day, more like a four. At the end of day two I didn’t eat anything for dinner because I was so full from the juice and actually, starting to feel a little sick from all of the sugar from the apple and pineapple in the juices.

The third day I felt better, clear-headed and no headache. I also felt a little less bloated. However, the juices tasted even sweeter and I had to force myself to finish them. Late that afternoon I started to have diarrhea – completely liquid and a kind of orange / yellow color from the carrots and pineapple. This continued for about six or seven hours – good thing I didn’t have to leave the house. (Sorry, gross, but you need to know!)

I am not trying to dissuade you from doing a cleanse, if you feel that is right for you. And fresh, raw, vegetable juices can be incorporated into a healthy diet. I have a juicer at home and do use it occasionally. Usually when I have vegetables that are a little past their prime, but not yet too far gone to consume. My favorite combination is celery, cucumber, lemon, cilantro, and ginger. I don’t add apple or other sweet fruit. Also, I really like fresh squeezed grapefruit juice during the winter.

Dr. Andrew Weil says “The best way to detoxify is to stop putting toxic things into the body and depend upon its own mechanisms.” I couldn’t agree

“Traditionally, the word “detox” referred to a medical procedure to eliminate dangerous, often life-threatening quantities of alcohol, drugs, or poisons from the body.”

It is also important to note that detoxifying, or minimizing your toxic load, is not just about what you eat and drink. Everything that you put onto your skin is absorbed into the blood stream and everything that you breathe in is absorbed into the body as well. Most of the products that we use for personal care and in our homes are filled with toxins. Following are some of the brands that I use because they are cleaner:

• Toothpaste and soap – doTerra OnGuard and Dr. Bronner’s • Skin care products and cosmetics – Eminence Organics, doTerra, BeautyCounter • Home cleaning products – doTerra OnGuard and doTerra Abode cleaning lines • Laundry – doTerra OnGuard detergent and wool dryer balls (dryer sheets are one of the most toxic products in your home and one of the worst for the environment.) • Candles – I diffuse doTerra essential oils instead of burning scented candles. • Perfume – I use doTerra essential oils for fragrance. At Blissful Balance LLC our mission is to help you live life healthier. You can follow us on Facebook @ blissfullbalanceroc and Instagram @ blissfull_balance. Listen to Blissfull Balance’s podcast on Spotify. Contact me at cindydecarolis62@gmail.com for health coaching. If you would like to order any of the doTerra products I mentioned please visit my website: https://www.doterra.com/US/en/site/ blissfullbalance or contact me for a complimentary consultation.