Thinking About a Juice Cleanse?

Summer is here and the juice cleanses are popping up left and right. They like to make claims that their specific “detox” will have you dropping those quaratine pounds within days to weeks… However what they fail to tell you is the aftermath when you’re done with the detox and the long term results you WON’T have.

What a juice “cleanse” or “detox” claims to do:

• Lose weight quickly

• Remove toxins from the body

• Keep you “full”

When in reality:

• Your rapid weight loss is a result of water loss, not actual weight from fat

• Your liver and kidneys are the organs responsible for removing toxins, not a juice

• The last thing you’ll be is full

Juices lack the normal nutrients that most foods have such as fiber and fat. With a sudden lack of fiber in your diet you’ll most likely be feeling constipated. If you’re having the opposite problem that is probably due to sorbitol which is a sugar alcohol often found in these detox juices.

By only allowing your body to consume juices alone you are missing out on key nutrients your body needs to continue to build muscle and function properly. Most juice cleanses will only give you about 800 calories while a normal healthy diet will provide around 2000 calories (for an active healthy woman). If you’re someone who enjoys doing juice cleanses on a regular basis you may even be harming your metabolism by throwing your body into starvation mode with the sudden calorie deficit on a regular basis.

Do yourself a favor, if you enjoy a fresh pressed juice, have one. Add a pressed juice in here and there to your normal eating habits, just don’t depend solely on them for days at a time.