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114 Comments
- dantw, on 01/01/2009, -1/+46that's why I go in for the full Keith Richards blood transfusion at least once every two years. there's nothing like the blood of a 13 year old virgin coursing through your veins to keep you perky.
- doiveo, on 01/01/2009, -4/+37"I’ve put everything I think about detoxes in my book..."
Sound science there.
I detox once a year by cutting out alcohol for a month. Not to clear any chemicals but to reinforce I have the discipline to do so. However, for that month, I do sleep better and feel healthier. When I return to drinking, I enjoy it far more through smaller portions of higher quality drinks. (Summer BBQs bring out the crap) - purpledoc, on 01/01/2009, -5/+36There is no industry more full of scams and lies than the personal health/nutrition industry. Everyday I hear at least two radio ads for bizarre products on my drive to work. I particularly like Colon Cleanse which can remove pounds upon pounds of nonexistent fat in your intestines.
- hbyrne, on 01/01/2009, -8/+37This is totally in keeping with other studies that proved the body does not store toxins, nor have "memory" surrounding them. Good piece.
- dafragsta, on 01/01/2009, -4/+28Celebrities like Carol Vorderman and Gillian McKeith? Who the ***** are they?
- inactive, on 01/01/2009, -0/+20Are a nonsense?
- artificialhero, on 01/01/2009, -3/+20Bad Science by Ben Goldacre is an excellent book which describes how pseudo-science is used by unscrupulous dietary supplement companies, TV "nutritionists" and alternative therapists to sell their products via sensationalist media coverage. I'm not sure if it's readily available in the states, and a lot of the discussion focuses on UK issues, but if you can get hold of it it's worth a read.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Bad-Science-Ben-Goldacre/d ...
Edit: looks like Americans can get it here: http://www.amazon.com/Bad-Science-Ben-Goldacre/dp/ ... - ellecon, on 01/01/2009, -2/+18P-L-A-C-E-B-O
- inactive, on 01/01/2009, -7/+23Gillian McKeith is a ***** charlatan, she has a degree in business, not nutrition, the thin lipped W.A.S.P.
- purpledoc, on 01/01/2009, -2/+17Please let me know what this waste is. Because in all my time in the operating room, I've never seen anything in any part of the human intestines that made me think "this surely can be removed by taking supplements".
'Waste' is a great word for scammers because it seems to scare the bejeezus out of some paranoid consumers and 'waste' implies it needs to be removed. The fact is the cells that line the inside of your colon wall already remove itself every 24-48 hrs as a new layer is established.
Fiber adds bulk to your stool and eases transit through the intestines. Anyone that says their special fiber product removes 'waste' or toxins is lying through their teeth, period. - thesandbender, on 01/01/2009, -1/+15"Celebrity" diets work b/c they have people to cut up their carrots, celery and mix their drinks for them. Hugh Jackman is at least honest about it... he was describing the diet he used for "Australia" and flat out said (paraphrased) "There's no way an average person that had to work a 9-5 job could do it... just eat less crap and work out when you can"
- RobotBuddha, on 01/01/2009, -0/+13Summery of half the dextox diets out there. "Take these pills of gummy crap and nothing else except water!"
"Oh my god, I'm ***** runny crap that seems like it's coated with a gummy substance! Toxins!" - inactive, on 01/01/2009, -1/+12This stuff makes me LOL. I know one person with whom I work with who does these detox magic potions. He seriously believes "eating" nothing but lemon juice with pepper in it for an entire 2 weeks will somehow rid him of evil toxins and cancels out eating a years worth of crap like 711 sandwiches and TV dinners.
- LilJimmyNordin, on 01/01/2009, -1/+12I can't believe you don't know Carol Vorderman! She's the giant mega-lebrity on the cover of none other than Carol Vorderman's Sudoku for the PSP! Jeez, don't you ever get out? PFFT
If it says Carol Vorderman, you KNOW it's good! - IHateRegisterin, on 01/01/2009, -3/+14The detox probably makes you lose weight because your taking in less calories and expelling more waste [solid and liquid]. The placebo effect is really amazing, that is why the FDA requires drug companies to do double blind testing.
Double blind test prove that MSG has no effect on the majority of the population that claim it does [a very, very small percentage actually do have an allergy to MSG], yet the myth has been so prevalent for so many years that foods actually brag about the fact they contain no MSG [I'm also sure people will digg me down for saying this because they think they really have problems with MSG]. - Ibox, on 01/01/2009, -0/+10So the Kinoky foot pads don't work? hehehehe, gullible bastards...
- Jacare, on 01/01/2009, -2/+9the weight you believe you "lost" is the absence of food in your digestive track.
- Ymeg, on 01/01/2009, -5/+12http://www.quackwatch.org/
- bushout, on 01/01/2009, -2/+9You know other countries have their own famous people?
- TheGrammarNazi, on 01/01/2009, -1/+7I just use my Ear Candle to suck 'em all out.
- EarlOfLade, on 01/01/2009, -2/+8As an awooist, I, in general, do not believe in any magic or claims about woo anywhere. This diet is just more woo...
Gods, ghosts, space aliens, fairies, santa claus'es, reincarnation, chi.... All woo.. - RobotBuddha, on 01/01/2009, -1/+7@worldinmyeyes
"The medical profession generally believes nothing works without their (or pharmaceuticals) "
If an effect is perceived, there's two paths to go down. Both involve making an educated guesses. Evidence based medicine (the medical profession) then takes that educated guess, and figures out ways to disprove that explanation. Then they go through that process, find out if they were right or wrong, and can use that to further refine their theory and make even better treatments. The other way to go about it is to just take that assumption as fact without actually testing it as opposed to just coasting on anecdote. In particular they also don't rule out placebo effects, which are one of the main factors in anything which relies on word of mouth to spread.
"I don't care what these naysayers say."
Western medicine, however, does. Which is why it's able to learn from mistakes and develop better treatments. There's either good evidence for something, or there isn't. It's not a matter of opinion or stance. - Kidddrunkadelic, on 01/01/2009, -2/+8A fool and his money is easily separated.
- StriderNemesis, on 01/01/2009, -0/+6"The group recommends that New Year's diet resolutions include drinking enough fluids, around six to eight glasses a day is sufficient..."
Hasn't it been agreed that the need to drink six to eight glasses of fluid a day is a myth if you're healthy (e.g. when you don't have a viral infection), and that it's enough when you drink something only when your body asks you to (i.e. when you're actually thirsty)? - LukeBeaumont, on 01/02/2009, -0/+5Me too. You do end up feeling pretty good at the end of it all.
- itmoves, on 01/01/2009, -0/+5One detox diet is nonsenses, two detox diets are a nonsense.
- gidgie, on 01/01/2009, -10/+15I detox occasionally. My body always ends up feeling better, and I lose a couple pounds.
- Imachick, on 01/02/2009, -0/+5It should be pretty easy to clear this up with a clinical trial. I guess loads must have been carried out.
Trial design would be pretty simple:
What are the "toxins" that are going to be removed?
Measure their levels in the body.
Do the "Detox"
Measure their levels in the body again.
Can someone point me to a proper study on PubMed on this please? I mean, saying "I sometimes eat apples, then I feel better" isn't exactly a rigorous trial, is it? - FountainDew, on 01/02/2009, -0/+5I'm not sure why you're dugg down, because toxins do accumulate in body tissues; like mercury and PCB's for example. I know nothing about this DeTox diet, but I assume it has to do with alcohol, which does not accumulate. Ethanol itself will be oxidized to acetylaldehyde which is not stored but should release energy in the form of calories. But even so, if you drink a lot and eat very little, the net effect is calorie loss, so you don't gain weight. Perhaps this was why you were dugg down.
- Spoomeister, on 01/02/2009, -0/+4Aww, that's so precious.
Next you'll be telling me they have their own governments and cultures too. - m0llusk, on 01/02/2009, -1/+5There are many professional opinions regarding diet and health, so this claim of there being one school of thought is unsupportable nonsense. Remarks about Chinese medicine are particularly far off since one of the most respected studies of diet and health is the so-called "China study" which among other results strongly indicated positive health effects from reducing or eliminating meat from the diet.
There are many reasons why people might feel better after making a change. One of the most likely is the "Kosher effect". Kosher preparation of food is not strongly supported by science, but study of Kosher food preparation shows that merely having a strong set of rules about how food is to be handled and prepared results in fundamentally more sound practices and more hygenic results. It is quite possible that by simply paying attention to what they eat, if only for a while, people were able to make positive changes. Another explanation from The Jungle Diet, a thoroughly researched book, is that the detox diets, depending on how they are administered, may simply include healthier food choices than normal diets and so have a positive effect on health. - Spoomeister, on 01/02/2009, -0/+4Detox diets are actually generally healthy. Not because of anything in the diets themselves, not because of any magic or secret formulas. And certainly not because the body stores toxins, any more than it can have bad humors, or evil spirits.
Detox diets do work for some people because they're temporarily halting intake of unhealthy foods (processed food, foods they don't know they have allergies to, high intake of sodium or bad cholesterol, etc.). And they're also being steered towards healthier foods, and more sensible portions of them, when they finish the detox run.
So, detox diets *are* healthy, for some people. Same way that stopping use of hammers for a week, is healthy for a person who hits their thumb with a hammer a few times a day. - Skishy101, on 01/01/2009, -0/+4They've proven the pads do not work on 20/20. What makes the pad turn brown? From your foot sweat from having a pad stuck to it all night!
- mrswirl, on 01/01/2009, -0/+4The Chinaman is not the issue here!
Also, Dude, chinaman is not the preferred nomenclature. Asian-American, please. - HisNoodly, on 01/02/2009, -0/+4If your liver and kidneys can't keep up with these magic 'toxins', you have way bigger problems than any diet. Basically, you need to be on dialysis and the transplant list, stat.
If you're not dying at an alarming rate, you're keeping up, and so don't have a problem. - dncarlson, on 01/01/2009, -0/+3No, like I said, Woo peed on my rug
- TheUngod, on 01/02/2009, -0/+3I don't think the point of detox is to actually detox, it's to lose weight. And I'm sure it works. When you intake less than 1000 calories a day, you're going to lose weight. Detoxing is just stupid, since as soon as you eat food again you're going to have toxins right back in your system.
- TheGrammarNazi, on 01/01/2009, -0/+3I feel a disturbance in The Grammar.
- JellyFish62, on 01/01/2009, -9/+12If you cut the junk food once in a while and eat enough fresh products while drinking water and none of these horrible sodas, then you just might get rid easily of chemicals in your body, in a healthy and cheap way.
- captainboog, on 01/01/2009, -9/+12The problem with just believing what dieticians say is that they are all part of one school of thought. I bet that in order to qualify as being a dietician in this association, you have to have a very particular type of degree. Well, guess what they teach you in that degree program? That detox diets don't work. It's like Western Medicine doctors saying, "We all agree that Chinese Medicine doesn't work," because none of them have ever studied Chinese Medicine.
This dietician association may be right, but I also know quite a few people who do detox and feel better afterwards. I also know of far too many things that are officially hogwash and yet true. It always takes time for the mainstream to catch up. It's always been that way with science and medicine, and yet I feel like everyone assumes that scientists and doctors are right. No, they're wrong. There's a few scientists and doctors who are right but few believe their outlandish theories. In a few decades, their discoveries will be mainstream. - AmusedToDeath, on 01/02/2009, -1/+4I find it tragic that someone needs an expose on 20/20 to demonstrate that these stupid things don't work. You would think a simple demonstration of the product would suffice to show how ridiculous they are.
- stonebear, on 01/02/2009, -0/+3Not saying the cleansing diets work, but you are mistaken hburne; fat soluble chemicals, nanoparticles, and heavy metals do accumulate in the body. One reason losing weight is so difficult is because the plethora of substances that are released when fat is metabolized.
- lucas22, on 01/01/2009, -0/+3placebo affect maybe?? mind over matter?
- jasoninoakland, on 01/05/2009, -0/+2Congealed *****, actually. Without "Dr Natura", your ***** will come out uncongealed.
- Prototek, on 01/01/2009, -0/+2...which is probably six to eight glasses of water a day.
- DjOverEZ, on 01/01/2009, -1/+3Somebody got a "Learn a New Word a Day" page-a-day calendar for Christmas.
- deconsecrator, on 01/01/2009, -0/+2"The BDA warns that only eating sensibly and drinking plenty of fluids can help the bodies' natural cleansing system."
This is what I would mean, if I mentioned to someone that I was 'detoxing' -- namely, stop drinking for a couple weeks, eat a lot of fresh produce and get off my ass for some needed exercise. - Magnus150, on 01/02/2009, -0/+2A creature created by the "detox" pill they took.
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