Should I Detox

Well the festive season has passed, and here we are in the New Year, contemplating our lives and our navels. The question being is your navel in the same place as it was before the season of over indulgence? If you have emerged from 2005 fighting fit and still fitting snugly into your cycling shorts, then very well done. If however 2006 finds you languishing in your emergency joggers(the huge ones at the bottom of the drawer) and still miserably picking over the last of the novelty-shaped cheese snackos, then YOU ARE NOT ALONE. Help is at hand; at this time of the year the papers and magazines are crammed full of new diets, and the buzz word is DETOX. So should we detox?

There are so many expensive products and plans on offer; 7 Day Detox diets, nutritional supplements, scientific-looking kits containing herbs and exotic ingredients. They claim to eliminate toxins that have built up within our bodies and many contain ‘diuretic’ herbs to encourage urination, and get rid of them. This all seems like a good idea, especially if we feel sluggish or guilty about overindulging. Thank goodness there is a wealth of products to get us back into tip-top condition ASAP.

The problem is that there is little scientific evidence that these things really work, other than making us think that we are doing something healthy. The massive diet and nutrition industries have created yet another myth, the Detox Myth, encouraging us to spend money on pills, treatments, spa breaks, books etc, but the benefits of the products are questionable, and the claims are not supported by science.

Each day, normal bodily processes (even stressful situations) produce ‘toxic’ chemical products which the body then uses, breaks down or excretes. If you eat plenty of whole foods and fruit and vegetables, stay hydrated, and exercise regularly, your body will work efficiently to metabolize and deal with bodily and environmental chemicals, but this needs to be worked at every day of your life; and that is the naked truth of the matter. Most people just don’t want to hear it; it seems like too much hard work and that it why the quick-fix industries exist. They are selling us the belief that we can behave exactly how we wish, and then spend money to make it better quickly and without sustained effort.

So my New Year message is to reject the Detox mentality! How much difference can a 7 day plan really make? Our body has many different rhythms and processes some taking hours, some taking months, and changing your life drastically for a short time will never confer a lasting benefit. Be kinder to yourself, and take some time to consider how you can be more healthy, then set yourself an achievable goal each week, for example; week 1- drink 1.5 liters of water each day, week 2: snack on fruit, week 3: find a walking partner. Healthy living is about making gentle and sustainable changes to our diet and lifestyle, allowing our body to acclimatize, and our tastes to adjust slowly, until eating well and exercising becomes a habitual and normal part of every-day life. This is the true path to a long, productive and quality life, something that you cannot buy in a box, however much money you spend.

Until next time, take care and stay healthy!
Vikki.

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Vikki Scovell BA(hons) PG DIP is a fully qualified Personal Trainer and Fitness Coach. She is a qualified Nutrition Adviser and runs successful Community Exercise classes. Vikki is a consultant in Healthy Eating and Exercise initiatives to schools in the independent sector and publishes School and General Healthy Living newsletters.

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