The health and wellness world frequently uses the term "detox cleansing." But is there any substance to the hype? These cleanses are predicated on the notion that we must eliminate toxins that accumulate in our bodies in order to maintain our health. While these can all be sensible goals, the approach is flawed.
This article explores the potential benefits of plant-based diet detoxes, provides practical guidance for transitioning to such a diet, and addresses common misconceptions surrounding detoxification.
Understanding Plant-Based Diets
A plant-based diet doesn’t have to be complicated. It focuses on consuming foods primarily derived from plants. It emphasizes whole, minimally processed foods like fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds. A plant-based diet may be vegan, vegetarian, Mediterranean, omnivore, paleo or keto. It can be adopted for various reasons, including health, ethical concerns, and environmental awareness.
Types of Vegetarian Diets
It’s important to distinguish between different types of vegetarian diets:
- Vegan: Excludes all animal products, including meat, dairy, eggs, and honey.
- Lacto-Vegetarian: Includes dairy products but excludes meat, fish, and eggs.
- Lacto-Ovo Vegetarian: Includes both dairy and eggs but excludes meat and fish.
- Semi-Vegetarian: Primarily vegetarian but may include limited amounts of meat, including fish.
Benefits of a Plant-Based Diet Detox
People who promote these cleanses say that they can support weight loss and digestion, reduce inflammation, raise energy levels, and help the immune system.
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Gut Health
The largest study to date on the gut microbiome is pretty clear on the benefits of a vegan diet when it comes to gut health. That study, known as the American Gut Project, found the number one driver of a healthy gut is the diversity of plant-based foods in one's diet, landing on an ideal number of 30+ plant-based foods per week.
Skin Health
If acne is an issue for you, a vegan detox cleanse may be able to help clear up your skin. Hormones found in milk and dairy products can have adverse effects on your skin, while a vegan diet has been shown to reduce inflammatory markers in the body.
Increased Energy
As we talked about a little ways up, it's harder for your body to digest animal sources of food, which can leave you feeling tired and with not much energy. A vegan detox, on the other hand, provides your body with foods that make digestion and breaking down food simple.
Weight Management
Looking to shed a few pounds? Going vegan could be your best bet. It's important to remember that just because something's vegan doesn't necessarily mean it's healthy or good for you!
Mental Health Benefits
A plant-based diet detox can also provide mental health benefits. Good physical health and an absence of disease tends to promote better mental health. Simply put, if you feel better physically, you’ll feel better mentally.
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Hormone Balance
A plant based diet benefits overall health, longevity and prevention of chronic disease and we have many repeated studies to show these correlations. A plant based diet promotes estrogen detoxification.
Practical Tips for Transitioning to a Plant-Based Diet
Transitioning to a plant-based diet can be a rewarding experience. Here are some practical tips to make the process smoother:
- Keep Goals Manageable: Start with small goals, such as adding a serving of fruit with breakfast or filling half your plate with vegetables at dinner, Wagner suggests. You can also try focusing on what you want to add rather than what you want to remove from your diet, adds Zerner. If you start with an overly restrictive diet it may be harder to make the changes permanent, so it’s a good idea to change your eating habits gradually.
- Look for ‘Heart Healthy’ on the Menu When Eating Out: Sometimes restaurants feature lower calorie or heart healthy options in a section on their menu, and this tends to include more plant-based foods, says Wagner. Wagner also suggests reviewing the menu before you go so you can plan your order ahead of time. You might be able to ask for modifications, like replacing chicken with tofu or beans.
- Think of Meat as a Garnish: An easy way to minimize meat in your overall diet is to think about it not as a main dish, but as a topping. This might look like loading up a brown rice or quinoa bowl with more veggies and a smaller amount of seasoned meat, or adding smaller amounts of meat to a burrito or salad in comparison with the vegetables or plant-based proteins you’re eating.
- Consider Food Quality: Not all plant-based diets are created equal, Zerner says. “For example, white pasta with marinara sauce is plant-based, but it’s lacking in enough protein and other key nutrients.” If you're eating plant-based for optimal health, ensure that whole, high-fiber, and minimally processed foods make up the bulk of your diet.
- Supplement Where Necessary: You may need to be intentional when it comes to avoiding deficiencies, especially if you’re forgoing all animal products. Vegans must pay attention to B-12 and iron levels.
- Stay Hydrated: This tip doesn't just apply to going vegan. No matter the diet, water is essential for healthy living and staying hydrated flushes harmful toxins out of your body. Water is the absolute best thing for humans to consume, it is fundamental to life.
- Prioritize Sleep: Sleep impacts so many areas of your health. Often overlooked, sleep is essential to a successful detox.
- Make Time for Movement: This one goes without saying but regular physical movement is good for your health. When you exercise, your body’s functions are kicked into gear.
Foods to Include in an Estrogen Detox Diet
Here is the food list you’ve been waiting for; the foods to add in for your estrogen detox diet!
- Cruciferous vegetables: Broccoli, cauliflower, kale, collard greens, brussels sprouts, turnips, arugula and all the other wonderful, sulfur-rich foods in this plant family contain 3,3’-diindolymethane (DIM). DIM is chemoprotective, helps reduce high estrogen levels and supports phase 1 of estrogen detox in the liver.
- Broccoli sprouts: Broccoli sprouts contain DIM and are in the cruciferous family. These foods also contain a compound, sulforaphane, of which broccoli sprouts contain the highest amounts. Sulforaphane isn’t an antioxidant itself, but it is an activator of antioxidant protection and detoxification enzymes in the body that lasts for days! For estrogen detoxification specifically, sulforaphane helps shuttle estrogen down the protective 2-OH pathway of phase 1 detoxification instead of the pathways more associated with cancer.
- Beets: Beets contain pigments from betalins that have medicinal properties. They support methylation, or phase 2 estrogen detoxification, are antioxidant rich, anti-inflammatory and liver supportive.
- Seeds: Seeds are a good source of minerals and essential fats to support estrogen and progesterone signaling and balance. Minerals in seeds such as zinc in pumpkin seeds, selenium in sunflower seeds and magnesium in sesame seeds are important cofactors to enzymes involved in sex hormone metabolism. They can actually prevent aromatase action, which is an enzyme that turns testosterone into estrogen, that may be an issue for some women. Besides the seeds mentioned, be sure to include flax, hemp and chia as well.
- Fermented foods: These include sauerkraut, kimchi and other fermented vegetables, coconut yogurt and kefir, miso, kombucha and fermented dairy as tolerated. Fermented foods are a natural and diverse source of beneficial probiotic bacteria that support microbiome balance and a healthy estrobolome, the part of the microbiome associated with estrogen metabolism.
- Prebiotic fiber: Fiber, in general from whole plant foods, is great microbiome support as well. In addition, there are certain fibers, namely inulin and FOS, that directly feed beneficial bacteria. Remember that healthy digestion and probiotics support estrogen clearance. Foods rich in these fibers include: artichoke, asparagus, onions, garlic and sunchokes.
Addressing the "Detox" Myth
"Detox cleansing" is a popular term in the health and wellness world. These cleanses are based on the idea that to stay healthy, we need to clear out toxins that build up in our bodies. People who promote these cleanses say that they can support weight loss and digestion, reduce inflammation, raise energy levels, and help the immune system. While these can all be sensible goals, the approach is flawed. Detoxes often involve eating fruits and vegetables or cutting out processed foods. This is not necessarily bad advice. However, claims about the benefits are often exaggerated and misleading. And they focus on quick solutions that are unrealistic and unsustainable.
The Body's Natural Detoxification System
Our bodies are incredibly well-designed to get rid of anything they don’t need. In a nutshell, our bodies detox naturally. Our organs are constantly working to remove waste and unwanted products. These may be produced during normal bodily processes. Some examples include excess lactic acid, dead cells, and urea. Other waste products come from the environment. These include pollutants, heavy metals, and harmful compounds that we take in through food or drink, or the air.
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- Your body gets rid of toxins in urine and feces, and through breathing and sweating.
- For example, your skin sweats out excess water and electrolytes. Your lungs trap unwanted airborne particles and get rid of them through sneezing or coughing.
- Your gut destroys and fends off harmful bacteria. It also decides which substances can enter your body and which can’t.
- Your liver converts harmful substances into less harmful ones. For example, it converts ammonia into urea, which your kidneys then filter out and excrete in urine.
Risks of Extreme Detox Cleanses
Detox cleanses can be harmful. This is because they often don’t include essential nutrients, and they can cause unwanted symptoms and promote unhealthy eating habits. The bold claims of detox cleanses often prey on people’s eagerness to improve their health.
Here are some examples of detox cleanses:
- Juice or smoothie detox cleanse: These typically involve consuming large amounts of blended fruits and vegetables. These foods are important parts of a healthy, balanced diet. However, they are typically low in protein and fats. Also, juices often contain fruits and vegetables without their skins.
- Water detox cleanse: This involves drinking large volumes of water-based fluids, often with additions such as lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, or cayenne pepper. While these ingredients are not unhealthy, they aren’t enough to sustain a healthy body on their own. Lemon juice and apple cider vinegar detoxes may also erode tooth enamel. What’s more, drinking excessive amounts of water-based fluids can result in dangerous imbalances in levels of electrolytes, such as sodium.
- Fasting detox cleanse: There are many types of fasts, and some involve alternating fasting days. A person may fast for 12-20 hours a day or even for 2-7 days. Healthcare professionals may recommend fasting for certain reasons, like before an operation. However, fasting without careful consideration and support from a healthcare provider can be dangerous. It can increase the risk of dehydration, as well as general hunger and intense cravings. Fasting may also lead to irritability, headaches, and gut symptoms like constipation, low energy, tiredness, and nutritional deficiencies. If you want to experiment with fasting, you could try intermittent fasting, also called time-restricted eating, which is a more moderate, sustainable approach.
Healthy Alternatives to Detox Cleanses
There are plenty of ways to help your body with its own “detoxing” processes. These include:
- Having a diverse, plant-based diet that contains fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans and pulses, nuts, seeds, herbs, and spices
- Drinking plenty of water throughout the day, which could involve tea, infused water, and soda water - as well as milk
- Avoiding highly processed foods
- Trying to eat high-fat, high-sugar, high-salt foods less frequently
- Aiming for 7-9 hours of sleep at a time
- Avoiding smoking and large amounts of alcohol
- Making time for regular exercise
- Making time for self-care and relaxing activities
These approaches can help you achieve the goals of a detox cleanse in a safe, manageable way.