Body cleansing
Encyclopedia
Detoxification is an alternative medicine
approach that proponents claim rids the body of "toxins", accumulated harmful substances that are alleged to exert undesirable effects on individual health. Detoxification usually includes one or more of: dieting
, fasting
, consuming exclusively, or avoiding specific foods (such as fats, carbohydrates, fruits, vegetables, juices, herbs or water), colon cleansing
, chelation therapy
, or the removal of dental fillings
. Body cleansing is not supported by science, with no medical benefits demonstrated, and is based on questionable or disproved scientific claims. The toxins are usually undefined, with no evidence (or inappropriately used testing) for toxic accumulation in the patient.
ian and Greek
idea of autointoxication, in which foods consumed or in the humoral theory of health
that the four humours themselves can putrefy and produce toxins that harm the body. Biochemistry
and microbiology
appeared to support the theory in the 19th century, but by the early twentieth century, detoxification based approaches quickly fell out of favour. Despite abandonment by mainstream medicine, the idea has persisted in the popular imagination and amongst alternative medicine
practitioners. In recent years, notions of body cleansing have undergone something of a resurgence, along with many other alternative medical approaches. Nonetheless, mainstream medicine continues to produce evidence that the field is unscientific and anachronistic.
Various modalities of body cleansing are currently employed, ranging from physical treatments (e.g. colon cleansing
), to dietary restrictions (i.e. avoiding foods) or dietary supplements. Some variants involve the use of herbs and supplements that purportedly speed or increase the effectiveness of the process of cleansing. Several naturopathic and homeopathic preparations are also promoted for cleansing; such products are often marketed as targeting specific organs
, such as fiber for the colon
or juices for the kidney
s.
that claim to have detoxifying effects. The general idea suggests that most food is contaminated by various ingredients deemed unnecessary for human life, such as flavor enhancers, food colorings, and artificial preservatives. Scientists, dietitians, and doctors, while generally judging 'detox diets' harmless (unless nutritional deficiency results), often dispute the value and need of 'detox diets' due to lack of supporting factual evidence or coherent rationale. In cases where a person is actually suffering from a disease, belief in the efficacy of a detox diet can result in delay or failure to seek effective treatment. Detox diets can involve consuming extremely limited foods (only water or juice, a form of fasting
), or eliminating certain foods from the diet (such as fats). Proponents claim that this will cause the body to burn accumulated stored fats, releasing fat-stored "toxins" into the blood, which can then be eliminated through the blood, skin, urine, feces and breath. Proponents claim things like an altered body odor support the notion that detox diets are working; this claim has been criticized for misinterpreting the body undergoing ketosis
. Though a brief fast of a single day is unlikely to cause harm, prolonged fasting can be fatal.
s and/or enema
s to remove food that proponents claim remains in the colon
and rots, producing symptoms and general ill-health. The colon usually does not require any help cleaning itself, and the practices can be both expensive and potentially dangerous.
Advocates may recommend the removal of dental amalgam
fillings under the guise of potential mercury poisoning
. The process uses a mercury vapour analyzer to generate a reading. Sometimes spurious, artificially high results are achieved , which are then used to justify an expensive dental procedure to remove the filling material. Proponents also call for the use of chelation therapy
, sometimes even using a chemical such as EDTA
to provoke spuriously high urine levels of heavy metals so tests give inaccurate readings. Following the falsely high test result, the advocate will then recommend "detoxification" using products and services sold by the advocate. As in most situations, prevention is always preferred over detoxification. There are alternatives available to "silver amalgam fillings" in the modern era that were not available when the first mercury amalgam fillings were invented.
There are many herbal compounds designed and marketed to help the body excrete toxic heavy metals like lead and mercury. Among those, a common basic ingredient is often the herb Cilantro(Chinese Parsley) and/or Chlorella
.
ed iron leaching from the electrodes. The adhesive pads change color due to oxidation
of the pads' ingredients in response to the skin's moisture. In both cases, the same color changes occur irrespective of whether the water or patch even make contact with the skin(they merely require water-thus proving the color change is not a result of any body detoxification process).
used by con artists to cure nonexistent illnesses. Some doctors contend that the 'toxins' in question do not even exist. In response, alternative medicine proponents frequently cite heavy metals or pesticides as the source of toxification; however, no evidence exists that detoxification approaches have a measurable effect on these or any other chemical levels. Medical experts state that body cleansing is unnecessary as the human body is naturally capable of maintaining itself, with several organs dedicated to cleansing the blood
and gut
. Professor Alan Boobis OBE, Toxicologist, Division of Medicine, Imperial College London states that "The body’s own detoxification systems are remarkably sophisticated and versatile. They have to be, as the natural environment that we evolved in is hostile. It is remarkable that people are prepared to risk seriously disrupting these systems with unproven ‘detox’ diets, which could well do more harm than good."
The apparently satisfied testimonial
and anecdotal
accounts by customers can be explained by either disguised employees
creating false anecdotes, or actual customers who are experiencing the placebo effect
after trying the products, natural recovery from an actual illness that would have occurred without the use of the product, psychological improvements on illnesses that are psychosomatic or the result of neurosis
, and the fact that a large number of dissatisfied customers have not posted equally applicable anecdotes about their poorer experiences.
Alternative medicine
Alternative medicine is any healing practice, "that does not fall within the realm of conventional medicine." It is based on historical or cultural traditions, rather than on scientific evidence....
approach that proponents claim rids the body of "toxins", accumulated harmful substances that are alleged to exert undesirable effects on individual health. Detoxification usually includes one or more of: dieting
Dieting
Dieting is the practice of eating food in a regulated fashion to achieve or maintain a controlled weight. In most cases dieting is used in combination with physical exercise to lose weight in those who are overweight or obese. Some athletes, however, follow a diet to gain weight...
, fasting
Fasting
Fasting is primarily the act of willingly abstaining from some or all food, drink, or both, for a period of time. An absolute fast is normally defined as abstinence from all food and liquid for a defined period, usually a single day , or several days. Other fasts may be only partially restrictive,...
, consuming exclusively, or avoiding specific foods (such as fats, carbohydrates, fruits, vegetables, juices, herbs or water), colon cleansing
Colon cleansing
Colon cleansing encompasses a number of alternative medical therapies intended to remove feces and nonspecific toxins from the colon and intestinal tract. Colon cleansing may take the form of colon hydrotherapy or oral cleansing regimens such as dietary supplements...
, chelation therapy
Chelation therapy
Chelation therapy is the administration of chelating agents to remove heavy metals from the body. For the most common forms of heavy metal intoxication—those involving lead, arsenic or mercury—the standard of care in the United States dictates the use of dimercaptosuccinic acid...
, or the removal of dental fillings
Amalgam (dentistry)
Amalgam is an alloy containing mercury. The term is commonly used for the amalgam employed as material for dental fillings, which consists of mercury , silver , tin , copper , and other trace metals...
. Body cleansing is not supported by science, with no medical benefits demonstrated, and is based on questionable or disproved scientific claims. The toxins are usually undefined, with no evidence (or inappropriately used testing) for toxic accumulation in the patient.
Background
The premise of body cleansing is based on the Ancient EgyptAncient Egypt
Ancient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh...
ian and Greek
Ancient Greece
Ancient Greece is a civilization belonging to a period of Greek history that lasted from the Archaic period of the 8th to 6th centuries BC to the end of antiquity. Immediately following this period was the beginning of the Early Middle Ages and the Byzantine era. Included in Ancient Greece is the...
idea of autointoxication, in which foods consumed or in the humoral theory of health
Humorism
Humorism, or humoralism, is a now discredited theory of the makeup and workings of the human body, adopted by Greek and Roman physicians and philosophers, positing that an excess or deficiency of any of four distinct bodily fluids in a person directly influences their temperament and health...
that the four humours themselves can putrefy and produce toxins that harm the body. Biochemistry
Biochemistry
Biochemistry, sometimes called biological chemistry, is the study of chemical processes in living organisms, including, but not limited to, living matter. Biochemistry governs all living organisms and living processes...
and microbiology
Microbiology
Microbiology is the study of microorganisms, which are defined as any microscopic organism that comprises either a single cell , cell clusters or no cell at all . This includes eukaryotes, such as fungi and protists, and prokaryotes...
appeared to support the theory in the 19th century, but by the early twentieth century, detoxification based approaches quickly fell out of favour. Despite abandonment by mainstream medicine, the idea has persisted in the popular imagination and amongst alternative medicine
Alternative medicine
Alternative medicine is any healing practice, "that does not fall within the realm of conventional medicine." It is based on historical or cultural traditions, rather than on scientific evidence....
practitioners. In recent years, notions of body cleansing have undergone something of a resurgence, along with many other alternative medical approaches. Nonetheless, mainstream medicine continues to produce evidence that the field is unscientific and anachronistic.
Various modalities of body cleansing are currently employed, ranging from physical treatments (e.g. colon cleansing
Colon cleansing
Colon cleansing encompasses a number of alternative medical therapies intended to remove feces and nonspecific toxins from the colon and intestinal tract. Colon cleansing may take the form of colon hydrotherapy or oral cleansing regimens such as dietary supplements...
), to dietary restrictions (i.e. avoiding foods) or dietary supplements. Some variants involve the use of herbs and supplements that purportedly speed or increase the effectiveness of the process of cleansing. Several naturopathic and homeopathic preparations are also promoted for cleansing; such products are often marketed as targeting specific organs
Organ (anatomy)
In biology, an organ is a collection of tissues joined in structural unit to serve a common function. Usually there is a main tissue and sporadic tissues . The main tissue is the one that is unique for the specific organ. For example, main tissue in the heart is the myocardium, while sporadic are...
, such as fiber for the colon
Colon (anatomy)
The colon is the last part of the digestive system in most vertebrates; it extracts water and salt from solid wastes before they are eliminated from the body, and is the site in which flora-aided fermentation of unabsorbed material occurs. Unlike the small intestine, the colon does not play a...
or juices for the kidney
Kidney
The kidneys, organs with several functions, serve essential regulatory roles in most animals, including vertebrates and some invertebrates. They are essential in the urinary system and also serve homeostatic functions such as the regulation of electrolytes, maintenance of acid–base balance, and...
s.
Detox diets
Detox diets are dietary plansDieting
Dieting is the practice of eating food in a regulated fashion to achieve or maintain a controlled weight. In most cases dieting is used in combination with physical exercise to lose weight in those who are overweight or obese. Some athletes, however, follow a diet to gain weight...
that claim to have detoxifying effects. The general idea suggests that most food is contaminated by various ingredients deemed unnecessary for human life, such as flavor enhancers, food colorings, and artificial preservatives. Scientists, dietitians, and doctors, while generally judging 'detox diets' harmless (unless nutritional deficiency results), often dispute the value and need of 'detox diets' due to lack of supporting factual evidence or coherent rationale. In cases where a person is actually suffering from a disease, belief in the efficacy of a detox diet can result in delay or failure to seek effective treatment. Detox diets can involve consuming extremely limited foods (only water or juice, a form of fasting
Fasting
Fasting is primarily the act of willingly abstaining from some or all food, drink, or both, for a period of time. An absolute fast is normally defined as abstinence from all food and liquid for a defined period, usually a single day , or several days. Other fasts may be only partially restrictive,...
), or eliminating certain foods from the diet (such as fats). Proponents claim that this will cause the body to burn accumulated stored fats, releasing fat-stored "toxins" into the blood, which can then be eliminated through the blood, skin, urine, feces and breath. Proponents claim things like an altered body odor support the notion that detox diets are working; this claim has been criticized for misinterpreting the body undergoing ketosis
Ketosis
Ketosis is a state of elevated levels of ketone bodies in the body. It is almost always generalized throughout the body, with hyperketonemia, that is, an elevated level of ketone bodies in the blood. Ketone bodies are formed by ketogenesis when the liver glycogen stores are depleted...
. Though a brief fast of a single day is unlikely to cause harm, prolonged fasting can be fatal.
Colon cleansing
Colon cleansing, aka colonics, which are based on a prescientific theoretical model adopted from Ancient Egypt, involves the use of herbHerb
Except in botanical usage, an herb is "any plant with leaves, seeds, or flowers used for flavoring, food, medicine, or perfume" or "a part of such a plant as used in cooking"...
s and/or enema
Enema
An enema is the procedure of introducing liquids into the rectum and colon via the anus. The increasing volume of the liquid causes rapid expansion of the lower intestinal tract, often resulting in very uncomfortable bloating, cramping, powerful peristalsis, a feeling of extreme urgency and...
s to remove food that proponents claim remains in the colon
Colon (anatomy)
The colon is the last part of the digestive system in most vertebrates; it extracts water and salt from solid wastes before they are eliminated from the body, and is the site in which flora-aided fermentation of unabsorbed material occurs. Unlike the small intestine, the colon does not play a...
and rots, producing symptoms and general ill-health. The colon usually does not require any help cleaning itself, and the practices can be both expensive and potentially dangerous.
Heavy metals
Mercury amalgam filling removal:Advocates may recommend the removal of dental amalgam
Amalgam (dentistry)
Amalgam is an alloy containing mercury. The term is commonly used for the amalgam employed as material for dental fillings, which consists of mercury , silver , tin , copper , and other trace metals...
fillings under the guise of potential mercury poisoning
Mercury poisoning
Mercury poisoning is a disease caused by exposure to mercury or its compounds. Mercury is a heavy metal occurring in several forms, all of which can produce toxic effects in high enough doses...
. The process uses a mercury vapour analyzer to generate a reading. Sometimes spurious, artificially high results are achieved , which are then used to justify an expensive dental procedure to remove the filling material. Proponents also call for the use of chelation therapy
Chelation therapy
Chelation therapy is the administration of chelating agents to remove heavy metals from the body. For the most common forms of heavy metal intoxication—those involving lead, arsenic or mercury—the standard of care in the United States dictates the use of dimercaptosuccinic acid...
, sometimes even using a chemical such as EDTA
EDTA
Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid, widely abbreviated as EDTA , is a polyamino carboxylic acid and a colourless, water-soluble solid. Its conjugate base is named ethylenediaminetetraacetate. It is widely used to dissolve limescale. Its usefulness arises because of its role as a hexadentate ligand...
to provoke spuriously high urine levels of heavy metals so tests give inaccurate readings. Following the falsely high test result, the advocate will then recommend "detoxification" using products and services sold by the advocate. As in most situations, prevention is always preferred over detoxification. There are alternatives available to "silver amalgam fillings" in the modern era that were not available when the first mercury amalgam fillings were invented.
There are many herbal compounds designed and marketed to help the body excrete toxic heavy metals like lead and mercury. Among those, a common basic ingredient is often the herb Cilantro(Chinese Parsley) and/or Chlorella
Chlorella
Chlorella is a genus of single-celled green algae, belonging to the phylum Chlorophyta. It is spherical in shape, about 2 to 10 μm in diameter, and is without flagella. Chlorella contains the green photosynthetic pigments chlorophyll-a and -b in its chloroplast...
.
Foot and skin "Detoxification" devices
Certain devices are promoted to allegedly remove toxins from the body. One version is a foot bath using a mild electrical current, while another involves small adhesive pads applied to the skin (usually the foot). In both cases, the production of an alleged brown "toxin" appears after a brief delay. In the case of the foot bath, the "toxin" is actually small amounts of rustRust
Rust is a general term for a series of iron oxides. In colloquial usage, the term is applied to red oxides, formed by the reaction of iron and oxygen in the presence of water or air moisture...
ed iron leaching from the electrodes. The adhesive pads change color due to oxidation
Redox
Redox reactions describe all chemical reactions in which atoms have their oxidation state changed....
of the pads' ingredients in response to the skin's moisture. In both cases, the same color changes occur irrespective of whether the water or patch even make contact with the skin(they merely require water-thus proving the color change is not a result of any body detoxification process).
Criticism
Body cleansing and detoxification have been referred to as an elaborate hoaxHoax
A hoax is a deliberately fabricated falsehood made to masquerade as truth. It is distinguishable from errors in observation or judgment, or rumors, urban legends, pseudosciences or April Fools' Day events that are passed along in good faith by believers or as jokes.-Definition:The British...
used by con artists to cure nonexistent illnesses. Some doctors contend that the 'toxins' in question do not even exist. In response, alternative medicine proponents frequently cite heavy metals or pesticides as the source of toxification; however, no evidence exists that detoxification approaches have a measurable effect on these or any other chemical levels. Medical experts state that body cleansing is unnecessary as the human body is naturally capable of maintaining itself, with several organs dedicated to cleansing the blood
Blood
Blood is a specialized bodily fluid in animals that delivers necessary substances such as nutrients and oxygen to the cells and transports metabolic waste products away from those same cells....
and gut
Gastrointestinal tract
The human gastrointestinal tract refers to the stomach and intestine, and sometimes to all the structures from the mouth to the anus. ....
. Professor Alan Boobis OBE, Toxicologist, Division of Medicine, Imperial College London states that "The body’s own detoxification systems are remarkably sophisticated and versatile. They have to be, as the natural environment that we evolved in is hostile. It is remarkable that people are prepared to risk seriously disrupting these systems with unproven ‘detox’ diets, which could well do more harm than good."
The apparently satisfied testimonial
Testimonial
In promotion and of advertising, a testimonial or show consists of a written or spoken statement, sometimes from a person figure, sometimes from a private citizen, extolling the virtue of some product. The term "testimonial" most commonly applies to the sales-pitches attributed to ordinary...
and anecdotal
Anecdote
An anecdote is a short and amusing or interesting story about a real incident or person. It may be as brief as the setting and provocation of a bon mot. An anecdote is always presented as based on a real incident involving actual persons, whether famous or not, usually in an identifiable place...
accounts by customers can be explained by either disguised employees
Astroturfing
Astroturfing is a form of advocacy in support of a political, organizational, or corporate agenda, designed to give the appearance of a "grassroots" movement. The goal of such campaigns is to disguise the efforts of a political and/or commercial entity as an independent public reaction to some...
creating false anecdotes, or actual customers who are experiencing the placebo effect
Placebo
A placebo is a simulated or otherwise medically ineffectual treatment for a disease or other medical condition intended to deceive the recipient...
after trying the products, natural recovery from an actual illness that would have occurred without the use of the product, psychological improvements on illnesses that are psychosomatic or the result of neurosis
Neurosis
Neurosis is a class of functional mental disorders involving distress but neither delusions nor hallucinations, whereby behavior is not outside socially acceptable norms. It is also known as psychoneurosis or neurotic disorder, and thus those suffering from it are said to be neurotic...
, and the fact that a large number of dissatisfied customers have not posted equally applicable anecdotes about their poorer experiences.
See also
- BioelectromagneticsBioelectromagneticsBioelectromagnetics is the study of the interaction between electromagnetic fields and biological entities. Common areas of investigation include animal navigation utilising the geomagnetic field, potential effects of man-made sources of electromagnetic fields like mobile phones and developing...
- Electrical devices in alternative medicine
- Franz MesmerFranz MesmerFranz Anton Mesmer , sometimes, albeit incorrectly, referred to as Friedrich Anton Mesmer, was a German physician with an interest in astronomy, who theorised that there was a natural energetic transference that occurred between all animated and inanimate objects that he called magnétisme animal ...
- Magnet therapyMagnet therapyMagnet therapy, magnetic therapy, or magnotherapy is an alternative medicine practice involving the use of static magnetic fields. Practitioners claim that subjecting certain parts of the body to magnetostatic fields produced by permanent magnets has beneficial health effects...
- PseudosciencePseudosciencePseudoscience is a claim, belief, or practice which is presented as scientific, but which does not adhere to a valid scientific method, lacks supporting evidence or plausibility, cannot be reliably tested, or otherwise lacks scientific status...
- QuackeryQuackeryQuackery is a derogatory term used to describe the promotion of unproven or fraudulent medical practices. Random House Dictionary describes a "quack" as a "fraudulent or ignorant pretender to medical skill" or "a person who pretends, professionally or publicly, to have skill, knowledge, or...
- Rife machine
- Hologram therapyHologram therapyA hologram bracelet or energy bracelet is a small rubber wristband fitted with a hologram. Manufacturers have said that the holograms "optimise the natural flow of energy around the body, and so improve an athlete's strength, balance and flexibility"...