Do you ever wonder what happens to your body on a juice cleanse? Greatist recently shared a video from SciShow that answers that very question.
First of all, for those of you who may not know, a juice cleanse is exactly what it sounds like a kind of “diet” that lasts anywhere from three to ten days when you don’t eat any solid foods. Usually, these diets only provide 1,200 calories a day, and many even less than that. (For females, a healthy number of calories is closer to 2,000 per day, and for males, more like 2,600, depending on your age and activity level.)
There are juice cleanse programs that you can buy (similar to other diets), but you can also juice your fruits and veggies at home.
The point is to clear toxins, lose weight, and reset the digestive system by clearing it out.
Here’s how your body works.
Toxins are poison produced by the body, such as ammonia, that is filtered out naturally through your liver and kidneys. The juice cleanse doesn’t help in that area. It also doesn’t help clear the gunk out of your digestive system because there is no gunk in your digestive system. It takes anywhere from 24-72 hours to completely digest food, and it does not get stuck in the intestines.
The only possible benefit is that most people lose a few pounds from the cleanse. The downside: It’s water weight that you will gain back as soon as you start eating regularly again.
So, are juice cleanses good for you?
They’re not particularly healthy, but they probably won’t hurt you either, so long as you are eating (drinking?) enough calories to stay healthy. The key takeaway: Your body is pretty amazing on its own and doesn’t need a lot of help to rid itself of toxins.
Check out the video below for more information:
