I thought you might be interested in what Tom Venuto (the author of the BFFM book that so many of us here know and love) has to say about detox. He's full of common sense. I've tried the Fat Flush plan before, and to be honest, I didn't notice a difference at all. I don't think it's harmful, though. Here's the blurb from Tom:
Detoxification and fasting are touchy subjects because some people have such strong (and even religious) beliefs about them. That's why I haven't written about this subject until now - honestly, I didn't want to touch it with a ten foot pole! Lately, I've gotten so much e-mail about this, I felt an answer was in order.
Whether you are for or against fasting and detoxification, one thing is hard to dispute: Fasting protocols like the one you mentioned are clearly a very "sneaky" way to begin a mass-marketed weight loss program in order to achieve rapid, dramatic losses of body weight. This makes the diet appear highly effective (and makes for great infomercial testimonials).
A fast at the beginning of a diet program can cause very rapid weight loss (note: weight loss, not fat loss). This can boost the total weight lost over a 6 week program to impressive sounding 25-30 pounds. I say, "big deal!" Do you want to lose weight or permanently lose FAT???
The first 15 pounds is water, glycogen and muscle tissue. Then maybe 10 pounds is fat - if you're lucky. The 1st 15-20 pounds will all come back because it was fluid, and the body fat will probably come back too because of the metabolic damage done due to starvation and subsequent muscle loss.
This is similar to the strict "induction" phases on certain diet programs, of which I have never been a fan. It's claimed that induction is necessary to metabolically shift you into fat burning mode, but I see it more as a "cheap trick" approach to quickly knocking off 10-15+ pounds of body weight (mostly water), to pander to the instant gratification needs of most dieters.
Look at the weight loss recommendations of any legitimate science-based health and fitness organization such as the American College Of Sports Medicine, the National Strength and Conditioning Association or the American Dietetic Association and you will see the same healthy, sensible recommendation repeated over and over again: lose 1-2 pounds per week, or 1% of total body weight per week (2.5 lbs if you weigh 250, etc).
Any crash diet, induction protocol or fasting ritual designed specifically to induce rapid weight loss is one to be avoided! But that's not what most people want to hear, and the result of this impatience and "quick fix" attitude is the obesity epidemic we see today.
Now, as for detoxification, it's difficult to draw general conclusions because there are so many different protocols that fall under the term "detoxification." But the fact is, most of them have little scientific evidence supporting them and some are downright kooky!
Will Brink, Author of Diet Supplements Revealed, made a post in his forum recently that made this point very succinctly. Will wrote:
"Who says you need to detoxify? The very term is quasi scientific at best, silly at worst. Are you looking to optimize increases in lean body mass or sit around drinking lemon water? I don't detoxify, as I don't feel toxic. The methods for detoxifying also run the gamut from real to a total scam. For example, for people that have high amounts of heavy metals, a process called chelation therapy appears to be legit to reduce those levels. Then you have all manner of pretend detoxifying diets, enemas, etc, which I have no faith in."
Do I believe it's important to "detoxify" the body? Yes, absolutely! But I believe that "detox" is not necessarily a regimen of supplements, herbs, special drinks, fasting or weird "internal cleansing" procedures. "Detoxification" is something that you should be doing every single day of your life by making better food choices and avoiding harmful chemicals in the first place. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
You stay "non-toxic" by drinking large amounts of pure water, by eating natural foods and avoiding man-made food, refined carbohydrates, refined fats (and trans fats), packaged food and other "chemical cuisine" as much as possible. You could take it a step further by eating organic foods that are even less likely to contain chemicals, pesticides, herbicides and fungicides.
I am inclined to say that for people who are already choosing their foods very carefully, detox "procedures" are not necessary. I'm also not convinced that there are any long term weight loss or body composition benefits from fasting. In fact, the reverse is true: fasting is highly catabolic and results in loss of skeletal muscle tissue so it's a bad idea for bodybuilders, strength athletes and those seeking to maximize lean body mass.
If fasting or "detoxing" are important disciplines to you for personal, philosophical or spiritual reasons, or if you believe you're reaping some measureable physical benefits, then please don't let me discourage you from continuing. My advice to someone who is unsure either way is to simply clean up your diet first. If you choose to experiment with any type of fast or "detox", pay attention to your body composition results (not just scale weight) and listen to what your body is telling you rather than what the diet program advertisements are telling you. If you don't, you may find yourself shelling out hundreds of dollars a month for "exotic cleansing herbs" or losing weight very quickly, only to regain every pound... with less muscle than when you started. Buyer beware.
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