Detox – a term that has become highly commercialized and has many facets. The following article explains how complex detoxification processes are in the human metabolism and that a seven-day juice cleanse once every six months is not enough on its own to sustainably support these biochemical processes. Above all, the right diet and a healthy lifestyle serve as prevention, reducing the intake of environmental toxins and harmful substances, which ultimately means less needs to be detoxified.
The term detox and what it is exactly about
The term detox, adopted from English, is short for detoxification and means "detoxification, withdrawal". The term "toxic (English: toxic)", which comes from the same word family and is a foreign word for poison1, is hard to miss. So, when a detox cleanse is mentioned in everyday language, it is broadly about removing toxins from your body. This is intended to serve your health and personal well-being.
First and foremost, it should be clarified that the human organism constantly filters, removes, or converts harmful substances through its natural daily metabolism. Detox is therefore actually a daily process like our breathing, heartbeat, or digestion.
Metabolism: Intake and output of substances
The human organism is in a constant state of intake and output: We breathe in through the mouth and nose via the trachea and take up oxygen in the lungs through the alveoli into our bloodstream. There it is transported to the heart, organs, and smallest cells, where it is used for energy production. The CO2 produced by this process is transported back out through the same system: Oxygen-poor blood returns to the heart through the veins and from there back to the lungs, to finally be exhaled by us2. We also take up substances through the skin and our digestive tract and release them again according to the same basic principle. So it is constantly about – by whichever of the three ways – that substances enter our system and thus our bloodstream, and tissues and organs are supplied with them.
Substances that may be little useful or even harmful to the organism
It is inevitable that during these complex processes, substances also enter our body that are not beneficial to it or may be harmful to health in larger quantities in the long term. This is generally not dramatic, because our complex system has various defense systems that are constantly working. Mechanical, sensory, and chemical barriers such as the skin, stomach acid, the intestinal mucosa, and our senses protect us, but they cannot stop all intruders from getting into our innermost parts. That is why our organs, microorganisms, cells, and cell organelles have various internal defense systems or defense functions that "detoxify" us.
Which substances need to be detoxified?
We take in various environmental toxins from the air through breathing . These include exhaust fumes, cosmetic chemicals such as nail polish, hair dye, artificial fragrances, hairspray, and deodorant. In addition, there is the intake of tar and tobacco through smoking cigarettes. Even if these are passively inhaled, they enter our lungs.
Through the skin, substances such as microplastics and foreign chemicals can enter the body – often through unconsciously selected personal care products. These often have hormone-like effects, carcinogenic properties, or have allergy potential.
Diet also plays a major role in the intake of toxins: Especially in processed foods of the convenience levels 4 and 5, many industrially produced additives are contained, which our body ultimately has to excrete again, as they are not beneficial to it. Also alcohol, medications and caffeine are substances that can damage our cells and therefore must be rendered harmless by the liver.
How does the body detoxify?
The digestive tract, our bloodstream, the liver and kidney play a central role in detoxifying the body. Stomach acid already breaks down substances and also kills a large portion of parasites such as bacteria. In the intestines – provided the intestinal mucosa is intact – the intestinal barrier ensures that at least part of the potentially pro-inflammatory substances is not absorbed at all and therefore does not enter the bloodstream4.
However, some particles manage to pass this barrier and thus enter the bloodstream – just like the toxins that are taken up through the skin and breath. These are then transported in the blood to the liver5.
If the body has the right micronutrients and amino acids that are needed to bind the toxins and transport them out, the liver can detoxify optimally:
The liver breaks down alcohol and hormones and emulsifies or converts substances that are difficult or not water-soluble3. For these processes, it primarily needs the amino acids L-glutamine, cysteine, arginine, citrulline, ornithine, aspartic acid, lysine, and methionine.
From or with their help, various compounds are formed, these enzymes can then bind the toxins so that they can be transported away. Micronutrients such as selenium, zinc, manganese, vitamin C, and B vitamins also play an important role here. In the kidney, the bound substances can then be filtered and ultimately excreted through the urine.
It is recommended to supplement a healthy diet of many fresh foods with a good multivitamin preparation. What is important here is above all the bioavailability of the respective micronutrients. Unfortunately, there are many cheap products that are too low in dosage or are very poorly absorbed by the body.
This all sounds very complex, of course – and it is. This also only gives us a small insight into the fascinating interplay of our organ system. But what exactly is the connection to the various active detoxification methods that are promoted in our society today?
Various detox methods – which make sense and which make less
Juice diets are especially a popular detoxification method, which works well primarily from a marketing perspective for food manufacturers and their profit. However, the problem with juice cleanses is on the one hand the high consumption of fructose – i.e., fruit sugar – on the other hand the loss of vitamins, which smoothies suffer quite quickly during storage:
Most fruits have a relatively high fructose content and also a glucose content. Both are simple sugars and rapidly increase blood sugar. If blood sugar is too high, the sugars are usually quickly converted into fat and stored. The blood sugar then suddenly drops to a very low level, so that hunger attacks can occur. This is because the storage capacities of the two types of sugar are limited, and those of fat cells are not.
Regarding fructose, science is now even divided on whether the 20g storage in the liver even exists. In addition, the capacity of the intestinal mucosal cells regarding the intake of fructose is limited, exceeding the limit can irritate it, which ultimately is not conducive to the detox effect.
Other detox methods can make sense occasionally depending on the case. For example, therapeutic fasting or intermittent fasting leads to the fact that first the sugar reserves in the liver and proteins are broken down, then the fat stores are utilized as an energy source7. In addition, the digestive tract is completely relieved – and digestion is a very energy-intensive process. Thus, the body can concentrate on regeneration and repair processes, during which cells are ultimately renewed and a variety of hormones are stimulated that set the metabolism to healing processes.
The withdrawal from pleasure foods such as alcohol, cigarettes, and coffee should definitely be included in such a detox phase. For some people, this alone is a form of detoxification. Often, this withdrawal is accompanied by severe headaches and low mood in the initial phase. However, this is only a sign that the body is actually actively detoxifying.
The basis for detox is the right diet
It makes sense and is sustainably long-term to eat mostly healthy and avoid foods that contain toxins. In addition, one should bring the macro- and micronutrients into the body through nutrition that support the already described detoxification processes. In "Nutritional Design" by Dr. Dominik Nischwitz, it is explained in a simple way how to use nutrition as a basis for your health. What does that mean concretely?
- Source high-quality foods: Ideally organically produced goods.
- Buy/consume fresh and natural products. Berries (which have a very low sugar content and contain a lot of antioxidants) and vegetables can be bought without hesitation as frozen goods – if no additives or sugar have been added.
- Consume milk product alternatives such as cashew, almond, or coconut milk / cashew, almond, or coconut yogurt without added sugar.
- Buy gluten- and soy-free foods: Rice or buckwheat noodles instead of wheat noodles, paleo bread from nuts and seeds instead of grain bread.
- Eat lots of vegetables, high-quality protein, and natural fats à organic eggs, wild salmon, organic chicken, quinoa, coconut oil, pasture-raised butter, green vegetables, salad, and berries
- Incorporate bitter substances into the diet, e.g., with grapefruit and bitter herbs
× Do not consume too much sugar, especially fructose.
× Avoid potential allergens such as soy, gluten, and dairy products (except
pasture-raised butter & ghee)
× Avoid industrially processed products and unnatural additives.
× Avoid hydrogenated and industrially processed fats such as margarine.
Lifestyle, sleep, and stress management
These factors also play an indirect role when it comes to detoxification, because they are directly related to the consumption of micronutrients: In chronic, negative stress, much more magnesium is excreted through the kidney, which can lead to a magnesium deficiency8. The magnesium is then missing as a raw material in the detoxification processes explained above.
So, it is important that you optimize your stress management, sleep, and work-life balance so that the body still has enough regeneration phases to concentrate on the detoxification processes.
Conclusion
Special detox cleanses, active detoxification phases, and fasting cleanses make sense specifically when applied, provided they are carried out on the basis of conscious nutrition and a healthy lifestyle that sustainably and long-term supports the body in its natural detoxification processes.
Literature
1 Duden: Toxisch. [https://www.duden.de/rechtschreibung/toxisch; 29.08.19]
2 Bütikofer, Markus; Hopf, Zensi; Rutz, Guido; Stach, Silke and Grigoleit, Andrea (2015): Humanbiologie 1: Grundlagen, Stoffwechsel und Abwehrsysteme. Zürich: Compendio Bildungsmedien. S. 69-84.
3 Sengebusch, Jürgen & Bastian, Ulrike (2015): Crashkurs Heilpraktikerprüfung. München: Elsevier GmbH.
S. 165-173.
4 Zschokke, PD Dr. Samuel (2017): Humanbiologie I – Ernährung & Verdauung. Basel: Universität Basel. Institut für Natur,- Landschafts- und Umweltschutz. S. 3-33.
5 Bütikofer, Markus; Hopf, Zensi; Rutz, Guido; Stach, Silke and Grigoleit, Andrea (2015): Humanbiologie 1: Grundlagen, Stoffwechsel und Abwehrsysteme. Zürich: Compendio Bildungsmedien. S. 61-63.
6 Diagnostisches Centrum: [https://www.diagnostisches-centrum.de/publikationen.html?id=573; 20.09.2019]
7 Enck, Paul; Frieling, Thomas & Schemann, Michael (2017): Darm an Hirn. Freiburg: Herder Verlag.
8 Strunz, Dr. Med. Ulrich (2016): Blut – die Geheimnisse unseres «flüssigen Organs». München: Heyne Verlag.