Are you looking for a way to kick start your diet or give your body a boost of energy? If so, you may be considering a detox.
Detoxes aim to rid the body of whatever toxins are in it. Sounds complex. But really, it can be as easy as following a regimented program that can involve just drinking water, tea or juice or restricting your diet while taking supplements. This trend has become increasingly popular in recent years, but whether detoxes are actually good for you is still unclear. If you’re debating whether to start a detox or make the shift to a consistent, healthier diet, here are some points you should consider.
Detoxing Deprives Your Body of Nutrients
By heavily restricting what you eat, detoxes can deprive your body of the key nutrients it needs to function. This can result in headaches, fatigue and other symptoms. Essentially, you can be exposing your body to a new kind of shock. Malnutrition comes in may shapes and sizes and even a short term detox can lead to a deficiency in iron and vitamins. This may not seem like a big deal, but it takes a toll on your body’s overall health and maintenance, resulting in the opposite of what a detox is supposed to do.
Detoxing Can Make You Irritable
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When you’re detoxing, you’re essentially restricting yourself from eating almost anything. This, of course, leads to you being hungrier, drained and probably a little cranky. You become very irritable when you’re detoxing, both physically and emotionally, largely because you’re not giving your body the fuel it needs. Depriving your body of a proper diet doesn’t just prevent you from getting the nutrients you need—it prevents you from being full. This makes it increasingly difficult to be healthy and satisfied and as a result your mood can worsen. While there are ways to deal with these sudden bursts of low mood that can be related to detoxing, it may be better to pursue a less extreme diet and avoid these symptoms entirely.
Detoxing Isn’t a Long-Term Solution
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Detoxes may help you burn fat or feel refreshed after an indulgent holiday season, but if you don’t eat well and get enough exercise, you can expect the weight to come back in a few weeks or so. You have to have a healthy, consistent diet mixed with an active lifestyle to achieve and maintain good health. Plus, eating healthier is a lot easier than trying to only drink juice for days at a time or heavily restricting what you eat. However, if you want to give yourself a jumpstart towards better health, a short-term detox may be a perfectly reasonable solution.
Healthy Diets Make You Feel Great
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A healthy diet isn’t just for those who want to get in shape; it actually boosts your energy and improves your mood! While detoxing can lead to mood-swings, maintaining a consistent, healthy diet makes your behaviour quite predictable and overall more positive. Your state of mind is just as important as maintaining a healthy body, so consider how detoxing might affect the other aspects of your life when deciding to diet.
Detoxes aren’t fun and whether they’re beneficial to your health is debatable. You’re better off pursuing a complete, healthy diet (with a few cheat days here and there of course!). If you’re keen to get rid of toxins in your body, try to eliminate them in the first place by incorporating fruits, vegetables, healthy grains and fish, like Tilapia, into your diet. Detoxes have yet to be proven as effective, but a balanced diet has long been recognized as a must-have for a healthy, happy life.
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