Yes please, chalk one up for those of us who have ignored the advice of friends and turned our noses up at the idea of a good detox.

According to physician Ranit Mishori of the Georgetown University School of Medicine, who has spent years reviewing the benefits of a solid cleanse, there are two solid reasons why we shouldn’t feel the need to cut out all the fun stuff and subsist on a diet of blended carrot and kale juice.

Those two reasons are some of my favourite organs – the humble liver and kidneys. BusinessInsider reports:

While our kidneys filter our blood and remove any waste from our diet, our liver processes medications and detoxifies any chemicals we ingest. Paired together, these organs make our bodies natural cleansing powerhouses.

“Unless there’s a blockage in one of these organs that [cleanse our bodies] day and night, there’s absolutely no need to help the body get rid of toxins” [said Mishori].

Hang on, I still see some on you shaking your head at Mishori’s advice, what about ridding yourselves of those nasty toxins like sugar? According to Alan Levinovitz in his book ‘The Gluten Lie’ we shouldn’t really cut anything out entirely from our diets, something dubbed ‘dose sensitivity’:

Small amounts of sugar, like would be found in a serving of fresh fruit or a cookie after lunch, are likely far from harmful; huge amounts, like would be found in six cans of Coke or several bags of M&Ms, are probably harmful…

Rather than cutting sugar completely or trying to finagle another way to rid your body of the “bad” foods you eat, a better alternative would be to eat them in moderation.

There’s just so much information out there it’s sometimes difficult to know where to start. I’m going to side with Mishori and Levinovitz here, mostly because I know somewhere in there they must have alluded to the health benefits of having a regular drink. Who am I to argue with doctors’ orders?

[source:businessinsider]