Our bodies are amazing. They can expel toxins and fight diseases while we handle other decisions—like what to put in it. Convenient, right? So why do we cleanse, and what exactly does it do? I did my first juice cleanse out of pure curiosity… and maybe some peer pressure, but it was the way I felt after that convinced me to cleanse again, and again.
Looking forward to the next cleanse, I knew it had to be health-related benefits I was feeling but wondered still why cleansing made me feel so great afterward. So I did some research, and here’s what I learned.
Why Cleanse?
Turns out, the human body pretty good at cleansing itself when it is healthy and getting all the nutrients it needs. Of course, I thought, I eat pretty healthy. But honestly, I could be better.
So is there a real benefit to limiting what you consume to just the bare essentials during a cleanse? I found the answer matched the way I felt: yes, and studies continue to support this.
Benefits:
One such study, recently published by UCLA School of Medicine [1], showed 3-day juice-based diet not only improves general wellness scores but actually changes the digestive system in a way that:
- promotes weight loss.
- lower blood pressure.
- reduces inflammation.
So that’s why it feels good. In practical terms, this means juice cleansing is not a magic pill to lose weight, but it primes your body to do so by jump-starting your body’s natural processes to work for you. And that looks different for everyone.
If you are already maintaining good health, cleansing may be like a regular oil change that keeps your body running at full speed for longer. If you are looking to get healthy but don’t know where to start, cleansing is the start of a new journey if you stick with it.
So why don’t people cleanse?
Some are skeptical. And I don’t particularly blame them: I see a lot of articles claiming juice cleanses were going to “destroy my metabolism,” or other scary headlines, and unfortunately, the headlines are often the only thing people see.
In reality, these claims are often misrepresentative of the facts, if not outright false. For the metabolism example, it is true that your metabolism may slow during a cleanse. That’s because with less to break down your digestive system isn’t working as hard.
Obvious enough, but after that temporary slowdown, cleansing is shown to actually improve the effectiveness of our metabolism in breaking down and absorbing nutrients from food, meaning we need less food to live and function effectively.
Unfortunately, all the good research findings don’t prevent people from spreading partial facts or tabloids from fishing for attention, nor do they prevent companies from spiking cleanses with extra sugars or flavors to capitalize on the increased popularity. The last thing I want is a cleanse that backfires, so it is important to check the nutrition information.
And some people are just busy. Many of my friends were like me and wanted to incorporate regular cleansing habits, but didn’t have time or flexibility to live by a refrigerator for a few days. It is hard to make time in our demanding lives for more commitments, but some are ultimately worth it. Our health is worth it, and that’s why we started Cleanse on the go!
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