The juice cleanse diet is a type of diet that includes fruit juice and vegetable extracts, which are recommended for weight loss and detoxification of the body. Another name for this slimming method is the juice diet. Because detoxified fruit extracts are limited in food and calories, many doctors are skeptical about their possible benefits. This article will thoroughly review the juice diet for weight loss.
What are we allowed to eat on the fruit diet?
Raw and organic fruit extract is the main ingredient in the juice cleanse diet. Those who need more calories can add smoothies and some healthy foods to this diet. Some people may choose to eat raw or vegan.
At the same time, others may have gluten-free meals and snacks. If you’re new to a cleanse, detox diet or want to experiment, it’s best to include some solid, healthy foods as part of your detox program.
You can also drink lukewarm or room-temperature water between juices or meals to help cleanse and detoxify your body. During this diet, it is usually recommended to only drink fruit extracts or smoothies to detoxify and cleanse the body, which generally lasts one to three days. But whether you eat solid food or not is up to you.
Cleansing steps in the juice cleanse diet
Cleaning up the juice diet for weight loss has three essential stages:
1- Preparation
Before the cleanse, you should slowly cut back on coffee, refined sugar, meat, dairy, wheat, alcohol, and nicotine for three to five days to avoid headaches, cravings, and tiredness.
Also, increase your fresh vegetable, fruit, and fluid intake before starting the cleanse.
2- Cleaning
For a proper cleanse of one to three days, drink at least one liter of fruit juice or smoothie, at least half of which is green vegetable juice.
3: After three days of cleaning
After completion, it is recommended to eat bland food for a few days and gradually add food over a few days. If you are constantly hungry during these three days and it bothers you, eat vegetable broth or a small snack such as carrots, celery, salad, or a piece of fruit.
For people with special conditions, it is recommended to modify the meal plan of this diet and eat salad for lunch and dinner.
Benefits of a juice diet for weight loss
A juice cleanse diet is a detox diet in which a person consumes juice and vegetables. Juice cleanses typically involve drinking juice for three to ten days.
Proponents of the diet say that the juice diet offers many benefits, including:
- Fruits and vegetables are rich in vitamins and minerals. Drinking fruit juice can provide additional nutrients to the body and improve overall health.
- Fruit juices are rich in anti-inflammatory compounds that may boost the immune system and give a person more energy.
- Many detox diets, especially those that focus on fruit juice, say that fruit extracts or juices can clean the body and help it get rid of toxins.But the main problem is that the people who make these juices rarely say which toxins they get rid of.
- Fruit juices can help improve digestion by introducing healthy enzymes that make the intestines work more efficiently.
It’s important to note that the benefits listed are just what the people who made the regime say they are, and they are not backed up by science.
Possible risks of a juice diet for weight loss
Reducing calorie intake while following this diet may cause dehydration and headaches. The possible risks of a juice diet include the following:
1. Risk of kidney stones
Drinking large amounts of water may be harmful to those with kidney disorders. Certain types of fruit juices contain oxalates. An acidic diet can contribute to kidney stones and other kidney problems.
2: Unstable weight loss
Cleaning diets are usually low in calories. Reducing calorie intake may lead to temporary weight loss, but this change is rarely long-lasting.
3. The risk of contracting diseases
If a person consumes unpasteurized juices or does not have other treatments to kill bacteria and disinfect them, they are at greater risk of getting sick.
This is especially true for the very young and the elderly, as well as those with weakened immune systems.
4. The risk of intestinal irritation
If these extracts contain laxatives or other bowel stimulants, a person may lose too many nutrients through the stool. This leads to dehydration and electrolyte imbalance.
5: Blood sugar drops
Consuming too few calories can cause symptoms of hypoglycemia because the body does not have enough energy.
These symptoms include fainting, weakness, dehydration, headache, and hunger.
Also, people should be careful about ready-made detox juices. Especially the types that promise quick recovery and detoxification.
There is usually no reliable, practical reason to confirm these claims.
What effects can the juice cleanse diet have on the body?
Not much research has been done on the possible benefits of a juice cleanse. However, researchers have investigated the following factors:
1: Losing weight and changing intestinal bacteria
In one study, researchers asked 20 healthy participants to consume only six bottles of different juices in three days. These juices contained various ingredients, such as vegetables, apples, cucumbers, lemons, red peppers, and beans.
Participants lost an average of 1.7 kilograms after three days. After two weeks, their weight was still 0.91 kg less than the average.
Participants did not report an increase in their health level at the end of the three days but felt that their health had improved two weeks after the cleanse.
Researchers also found that this diet increased the number of bacteria that are good for your health and decreased the number of bacteria that cause disease.
2: Kidney health
A case report suggests that a juice-only diet may put your kidneys at risk. This report examines a patient who developed kidney failure after undergoing a detoxification diet for six weeks.
The patient kept a detailed diary of the juices he had consumed. This newspaper showed that his daily consumption equals 1260 mg of oxalate. Oxalate is an organic acid that occurs naturally in many plants.
It is also a nephrotoxin, meaning that significant amounts can damage the kidneys. Doctors recommend that people who follow a juice cleanse program calculate the amount of oxalate they consume daily to avoid kidney problems.
Is the juice diet a healthy choice?
Following a cleanse can be a short-term way to start a new healthy eating plan or a quick break after a few days of binge eating, but it is not recommended as a long-term weight loss program.
Even though going on a juice diet for three days might help you lose weight in the short term, you don’t learn skills like planning and making healthy meals that you need for long-term weight loss.
The USDA says that for a healthy, well-balanced diet, you should eat different kinds of vegetables, fruits, grains, lean meats, beans, legumes, nuts, seeds, dairy products, and oils every day.
According to the ministry, people should consume approximately 1500 calories daily to lose weight. But this value can differ based on age, gender, weight, and activity level.
How to prepare detox juice for the juice cleanse diet
Note that there are differences between extracting fruit juice and using a blender:
- Juicing involves pressing fruits and vegetables and separating their liquid from the pulp.
- The blender mixes all the edible parts of fruits and vegetables, including the pulp or fibrous parts.
A juice diet for weight loss means that a person consumes only juice and liquids for a few days. Proponents of the juice diet recommend different types of this method. such as:
- consumption of water and drinks for several days;
- consumption of fruit juice with food supplements;
- combining juices with procedures that “cleanse” the colon, such as enemas or colonic lavages;
- Drinking juice along with special diets as a means to lose weight
In the juice diet for weight loss, you can make a combination of the following fruits:
- apple, cucumber, celery, romaine lettuce, lemon, spinach, kale, and parsley;
- apple, lemon, ginger, and beet;
- apple, pineapple, lemon, and mint
- Distilled water, cayenne pepper, lemon, almonds, dates, sea salt, beans, and vanilla
You can get 1310 calories a day by drinking six of these compounds.
similar diets to the juice diet for weight loss
A cleansing and detox diet is more like a type of fasting than a diet. Similar fasting programs include:
- Cabbage Soup Diet: The main focus of cabbage soup is homemade soup eaten several times a day. This diet also includes other foods that can be consumed on certain days.
- Grapefruit diet: Another diet that promises rapid weight loss is the 10-day grapefruit diet. The grapefruit diet encourages eating grapefruit or drinking grapefruit juice with every meal.
- Master Cleanse: It is a liquid and popular short-term diet. The Master Cleanse focuses on drinking salt water and six to 12 glasses of special homemade lemonade made from freshly squeezed lemons, maple syrup, and cayenne pepper.
The juice diet is controversial in the medical world because it usually doesn’t help people lose weight or stay healthy in the long run. Most experts recommend following a balanced and healthy diet instead of a juice cleanse diet.
Most of the evidence that a juice diet might help you lose weight is not scientifically backed up. Before starting this diet, talk to your doctor and ask for his advice.