The Cleanse Diet Defined

Want a diet that gets all the toxins out, is simple, and causes you to lose weight?

Then you want a diet called the Cleanse Diet.

It is not really a diet diet, where you stick to certain foods and eat certain amounts of foods. It is more of a detoxification program. While you are on this diet no solid food is allowed.

Basically, this is a liquid diet containing fresh lemons, maple syrup, cayenne pepper and a laxative tea. In addition to losing weight, this concoction is supposed to cleanse the body and intestines of toxins that cause cravings of alcohol, tobacco and drugs.

While it is doubtful that such a diet is harmful in the short run; there can be real dangers if you stay on it too long. However, this diet contains no real nutrients and can therefore cause severe deficiencies after awhile.

The Cleanse Diet was originally developed by Stanley Burroughs in the 1940's. Burroughs was what once called a "medical performer". He was one part show, one part cure and one part commerce. That combination worked then, and to a certain extent, it works now. Think of all the diet programs that have come and gone and come again, all with their own media presentations and, usually, a charismatic person doing the promoting or performing.

As diets come and go, so did the Cleanse Diet. It fell off the diet radar screen for a few decades, but was resurrected for the fat nineties, the fat 1990's, that is.

Most of the people who subscribe to and promote the Cleanse Diet do not really recommend it only for weight loss, but more for the health benefits. There is no proof, though, that the Cleanse Diet or program will remove toxins. A healthy person will have the ability to remove the normal toxins of the body through normal functioning livers and kidneys.

Some people, including celebrities, will use the Cleanse Diet or Program for rapid weight loss. There is virtually no solid food included, so the pounds will shed quickly. Remember, too, there is a laxative tea component as well. This is a sure recipe for weight loss. One celebrity that used the Cleanse Diet or program recently was Beyonce Knowles to get ready for a role in Dreamgirls.

A word of caution is needed for those who are debating the Cleanse Diet. This diet has virtually no nutritional value, so long-term use has been known to cause problems similar to starvation. For instance, headaches are common. Weakness is common if you stay on the Cleanse Diet for any length of time, too.

There have even been reports of serious illness and death, because of the lack of nutritional value. It is obvious that anybody thinking of undertaking the Cleanse Diet should consider it a short-term, weight loss type of program. For those who are susceptible to compulsive acts it is better to stay away from the Cleanse Diet. Once started, those who are susceptible to these compulsive acts may not be able to easily curtail the diet and end up in serious trouble.