For many people the beginning of the New Year is the time of detox. Therefore I wasted some thoughts on this issue.
To flush the body from toxins! A slogan well known based on a thought concept that dates back into the ancient times of Greece. Essentially, this theory held that the human body was filled with four basic substances, called four humors, which are in balance when a person is healthy. All diseases and disabilities resulted from an excess or deficit of one of these four humors. The four humors were identified as black bile, yellow bile, phlegm, and blood. This theory was actively practiced until the end of the 19th century. Methods of treatment like bloodletting, emetics and purges were aimed at expelling a harmful surplus of a humor. Other methods used herbs and foods associated with a particular humor to counter symptoms of disease, for instance: people who had a fever and were sweating were considered hot and wet and therefore given substances associated with cold and dry (source: Wikipedia)
But many of the old metaphors our ancestors used for explaining sicknesses are still alive today. The advent of modern science was not able to change the thinking of hundreds of years. Deeply engraved into our body is the view that toxins are piling up in our body, debris we need to rid our body from.
The imagination to cleanse body and soul from harming compounds is thus very old. The industry of detox products takes huge advantage of these ancient patterns in our thinking far beyond scientific evidence. I don’t want to indicate that scientific evidence is right and the old theory is stupid and inefficient. But I think we should be aware of the fact, from where our strong desire for purification comes, and why we may be an easy prey for an industry that knows about our weaknesses so well.
Some points you may want to consider (published by sense about science) before getting roped in the detox affairs:
Usually a healthy body’s liver, gut and kidneys are able detoxify your system. Another “detoxification system” or better filter is the lymphatic system and the skin. Only few chemicals / toxins can penetrate the skin without destroying it.
The term toxins is fairly vague. Whether a compound is toxic or not depends very much on the ingested dose… water can be toxic, so can be oxygen, this is what our Western science tells us.
Only in case of an intoxication you need a detox-ification.
Our Natural Science says:
- Have glass of water to help you rehydrate
- Eat a balanced diet
- Get a good night’s sleep
