05.20.08
Adventures in Cleansing: Part I
Ah, spring…trees are budding, flowers are blooming, and my apartment needs a serious scrub down. But forget chiseling away at the nasty soap scum that’s accumulated in my tub since last fall (um, gross?). Instead, I think I’ll focus on some internal scouring. After subsisting on wine and white flour all winter, I’ve decided to try my hand at detoxing and see what all this cleansing buzz is about. Or anti-buzz (coffee is a no-no when you cleanse). Does it really work or is it another fad? I set out to find out.
The idea might seem trendy (I think ALL of Hollywood is into it right now), but cleansing has been around for literally thousands of years. In Chinese medicine, each organ in the body is associated with a particular season, and the liver, the body’s filter, is associated with spring, thus the purge mania happening currently. These days, detox programs range from The Master Cleanse (think Beyonce) and all-juice diets to tamer versions like Renew Life, which combines capsules of herbs with eating healthier. They’re all supposed to restore energy and flush out crap (like alcohol, hazardous substances and well, literally – crap). As one of my friends put it, “You get to clean out the pipes.” Other people report that they seem lighter, feel more energized, and have better skin after a cleanse. Um, where do I sign up?
But is there any science behind it? Is it all psychosomatic? Well, it’s iffy. Most of the herbal preparations - containing everything from slippery elm to blessed thistle - aren’t approved by the FDA. And doctors basically agree that our bodies are beautifully equipped to “eliminate” toxins - through the liver, kidneys, even skin - very well on their own, thank you very much.
I still wanted to see for myself, so after hanging out at Pharmaca for 20 minutes, I bought a course of Renew Life’s First Cleanse. The box said it would be “gentle.” (Gentle, my ass). I’m diving in today, so stay tuned in the next few weeks for all the dirty details of my adventures as a cleansing virgin. And we’ll find out for sure if cleansing is (or isn’t) full of crap…pardon the pun.
The idea might seem trendy (I think ALL of Hollywood is into it right now), but cleansing has been around for literally thousands of years. In Chinese medicine, each organ in the body is associated with a particular season, and the liver, the body’s filter, is associated with spring, thus the purge mania happening currently. These days, detox programs range from The Master Cleanse (think Beyonce) and all-juice diets to tamer versions like Renew Life, which combines capsules of herbs with eating healthier. They’re all supposed to restore energy and flush out crap (like alcohol, hazardous substances and well, literally – crap). As one of my friends put it, “You get to clean out the pipes.” Other people report that they seem lighter, feel more energized, and have better skin after a cleanse. Um, where do I sign up?
But is there any science behind it? Is it all psychosomatic? Well, it’s iffy. Most of the herbal preparations - containing everything from slippery elm to blessed thistle - aren’t approved by the FDA. And doctors basically agree that our bodies are beautifully equipped to “eliminate” toxins - through the liver, kidneys, even skin - very well on their own, thank you very much.
I still wanted to see for myself, so after hanging out at Pharmaca for 20 minutes, I bought a course of Renew Life’s First Cleanse. The box said it would be “gentle.” (Gentle, my ass). I’m diving in today, so stay tuned in the next few weeks for all the dirty details of my adventures as a cleansing virgin. And we’ll find out for sure if cleansing is (or isn’t) full of crap…pardon the pun.
