Answer from Dr. Jean-Michel Lecerf, head of the nutrition department at the Institut Pasteur in Lille, author of 40 Misconceptions about diet (ed. Quae, 2023). Comments collected by Marie-Christine Colinon.
It is an idea that has been around for twenty years: the body, tired from the rigors of the bad season, from infections and the excess of winter food, would need a cure to purify itself and recover all his energies. However, there is no scientific study that demonstrates the benefits of such an approach. In addition, the term “toxins” does not make much sense from a medical point of view… In addition, the body already has very effective mechanisms to get rid of metabolic waste that can “intoxicate”. : organs such as the kidneys, liver, intestines, lungs and skin fulfill this role of emuntors.
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I am particularly careful with fasting, because the body does not like extremes and generally tries to compensate later. However, it can be followed after a large excess, if it does not exceed a day. If our lifestyle is really “sprinkling” during the winter, it is preferable to try to review your diet a little, reducing the intake of sugar that accumulates in the form of fat in the liver, reducing saturated fat (meat, etc.), avoiding unnecessary snacking… Going back to a little frugality can’t hurt. And if you want to accompany these efforts with vegetable juice, green tea or rosemary tea, why not? But the notion of “detox” is mainly at the origin of a “business”. And nothing beats physical activity to drain the body!