Benefits of a 3 Day Juice Cleanse
Despite the inevitable side effects that stepping away from the sugar, caffeine, alcohol and processed foods may bring, (headaches, low mood, lethargy, irritability and hunger) - are the benefits you can gain from a 3 Day Juice Cleanse worth the pain?
What is a Juice Cleanse?
A juice cleanse, which can also be known as a fast or detox, typically means that for a limited amount of time the body will only consume a combination of fresh fruit and veggie juices, avoiding any solid food. It’s worth mentioning here that the combination and ratio of fruit to vegetables used in making your juice needs to be balanced and low in sugars. Shop bought fruit juices are often brimming with artificial flavours, preservatives and sugar laded calories.
Additional Considerations
Often a juice cleanse is supported by using targeted supplements and ideally coupled with specific therapies like colon hydrotherapy to make your cleanse powerfully effective both mentally and physically. Try to time your cleanse well - your life should be free from too much stress, work or activity.
What about medical evidence?
To date there has not been any significant medical research carried out on juice cleanses and much of the benefits reported seem to be anecdotal, however there is no disputing that participants can feel very different after cleansing for only 3 days. From clearer skin, weight loss, brighter eyes, reduction in stress, more energy, - surely there has to be more evidence to champion juice cleanses than just what people say.
Well, seek and ye shall find…
PubMed Central, the digital archiver of biomedical and life science journals, lists various positive research findings on how short term fasting may improve levels of leptin and insulin sensitivity as well as improving various disease markers. (1) [Source]
Furthermore, an article in the database of PubMed demonstrated that doing a juice cleanse increased the amount of health beneficial bacteria and actually lowered the numbers of bad bacteria in the gut. (2) [Source] Plus juices are packed with healthy enzymes that can restore the digestive system and help the gut work more effectively.
There is certainly no argument to the fact that most of us are not getting enough fibre, vitamins, or minerals in our everyday diet, so by drinking juices made from fruits and vegetables high in vitamins and minerals, this will definitely provide a huge boost of extra nutrition to boost the body’s immune system and promote overall wellness.
Reduce that inflammation
The medical profession is very aware that keeping levels of inflammation low is essential to prevent your immune system attacking healthy tissues and organs. High levels of inflammation lead to disease, namely diabetes, heart disease, cancer and rheumatoid arthritis. Juices are rich in many anti-inflammatory plant compounds that help boost the immune system and help control the inflammatory responses in our bodies.
In Penny Brohn’s cancer care book, ‘Nourish”, she states that juices are an excellent way to take in nutrition in an easy and digestible way. (3) [Source] Let’s mention here that a juice cleanse, or fast is nothing new and unlike a water fast, it is a gentle yet effective way of helping the body clear its wastes. Drinking freshly made juices can be a perfect way of getting plenty of nourishment into a person that has a poor appetite.
What about juicing and effects on weight loss?
Weight loss can be a frustrating, demoralising and darn right exasperating. Admittedly we are not advocating a juice cleanse as a balanced, long term strategy to drop the pounds, however a juice cleanse can show a significant difference of the scales. Participants normally lose between 1-3lbs per day on a juice detox. Of course, if you finish the cleanse and return to exactly what you were doing before to pile the weight on in the first place, then any success is going to be lost very quickly. From experience, what we have seen, is that the 6-8lbs weight loss acts as the catalyst, the incentive to begin eating in a healthier more mindful manner. The rapid weight loss is a huge boost to someone’s confidence that has been struggling with their weight for years. It gives a glowing sense of achievement and hey, if you can get through a 3 day Juice cleanse and not eat anything, eating healthy food now seems that much easier.
What we all need to pay attention to
Elson M. Haas, MD and Buck Levin, PhD, RD, in their amazing book, Staying Healthy with Nutriton, state the value of juice cleansing perfectly, “most people overeat, eat too often, and eat a high protein, high-fat, acid-forming and congesting diet more consistently than is necessary.” (4) [Source] Juice cleansing can literally break this cycle, press your reset button and help you shift from unhealthy, abusive habits to a more mindful and healthful way of life in general. It’s what we witness every week with our juice cleansing clients at Homefield Grange Retreat.
For the vast majority of people of the thousands of people we have supervised doing a juice cleanse, the difference in just a few days can be remarkable. A juice cleanse can act as the perfect way to pack out your diet with extra nutrients, gives immediate weight loss and in our experience, can be the springboard to a healthier, leaner version of yourself for life.
