Is it possible to achieve full body detox with Master Cleanse?


Last Updated December 20th, 2021

Master cleanse: understanding the objective

This is a lemonade based diet that works as a deep cleanser and also aids in rapid weight loss. It is a liquid based diet consisting of a lemonade based beverage, a salt water drink and a herbal tea functioning as a laxative. The main aim of this diet is the rapid weight reduction within 10 days of time. It detoxifies your digestive system and also keeps you rejuvenated. It also helps in lowering the cravings for junk food.

What are the initial preparations for this diet?

There are no solid foods allowed. First, there is a preparation you must do before you begin this regime. This is done so that you gradually get your body used to a liquid-based diet with ease.

On the first 2 days, you must not eat any processed foods, meat, caffeine, dairy, foods with added sugars or even drink alcohol. You should lean more towards eating fruits and vegetables. From the 3rd day, consume a liquid based diet. Include liquids such as soups, broths, smoothies or fresh vegetable or fruit juice.

Consume only water and fresh-squeezed orange juice on the fourth day. You can include some maple syrup to obtain some calories for you to sustain. Before bed, have a cup of herbal laxative tea. Begin the “Master Cleanse” from the 5th day onwards.

How to prepare the juice for the master cleanse?

  • In a jar, take about 2 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice from 1/2 a lemon.
  • Add 2 tablespoons of pure maple syrup to the lemon juice.
  • You can also add 1/10 teaspoon (or 0.2 grams) of cayenne pepper or more according to the taste you want.
  • Add about 350 ml of pure water.
  • Mix all the above contents well. Drink this juice whenever you feel hungry. It is recommended for you to have at least 6 servings every day.
  • Stimulate bowel movements by drinking warm salt water or any herbal laxative tea.

Is it really that effective as it sounds?

It is important to stick to this diet for 10 to 40 days to experience the fruit of it. Research-wise, there isn’t any investigation done on this diet so far.

The Master Cleanse is a starvation based regime. One serving of this beverage will amount up to 110 calories and in a day nearly 6 servings are required. You will tend to consume lesser calories. A study found that adults who drank lemon water with honey during four days of fasting lost an average of 4.8 pounds (2.2 kg) and had significantly lower triglyceride levels. The weight loss success rate, in the long run, is hardly about 20%.

Does it really flush out toxins?

The designers of this diet claim that this diet detoxifies the body because lemon contains citric acid. This triggers your liver to produce more bile and bile aids in digestion. Good digestion means good toxin evacuation.

The citric acid in lemon water pumps up the metabolic machinery. This helps in enhanced fat burning. Moreover, the increase in metabolic rate and energy production also supplies energy for the detoxification process.

It also helps in muscle and bone maintenance and plays an essential role in repair. Citric acid also curbs the reactive oxygen species and protects the cells from oxidative damage. This enables collagen formation which is the prime protein for intact hair, skin, and nails.

What are the advantages?

  • You don’t have to cook separately or worry about the calories you consume. You can drink it whenever you are hungry.
  • This is very helpful for those who are on a tight schedule. Also, making lemonade doesn’t consume too much time.
  • This diet mainly involves cayenne pepper, lemon juice, salt, water, herbal tea. All of these ingredients are not very expensive.
  • As mentioned earlier, this weight loss effect remains only as long as you continue this diet but wears off the moment you discontinue.

A typical Master Cleanse regime

Early in the morning, after brushing your teeth, you need to drink one-quarter of warm water containing 2 teaspoons of sea salt to trigger your bowel movement. For the rest of the day, consume 6 servings of the lemonade every time you feel hungry. Before you go to bed, drink one cup of herbal laxative tea if you want.

Gradually come out of the master cleanse

After completion of the master cleanses, you cannot just immediately start off with a normal diet. You need to gradually ease your way out of it. On the first day post, the cleanse: drink freshly made orange juice for one day.

The next day, consume vegetable soup. On the third day, consume fresh vegetables and fruits. On day 4, you can eat normally, but make sure you do not consume processed foods.

The major drawbacks

  • Drinking only herbal tea, pepper, or salt water will not give you any fiber or any vital nutrient such as proteins, vitamins, fats or minerals. Your body needs a balance of all these.
  • The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that an individual must obtain only 5% of the calories (about 25 grams) from added sugars.
  • On this note, the Master offers added sugars from maple syrup which weighs up to 23 grams. So, 6 servings of this lemonade drink (each containing 23 grams) is a total of 138 grams of added sugar. This is more than 5 times the recommended amount by the WHO.
  • The captivating fact is that since this kind of drink is consumed in small portions in a day, there will be no negative impact on the blood sugar.

Drawbacks of restrictive diets

Such a restricted diet with no solid food will drain you out both physically and mentally. You won’t be able to participate in any social gatherings as you won’t be able to eat the food.

Your body is sending you signals indicating that it needs fuel to function but this cleansing diet does not meet the demands. This deprivation also increases the cortisol levels (the stress hormone) and there will be more chances you will start binge eating and gain weight.

The unwanted side effects of the “Master Cleanse”

The Master Cleanse is a very low-calorie diet and it does cause some uncomfortable side effects. Often, people experience bad breath, fatigue, dizziness, headaches, irritated state, muscle cramps, nausea, low tolerance to cold conditions, hair loss, etc.

Such a rapid way of weight loss increases the chances of gall bladder stones as well. Also, there isn’t much solid food included so the chances of constipation are less. This liquid-based diet results in bloating, nausea or cramping in some people.

This cleanse regime doesn’t suit everybody

  • Pregnant women must not indulge in the Master Cleanse as the calorie requirement for a pregnant woman is more.
  • Such a calorie deficit will definitely give more room for binge eating and a person can revert back in terms of weight gain.
  • Those who are on insulin medication must be careful as this cleansing diet results in low blood sugar as well.
  • People with heart issues must avoid this diet as it results in an imbalance in the electrolytes and this will affect the heart even more.

The final takeaway…

Diets are mainly focusing on weight loss or fat reduction. It is vital for weight loss as obesity is on the rise even in children. Master Cleanse enables detoxification and rapid weight loss.

The herbal tea functions as a laxative and the salt water is a bowel stimulator. The sad part is that this Master Cleanse is a diet restricted on solid food and can lead to bloating, fatigue, constipation, or more. Lemon water alone isn’t sufficient for your body.

This diet does not supplement major nutrients such as proteins, minerals, vitamins, and lipids.


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