Barely a week seems to go by without the tabloid presses reporting on a new dieting trend, but one that keeps on doing the rounds year after year is some form of juice-based regime. We’re now used to seeing paparazzi photos of famous faces such as Jennifer Aniston, Gwyneth Paltrow and Beyonce Knowles walking around carrying a healthy-looking green concoction as they make their way to the gym, film set or recording studio. Many people like to emulate these A-listers and try such juices themselves, after all, there’s not a much better advert than the glowing skin, toned thighs and taut tummies displayed by these glamorous women. However, what about the type of juice regime that restricts followers to nothing but juice at the expense of all other foodstuffs? This is the darker side of such diets and it’s one that could be putting people’s health at risk, rather than giving it a boost. Advocates suggest that ‘cleansing’ in this way is a good way to detox the body and get rid of impurities, as well as achieving quick weight loss. However, there is no scientific evidence to prove that the digestive system needs to rest in this way. Also, a juice-only diet that lasts several days, let alone a few weeks like some, could do serious harm to your body. Health risks You won’t be getting any carbohydrates with this kind of regime, so you’re likely to feel light-headed and extremely tired, meaning that exercising will be a problem. The lack of protein will also lead to muscle mass loss, compounding this problem. Although you might assume that juices are the healthiest drink you can get, they don’t actually contain any fibre because it’s all removed during the extraction process. Consequently, not only are you likely to experience digestive issues such as stomach aches and bloating, but you will also be subjected to blood blood sugar spikes. This is because the body can absorb the sugar from the fruit more quickly without the fibre to contend with, and there’s a lot of sugar in there. Side-effects include sudden energy slumps and highs, but more serious complications are a risk for patients with diabetes and other blood glucose disorders. There is also likely to be an unexpected toll on how you look. Far from the dewy skin and lustrous hair you might be hoping for, juice-only diets can lead to spotty breakouts (that’s the sugar again), hair loss and rotting teeth as the liquids’ acids attack the enamel. It’s important to consider the long-term effects too, especially if you’re planning on making a juice diet a regular thing. With a lack of nutrients, the heart can be put under serious pressure, potentially leading to cardiovascular disease and even heart attacks. Obesity and its associated health problems are another issue, as is bone thinning because of a lack of minerals. To add insult to injury, doing a juice diet is actually likely to leave you weighing more than you did before, partly because you’ll be so famished that you’re likely to binge on sugary snacks when you can’t take it anymore, but also because your body will start to frantically slow your metabolism as it runs out of fat to burn and starts on essential proteins. The bottom line is that any type of juice-only diet is too extreme to be effective and the results are unlikely to last, causing yo-yo-dieting.
