Detox

July 1, 2009 8:55 AM

How do I "detox"?

I work as a back waitress at a French restaurant. The majority of my meals come from work and I am also asked to taste a lot of the food that is produced. As a result, I end up eating LOTS of butter, cream, and other heavy unhealthy food. I have a couple of weeks off and am looking for a good way to "detox". It has nothing to do with weight loss. I just feel really gross and full of crap. What is the best way to do this and for how long should I do this?

posted by GComes to health & fitness (16 comments total)

You don't need to "detox," because there's nothing toxic in what you've been eating. Shift your diet to fresh veggies, lightly sauteed or stir-fried food, etc, and you'll feel less gross and crappy pretty damn fast. This coming from someone who's transitioning from a fried-and-heavy diet into a healthier one; I started feeling the difference almost immediately.
posted by Tomorrowful at 8:57 AM on July 1 [15 favorites]

I'm sure someone will be along to say this more authoritatively then me, but all the "detox" and "cleanse" stuff is pseudo-scientific, possibly dangerous nonsense. The "toxins" they are talking about do not exist.

If you want to feel better, eat light and healthy and get exercise.

(If you're not talking about "detox" in the pseudo-medical sense, I apologize, but that's what it sounds like to me)
posted by drjimmy11 at 8:58 AM on July 1 [4 favorites]

A previous thread on detoxification might help. In it, I link to an article from Harvard Medical School called "The Dubious Practice of Detox."

If you just feel yucky because you've been eating too much greasy or rich food (a feeling I have had myself at one point or another), then stop doing that. Eat a fairly simple, mainly vegetarian diet for a few days.
posted by grouse at 9:03 AM on July 1 [2 favorites]

I don't believe in Detox, but if I feel the way you talk about, I tend to go for a while without dairy, meat and alcohol, and that gives me a boost.

Maybe I'm intolerant, dunno, I sure as hell aint giving em up, I just enjoy a break now and then and maybe it does me some good. YMMV.
posted by greenish at 9:10 AM on July 1

I also used to be a waitress who ate a ton of junk at work (mostly cheesesteaks and pasta) and would get that gross feeling every now and then. Usually a few days of light meals made me feel better - lots of salad with every raw veggie you can eat ever and plenty of fresh fruit. For more substance add some brown rice and whatever kinds of beans you like (beans can be mixed into the salad too).

As far as how long to do this, I just did it until I was hungry with a mad craving for another cheesesteak. Just listen to your body and don't starve yourself.

Also, since you have a few weeks off you might want to find some leisurely aerobic excercise. When I waited, the work itself (running around, lifting heavy trays) was enough excercise in itself, but when I had off I would feel sluggish if I didn't go for a walk/jog, swim, or ride my bike every day.
posted by WeekendJen at 9:13 AM on July 1

I'm assuming you mean that you've got that heavy, sluggish feeling from eating too much rich food. When I get this, I like to increase the proportion of vegetables in my diet. Since it's summer, I'd find a good source of fresh produce (farmer's market?) to make up the base of your diet for the next few weeks. You might try to some recipes from 101 Cookbooks. Right now her top post is on a fairly rich-looking tart, but generally her recipes are very fresh and healthy.

Also, I always feel healthier if I avoid beer. Oh, and Boston lettuce, red onion slices, chopped grapefruit, and a little bit of creamy cheese (like Boursin Gourney) dressed with a squeeze of grapefruit juice and salt and pepper is a lovely and tasty little salad to go with summer dinners. (I like pretty food.)
posted by Meg_Murry at 9:17 AM on July 1

Yes, "detox" is nonsense--taking a break from the icky stuff for a bit (and bringing it back only in moderation) is all you need.

This goes for what you drink too. For the coming 2 weeks, drink whatever you want at mealtimes. Drink only water all other times. If you drink a lot of Coke/Pepsi or virtually anything carbonated then this alone will probably make you feel better.
posted by K.P. at 9:23 AM on July 1 [1 favorite]

Cook everything in good olive oil. Drink lots of green tea. Eat fresh vegetables and fruits from a farmer's market. My organic apricots are not ripe for another three weeks, but they are the most awesome source of vitamins A and C, if you can find something like that. I eat at least twenty per day when picking--they give you incredible energy.
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 9:27 AM on July 1

It might help if you think of this less in terms of the bunky "detox" and more in terms of doing healthy things for your body/mind.

Drink lots of water. Eat foods that are as close to fresh-out-of-the-ground as possible: shop in the outer aisles of the supermarket, prepare them without coating them in sugar/fat/salt/sauce (you don't have to cut them out completely, just don't go overboard). Switching from white/refined carbs to whole grains can help immensely, too. Make sure you eat enough, and don't kick yourself if you eat something really junky one day - fat and sugar are delicious, and it's ridiculous to deny yourself of them completely.

Get as much sleep as you need, and move around at least once a day. No matter what I'm eating, I feel my best if I'm exercising regularly.

Finally, looking at your posting history, I noticed you posted this question and you live in Los Angeles - land of the thin and of quick-fix quackery. I believe you when you say this isn't about weight loss. However, self-imposed dietary changes that are sudden and strict, even if started with the best of intentions, often lead to eating disorder relapse. For this reason I strongly encourage you not to completely overhaul your eating habits over these next two weeks, but perhaps to do a couple smaller things for yourself that you can sustain long-term and that don't feel restrictive or punitive. Good luck!
posted by Metroid Baby at 9:33 AM on July 1 [1 favorite]

What would you eat if you weren't working at a French restaurant? Eat that. I feel that same sort of heaviness (although I don't believe in detoxing) when I eat off my normal diet and in a richer fashion (for me that would be a lot of sweets, bread, pasta, etc). If I go back to my usual meat-heavy carb-light I feel better after just a few meals. That's all you need to do, eat what feels normal and right to you. And try to find things served at work that fit into what you would normally gravitate to, so you stop feeling gross all the time.
posted by ch1x0r at 9:33 AM on July 1

There is a yoga exercise called Shankh Prakshalana. It involves drinking a lot of salty water and doing a few exercises and then the water passes through digestive system and clears it. It feels really great after it to the extent that it changes your sense of hearing, sense of smell, the body feels completely different altogether. The only issue is that you pretty much lose two days - if you do it in the morning, the rest of the day you will feel really cold and sleepy; on the next day you'll feel too tired to do anything. During the following week you'll feel great and have more energy than usual. If you google for this you'll find a lot of sites about it.

It does have a very intense effect on the body during the first day, more intense than you'd think, almost scary because it's so unexpected. All the directions have to be done accurately or it may even be dangerous in theory.

Another option is to fast for a day. In my experience it has similar effect as the exercise, but not as strong. If you don't want to fast you can try to only eat fruits for one day, or only drink fruit juices, or only fruits and salads. Again, not as effective as fasting but easier to do.
posted by rainy at 10:31 AM on July 1 [3 favorites]

I think a lot of people are dogpiling on you for the "detox" word, but I have a feeling that you were speaking more in a general "eat better" sense rather than engaging in any specific "eat nothing but braised lemons and drink oatstraw tea for a week" fad diet.

that said -- yeah, lots of vegetables. Don't worry too much about trying to hit all the four recommended things from the food pyramid with every meal or every day or whatever -- the food pyramid is supposed to be an overall average, so it's okay to just eat nothing but vegetables and fruit for a day or two if you feel you've been overdosing on grains, meat, and fat.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 10:35 AM on July 1

Restaurant food can contain a lot of salt. You end up retaining water and feeling bloated and sluggish. Paradoxically, the way to deal with it is to drink plenty of water.
posted by wryly at 12:08 PM on July 1

Agreed on the 'detox' term. I think people have started using in more generically, as in the sense of moving from unhealthy to healthy in general.

Also with everyone else: just start eating foods with good nutritional value. How long: forever is good, but we do what we can...
posted by Vaike at 12:14 PM on July 1

Veggies, fruits, and throw in some plain lowfat kefir.
posted by jgirl at 4:09 PM on July 1

I've found that in addition to drinking primarily water, if I add lemon juice to my water I seem to flush out what I've eaten more thoroughly than if I used water exclusively. I've also used vinegar in place of lemon juice, and this seems to have digestive benefits too; something about the acidity of both helps the digestion and purging of fats. Also, try to eat more fiber...that'll really flush you out, and you'll enjoy better health all around.
posted by motown missile at 7:59 PM on July 1