{{/B}} ? ?After Christmas comes the
anti-Christmas. If the festive season is all about filing up on the things you
like that are bad for you, then the new year is the ’detox season’ - when people
across the western world adopt special diets to lose weight and get fid of the
vague feeling that they have spent the last few weeks poisoning
themselves. ? ?But are detox diets really necessary? After all, the
body itself gets fid of unwanted substances. That’s what the liver and kidney
are for. ? ?"The detox fad - or fads, as there are many methods -
is an example of the capacity of people to believe in and pay for magic despite
the lack of any sound evidence," says Martin Wiseman, professor of human
nutrition at the University of Southampton in the UK. ? ?Most of
the pills, juices, teas and oils that are sold for their detoxifying effects on
the body have no scientific foundation for their claims, according to the
research. People would be better off having a glass of water and going to bed
early. ? ?Detox diets may be magic rather science, but they are the
kind of magic which many people want to perform. That may have something to do
with the western diet in general. ? ?Scientists and dieticians
argue that the benefits people feel are not due to their body getting fid of
excessive toxins but are due to changing from what is likely to have been a
’poor’ diet. ? ?Having fewer headaches, for example, is probably
the result of being fully hydrated due to drinking so much water and better skin
may be due to eating more fruit and vegetables. ? ?Detox diets may
also be dangerous, as they may deprive vulnerable groups - pregnant women, for
instance, or growing teenagers - of the kind of nutrients they need. ?
?Yet their popularity continues to rise. This may be something to do with
the way that food works within many western cultures. Generally, a country’s
food develops along with its economy and society. Food becomes part of a
person’s cultural identity. ? ?In some countries, this link has
been broken. In the UK, for example, rapid industrialization in the 18th and
19th centuries saw millions of people move from the countryside to the towns
interrupting the development of a national cuisine. The United States, a country
of immigrants from many different places, has found it hard to develop a
national cuisine. In both places, comparatively few people cook for themselves
and food supply is dominated by big processing and agribusiness
companies. ? ?Detox diets are more popular in these countries than
in places like France and Italy, where strong links between food and national
culture remain, and where far more people regularly cook for themselves instead
of buying processed foods. ? ?Perhaps detox diets are successful
because many westerners have lost trust in what they eat. On the other hand,
they may help re-introduce people to the kind of food that is necessary for a
healthy diet. And after learning that, they won’t poison themselves in the first
place. ? ?This would mean radical changes in the way that people
cat across the west. And that would be an unwelcome development for the food
industry. From the business point of view, it is much better to sell people the
problem and then sell them the solution.
A positive effect of detox diets is that it helps people to see what foods are good for their health.
{{/B}} ? ?After Christmas comes the
anti-Christmas. If the festive season is all about filing up on the things you
like that are bad for you, then the new year is the ’detox season’ - when people
across the western world adopt special diets to lose weight and get fid of the
vague feeling that they have spent the last few weeks poisoning
themselves. ? ?But are detox diets really necessary? After all, the
body itself gets fid of unwanted substances. That’s what the liver and kidney
are for. ? ?"The detox fad - or fads, as there are many methods -
is an example of the capacity of people to believe in and pay for magic despite
the lack of any sound evidence," says Martin Wiseman, professor of human
nutrition at the University of Southampton in the UK. ? ?Most of
the pills, juices, teas and oils that are sold for their detoxifying effects on
the body have no scientific foundation for their claims, according to the
research. People would be better off having a glass of water and going to bed
early. ? ?Detox diets may be magic rather science, but they are the
kind of magic which many people want to perform. That may have something to do
with the western diet in general. ? ?Scientists and dieticians
argue that the benefits people feel are not due to their body getting fid of
excessive toxins but are due to changing from what is likely to have been a
’poor’ diet. ? ?Having fewer headaches, for example, is probably
the result of being fully hydrated due to drinking so much water and better skin
may be due to eating more fruit and vegetables. ? ?Detox diets may
also be dangerous, as they may deprive vulnerable groups - pregnant women, for
instance, or growing teenagers - of the kind of nutrients they need. ?
?Yet their popularity continues to rise. This may be something to do with
the way that food works within many western cultures. Generally, a country’s
food develops along with its economy and society. Food becomes part of a
person’s cultural identity. ? ?In some countries, this link has
been broken. In the UK, for example, rapid industrialization in the 18th and
19th centuries saw millions of people move from the countryside to the towns
interrupting the development of a national cuisine. The United States, a country
of immigrants from many different places, has found it hard to develop a
national cuisine. In both places, comparatively few people cook for themselves
and food supply is dominated by big processing and agribusiness
companies. ? ?Detox diets are more popular in these countries than
in places like France and Italy, where strong links between food and national
culture remain, and where far more people regularly cook for themselves instead
of buying processed foods. ? ?Perhaps detox diets are successful
because many westerners have lost trust in what they eat. On the other hand,
they may help re-introduce people to the kind of food that is necessary for a
healthy diet. And after learning that, they won’t poison themselves in the first
place. ? ?This would mean radical changes in the way that people
cat across the west. And that would be an unwelcome development for the food
industry. From the business point of view, it is much better to sell people the
problem and then sell them the solution.
A positive effect of detox diets is that it helps people to see what foods are good for their health.
A.
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