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"From guzzling lemonade and gulping green juices to popping herbal pills, it seems everyone is talking about detoxing and cleansing these days. But what works and what doesn&amp;#039;t? And, more important, what could be potentially dangerous to your health? We looked into the most popular &amp;quot;detox&amp;quot; methods and talked to experts to get the skinny on detoxing diets.  1. The Master Cleanse What It Is: Perhaps the most well-known and buzzed-about detox diet, The Master Cleanse\u2014which instructs people to drink lemon juice and water spiked with maple syrup and cayenne pepper\u2014is said to help the body remove toxins and aid in speedy weight loss. Though touted by many in the entertainment industry (Beyonc\u00E9 Knowles famously lost 20 pounds to prepare for her role in Dreamgirls), others worry that the 10-day liquid diet could pose serious health risks, especially for people who use it for longer periods of time. What the Experts Say: You may lose weight with this diet, says Stella Metsovas, BS, CN, a nutritionist in Laguna Beach, California, but don&amp;#039;t expect it to be lasting. &amp;quot;Once Master Cleansers are finished with their fast, they inevitably return to their previous habits,&amp;quot; she says. &amp;quot;As they return to their real-life consumption within a few days, they actually could be more prone to problems associated with being sick, including joint and muscle pain, lethargy, constipation and a host of other negative consequences.&amp;quot; Photo by iStockphoto.  2. LemonAid 48 Hour Detox Diet What It Is: Made famous by Anne Hathaway, who reportedly turned to this 48-hour &amp;quot;detox&amp;quot; program before the Oscars last year, fitness expert David Kirsch&amp;#039;s two-day juice fast has garnered a lot of interest from people in and out of Hollywood. The plan goes like this: You drink the specially prepared lemonade formula, created by Kirsch, four times a day for two days, then\u2014voil\u00E0\u2014a lighter, leaner you emerges. What the Experts Say: While most health experts have concerns about all-liquid diets, most agree that a short-term detox program is unlikely to harm your health\u2014in fact, it could even help you jump-start a weight-loss regimen. &amp;quot;In general, a few days of malnutrition (i.e., fasting) won&amp;#039;t induce severe harm,&amp;quot; says Gloria Tsang, RD, founder of HealthCastle.com. Photo courtesy of DavidKirchWellness.com.  3. iZO Cleanze What It Is: This juice-delivery service ships custom freshly made organic juices to clients across the country (probiotics and laxatives are also options). The program is said to help with everything from weight loss to acne. What the Experts Say: There&amp;#039;s nothing wrong with fresh juice, says Thomas Sterry, MD, a New York\u2013based board-certified plastic surgeon with a master&amp;#039;s degree in exercise physiology. But if you use it as your only source of food, you&amp;#039;re not doing well for your body. &amp;quot;The iZO Cleanze is a juice fast that discourages the user from eating solid foods for two weeks as a means to shed weight and encourage &amp;#039;euphoric feelings of compassion and love and increased self-confidence and positive outlook on life,&amp;#039;&amp;quot; he says. There&amp;#039;s no proof, says Dr. Sterry, that you&amp;#039;ll feel euphoric or more compassionate, but fresh vegetable and fruit juices are always a healthful addition to any diet. Still, a complete-juice fast doesn&amp;#039;t get his stamp of approval. Instead, he says, consider incorporating fresh juice (whether it&amp;#039;s from iZO or from your own juice press at home) into a regular, balanced diet. Photo by iStockphoto.  4. 21 Day Clean Detox Program  What It Is: In her e-mail newsletter &amp;quot;Goop,&amp;quot; Gwyneth Paltrow recently wrote about her love of the Clean Detox Program, a regimen created by Alejandro Junger, MD. Devotees claim they feel lighter and &amp;quot;cleaner&amp;quot; after completing the three-week program, which is based on fresh juices and very light meals. What the Experts Say: &amp;quot;This cleanse permits one meal a day, which is certainly better than eliminating all solid food,&amp;quot; says Dr. Sterry. &amp;quot;However, much like other cleanses, it is very expensive.&amp;quot; And, he adds, such extreme calorie restriction can be too harsh for some people. Instead, try undoing a few of your unhealthy habits on your own, like nixing your afternoon soda or using the money you might have spent on one day of fancy detox food to purchase a mechanical juicer instead. &amp;quot;There is no doubt that what you put into your body leaves a mark on your physical appearance,&amp;quot; he says. &amp;quot;In my practice I&amp;#039;m often frustrated by patients who don&amp;#039;t connect their diet cola habit with their poor skin tone and lack of energy.&amp;quot; Photo courtesy of CleanProgram.com.  5. Herbal Laxative What It Is: In the past years, teas with the herb senna have been marketed under the &amp;quot;detox&amp;quot; umbrella. The herbal laxative, which is derived from the leaves of the senna plant, is promoted as a way to naturally clean out the colon. What the Experts Say: It&amp;#039;s probably best to avoid products with senna in them. According to Dr. Sterry and other experts, recreational use of senna can be dangerous. &amp;quot;Because of serious side effects including nausea, diarrhea and severe cramps, I don&amp;#039;t recommend using senna laxatives,&amp;quot; says Dr. Sterry. Photo by iStockphoto.  6. Blueprint Cleanse What It Is: &amp;quot;The Blueprint Cleanse is a gentler version of The Master Cleanse,&amp;quot; explains Fred Hahn, a New York City\u2013based nutritionist and fitness trainer, and the author of The Slow Burn Fitness Revolution. The slogan &amp;quot;Juice &amp;#039;Til Dinner&amp;quot; sums up the plan: You drink fresh juices throughout the day and also enjoy two snacks and one vegetarian meal (a.k.a. no starvation) for three days. The juices and food, which are never frozen, are delivered to your doorstep for a fee. What the Experts Say:When it comes to detox and cleanse plans, gentler is better, and the Blueprint Cleanse wins high marks for allowing snacks (and a real meal to boot!). Hahn says it&amp;#039;s also possible that you&amp;#039;ll lose some fat on this program, and fat loss is a good thing. &amp;quot;Fat cells can contain toxins, such as pesticides, and the more fat you lose, the fewer toxins you have or can hold on to,&amp;quot; he says. But be careful with long-term calorie restriction of this nature, he continues. &amp;quot;It could lead to loss of lean muscle tissue.&amp;quot; To read a firsthand account of life on the Blueprint Cleanse, check out Woman&amp;#039;s Day editors Laura Eckstein and Abigail Cuffey&amp;#039;s 72-hour juice journey on the Daily Juice blog. Photo courtesy of BlueprintCleanse.com.  7. The Quantum Wellness Cleanse What It Is: In her book Quantum Wellness, bestselling author Kathy Freston promotes the concept of a &amp;quot;21-day cleanse&amp;quot; as a way to kick-start physical and mental well-being. The plan, which Oprah Winfrey tried last year, includes eliminating alcohol, gluten, added sugar, caffeine and animal products from your diet for, you guessed it, three entire weeks. What the Experts Say: Give this a try if you want, says Dr. Sterry\u2014but try to extend your healthy eating beyond the 21-day mark. And remember, he adds, there&amp;#039;s no need to be rigid. &amp;quot;Rather than commit to it for 21 days, make it a lifestyle,&amp;quot; he says. &amp;quot;But, the key to success with food is finding moderation. Having a glass of wine with dinner and having dessert every so often doesn&amp;#039;t inhibit your body&amp;#039;s natural detoxification process, but overindulging in either of those things does a number on your health overall.&amp;quot; Photo courtesy of Amazon.com.  8. Detox Tea What It Is: Sip a cup of tea and detox your body? Sure, sounds like a great idea. You can find several teas that promise to deliver detoxification benefits at your local grocery store\u2014with ingredients that range from dandelion root and milk thistle to hibiscus and ginger. What the Experts Say: Put the kettle on and enjoy these teas in moderation and only with the awareness that no tea has mystical detoxification properties. &amp;quot;There are many teas whose manufacturers claim they help detoxify the liver and other internal organs,&amp;quot; says Hahn. &amp;quot;I&amp;#039;m unaware of any truth to such claims, but a cup of tea is nice! And if you cut out the sodas in the afternoon and instead have a cup of tea, you&amp;#039;ll be taking in a lot less sugar and may lose some body fat.&amp;quot; Photo by iStockphoto.  9. The Colon Cleansing Kit What It Is: These blends of herbal laxatives from Blessed Herbs are said to remove &amp;quot;accumulated waste from your small and large intestines,&amp;quot; to &amp;quot;pull out old waste that is stuck to your intestinal walls.&amp;quot; Need we say more? What the Experts Say: Better take a pass. &amp;quot;There is no science to support the benefits of colon cleansing,&amp;quot; says Dr. Sterry. &amp;quot;Patients who have asked my advice on the matter were actually surprised to hear that within the bowel is necessary bacteria that can be eliminated with colon cleanses. The colon cleanses itself.&amp;quot; Photo courtesy of BlessedHerbs.com. Sarah Jio is the health and fitness blogger for Glamour.com. Visit her blog, Vitamin G. Up Next: Eat Your Way To Flat Abs         "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.womansday.com/health-fitness/nutrition/a1074/detox-diet-dos-donts-99985/>