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Dr. Ring explains if detoxification diets should be supervised.
Dr. Ring:
I think it is a very good idea for women to talk to a physician or medical provider before they start a detox diet and the reason for that is this: A lot of times you will read these detox quizzes that will say, “Are you fatigued? Do you have infrequent bowel movements? Do you have skin rashes?” All these kinds of symptoms and you check them off and find, “Oh my gosh. I am toxic,” but in fact, many of the symptoms can be caused by other things.
So I think it’s important that somebody get evaluated to make sure there’s nothing else going on before just assuming that they are toxic and need to do a detoxification diet.
In terms of whether the actual detox needs to be supervised, that depends on what they are choosing to do because I don’t advocate a master’s cleanse or a juice fast or anything like that.
If somebody chooses to do a more modified detox where they are eliminated wheat, eliminating dairy, cutting down on pesticides – those are generally fine to do on your own. It’s really when you get to the more extreme forms, which I personally don’t recommend anyway that I think a closer supervision is necessary.
About Dr. Ring, M.D.:
Melinda Ring, M.D., is an Integrative Medicine physician at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. Dr. Ring believes the patient and physician are partners in the healing process. She uses evidence-based approaches from other cultures to complement Western medicine treatment and stimulates the body's innate healing abilities. Her philosophy embraces treating the whole person, physical, emotional and spiritual dimensions, to achieve optimal health. Dr. Ring received her medical degree from the University of Chicago/Pritzker School of Medicine and has been practicing medicine since 1997.
Visit Dr. Ring at Northwestern Memorial Hospital