Detox, Shmeetox

[question everything]

Thursday, Feb. 05, 2009
Detox, Shmeetox
By Alice Park
TIME

Witty super bowl ads these are not. The commercials for foot pads that suck the toxins from your body are very straightforward: smack the cushions onto the soles of your feet, and overnight, the ads claim, you will sweat out metals, minerals and any other accumulated nastiness. Who wouldn't be appalled by the brown footprint left the next morning by a body newly unburdened of pollutants? And who wouldn't dial that toll-free number right away, credit card in (toxin-laden) hand?

Hopefully, you. There's a seductive power to purging, particularly since most of us don't eat or exercise as we should. The lure of easy fixes helps explain why interest is surging in detoxing and deep cleansing. More than 40% of people searching online for spa services are hunting for something to clean out the pipes, according to SpaFinder, a consumer resource for spa information; that's almost 50% more than in 2007. Most spas now offer some type of detox, with services ranging from colonics--water-injection enemas that literally flush out your system--to Calgon-take-me-away treatments meant to detach you from financial worries, family, work and other sources of stress. There are also thousands of do-it-yourselfers who swear by those detoxing foot pads, which use tree vinegars, tourmaline and reflexology to allegedly stimulate acupuncture points in the feet. This helps the lymphatic system drain pollutants down to and out of the feet.

But it turns out that detoxing does very little de-anything. The brown color on those foot pads? That comes from chemicals in the pads that change color whenever they get wet--even if the moisture comes from something as toxin-free as distilled water. "There is no science behind these detoxification services," says Dr. Christine Laine, deputy editor of the Annals of Internal Medicine. Says Dr. Bennett Roth, chief of gastroenterology at UCLA: "This is the 2009 version of the snake-oil salesman."

So why the growing popularity of detoxing? The idea of cleansing is appealing enough that many customers may not stop to ask if there's any scientific proof that these treatments will benefit their health. "People are not coming to a spa and saying, 'Does your detox program really work?'" says Susie Ellis, founder of SpaFinder.

Researchers note that colonics, a staple of detoxification, can result in punctures in the intestinal wall--and moreover serve no medical purpose. On the other hand, chelation therapy, which removes heavy metals such as mercury and nickel in cases of metal poisoning, is an accepted treatment. But medical studies have yet to demonstrate the benefits of frequent chelation to rid the body of the tiny amounts of metals we take in from food and air. "There is a big leap from finding traces of mercury in the blood to supporting the need for detoxification therapy," says Laine.

(snip)


http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1877382,00.html

[Manifestor_of_Light]

1. Ever seen anybody who does colonics regularly?

I have known one lady in person, and one lady I saw on TV.

They both had skin that GLOWED.

And most people have lots of heavy metals in their bodies. Any doctor who does IV chelation therapy will give you a chelation IV and then send your urine for testing to see how much of those elements you have excreted.

And I DO think that the foot pads are a scam.

They are painting all these detox methods with a broad brush. Let the buyer beware.

[BlooInBloo]

2. Oh boy.

[Manifestor_of_Light]

18. Oh I see. Skin condition has NOTHING to do with a person's health.

So people who are green with jaundice are not really sick. People with gray skin don't really have major hypoxia and circulation problems.

I'm glad you corrected standard medical diagnosis on that. I'm glad to know that if a person feels better after a colonic, or any other therapy you don't like, that it's all in their head and they are imagining things.

:sarcasm:

[Name removed]

21. Deleted message

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[JeanGrey]

3. My brother in law was sucked into that "chelation therpay" at the

cost of thousands of dollars. I BEGGED him to go to the Mayo Clinic in Arizona; he did, turned out he had severe sleep apnea, now ALL of his symptoms are gone. Chelation therpay indeed................

[Manifestor_of_Light]

7. So you think chelation is ALWAYS a scam?

The doctor I know that does it has an M.D. and a Ph.D. and I believe she knows what she is talking about. She is not from some fringe specialty that's not an M.D.

[Why Syzygy]

8. I have a friend

who does it also. His doc is certainly MD. My friend's insurance covers it.

[cosmik debris]

14. It is a common form of insurance fraud

In 1998, the FTC charged that ACAM's Web site and a brochure had made false or unsubstantiated claims that:

"Chelation therapy is a safe, effective and relatively inexpensive treatment to restore blood flow in victims of atherosclerosis without surgery."

"EDTA improves calcium and cholesterol metabolism by eliminating metallic catalysts which cause damage to cell membranes by producing oxygen free radicals. Free radical pathology is now believed by many scientists to be an important contributing cause of atherosclerosis, cancer, diabetes and other diseases of aging. EDTA helps to prevent the production of harmful free radicals."

"Chelation therapy is used to reverse symptoms of hardening of the arteries, also known as atherosclerosis or arteriosclerosis."

"Every single study of the use of chelation therapy for atherosclerosis which has ever been published, without exception, has described an improvement in blood flow and symptoms."

"Chelation therapy promotes health by correcting the major underlying cause of arterial blockage. Damaging oxygen free radicals are increased by the presence of metallic elements and act as a chronic irritant to blood vessel walls and cell membranes. EDTA removes those metallic irritants, allowing leaky and damaged cell walls to heal. Plaques smooth over and shrink, allowing more blood to pass. Arterial walls become softer and more pliable, allowing easier expansion. Scientific studies have proven that blood flow increases after chelation therapy."

"Chelation therapy is an office treatment which improves blood flow throughout the entire vascular system . . .."The reader is advised that varying and even conflicting views are held by other segments of the medical profession. . . . This information represents the current opinion of independent physician consultants to ACAM at the time of publication."

More at: http://www.quackwatch.com/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/chelationfraud.html

There is no evidence that chelation is useful for anything but heavy metal poisoning--as confirmed by blood tests.

If blood tests don't show heavy metal poisoning, chelation is dangerous, expensive, and useless.

[trotsky]

11. Chelation is definitely needed in cases of acute heavy metal poisoning.

However by far the vast majority of us do not suffer from that. People who were exposed to large amounts in industrial settings, or via accidental exposure, are candidates for chelation.

It's a dangerous therapy however, and it can claim its own victims. It should not be undertaken by anyone unless absolutely necessary.

Pennsylvania: Charge in Death After Chelation Treatment
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/23/us/23brfs-doctor.html

[Why Syzygy]

15. I'm going to ask him more about it..

He had advanced Lyme's disease. It did make him look a lot younger and improved his skin coloring, etc. I don't think he will ever be "well" though.

[TechBear_Seattle]

13. It is useful when it is necessary

In most cases, it is not necessary.

[Dorian Gray]

12. I don't know...

a friend of mine just did her "first colonic." (Her words.) She said she felt great afterwards.

It's not something that I think I would ever do, though. I don't believe they are necessary, and they can be dangerous if overdone.

[question everything]

19. It has no scientific basis and can cause more harm than any benefit

Colonic Irrigation for Detoxification and Weight Loss: Healthy Hydrotherapy or Hucksters' Hype?

(snip)

The recent surge in the popularity of enemas as an alternative heath treatment has coincided with the resurgence of once-popular 19 th century "autointoxication" theories. These theories suggest that undigested food particles can cause impacted fecal matter to build up on the intestinal walls over time and release toxins into the body. It's easy to see why these notions strike a chord of resonance with 21 st-century citizenry concerned about the prevalence of pollution, chemical additives, and toxins in our environment and our relative lack of ability to control these factors; however, these outdated theories have long been disproved by medical science. Direct observation during autopsies and surgeries has produced no evidence of impacted fecal material accumulating on colon walls, much less releasing any toxins.

and

Unfortunately, colonic irrigation may be more than just a waste of your money, time, and patience. While the supposed benefits of elective colonic hydrotherapy are documented only by anecdotal evidence and unsupported, unscientific assertions, a few of the documented consequences of unnecessary colonic irrigations gone wrong include nausea, serious infections, bowel perforations, vomiting, electrolyte imbalances in the blood, heart arrhythmia or failure, and even death. Additionally, those who make frequent use of enemas may find themselves unable to cease the practice and resume natural digestion, in the same manner as overuse of laxatives can make the digestive system dependent upon them. Colonics may also remove nutrients such as potassium from the colon before they have been fully digested, leading to mineral deficiencies. Simultaneously, the various additives frequently mixed in with the liquid used in colonics may be absorbed through the colon in much more potent concentrations than they would be otherwise. In fact, coffee — one of the most popular colonic additives, thanks to the controversial Gerson therapy's popularization of coffee enemas — has been linked to at least three colonic hydrotherapy-related deaths.


http://www.docshop.com/2008/06/23/colonic-irrigation-for-detoxification-and-weight-loss-healthy-hydrotherapy-or-hucksters-hype/

[Dorian Gray]

20. Thanks for that....

I didn't think that it was a healthy thing to do, and I was surprised by my friend who chose to do it. It's definitely not something that I am interested in trying, and this information is good to have!

[Orrex]

25. No, but I know people who defecate a lot

Does that count?

:eyes:

[cosmik debris]

4. There's one born every minute. n/t

[trotsky]

6. And at least one posting on every thread. n/t

[Manifestor_of_Light]

9. Thank you for telling me I am a complete F&^%ing idiot.

:grr:

Like I didn't know, already.

[trotsky]

10. Didn't use those words, did I?

Nope, you did. Chill out. All of us have been duped at some time or another.

[Manifestor_of_Light]

16. Don't you just LOVE to feel superior? Duped???

Sure.
Go talk to the M.D./Ph.D. I know that does chelation. You wanna talk to her?

I'd be happy to give you her phone number. She is in Houston.

If you don't want to talk to her about her methods, then you can be quiet.

[trotsky]

17. So if you don't want to talk to the other thousands of MDs/PhDs...

who acknowledge chelation only as a valid therapy in cases of acute heavy metal poisoning, does that mean YOU should be quiet?

Obviously you are quite emotionally invested in this quack fad "therapy" - I'm sorry. And yes, we've all been duped at one point or another. It in no way indicates I am superior since obviously *I* am included in "all."

[thattwentwell]

23. You really shouldn't down yourself like that...

[Orrex]

24. Well, that went well

:eyes:

[trotsky]

26. !

:rofl:

[Name removed]

22. Deleted message

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[xchrom]

5. kick