The Lemon Detox Diet

Lemon and Mint detox Water

What is it?

The Lemon Detox diet is a cleansing program targeted to eliminate the body of toxins and free radicals in the digestive tract and urinary system. It is primarily used as weight loss detox, where solid foods should be consumed at a minimum level. (Detox & Body cleanse, 2017, para. 3-5).

Ingredients Needed

The Lemon Detox Diet only requires 4 ingredients:

Ingredient:	Ingredient Role:
Freshly Squeezed Lemon Juice	'acts as a detergent, cleansing inner organs' (Lemon Detox, para. 3).
Organic Maple Syrup	'helps eliminate toxins from the body' (Detox & body cleanse, 2017, para. 9).
Cayenne Pepper	'contains substances that allow the body to burn more calories from fat and cleanse the colon and intestinal walls thoroughly' (Detox & body cleanse, 2017, para. 10).
Pure (Distilled) Water	'carries away all released wastes and toxins' (Lemon Detox, para. 5)

3 Cleanse Models: Which to consume

The quantity you drink depends on which 'detox' you undergo. The 3 different cleanse models are shown below.

Cleanse Model:	What to Consume (Lemon detox diet, para. 8). :
Full Body Cleanse (Lemon Detox Diet Recipe, 2017, para. 16).	2L (6-9 glasses)/day 1-2L- water  Laxative tea- morning and evening NO solid foods
Relaxed Version (Lemon Detox Diet Recipe, 2017, para. 17).	2-3 glasses- breakfast & dinner 1-2L- water Laxative tea- morning and evening Consume healthy lunch
Half-and-Half/50:50 (Lemon Detox Diet Recipe, 2017, para. 18).	2L- first 3-days 2-3 glasses- breakfast & dinner, next 3 days 2L- last 3-days

Australian Dietary Guidelines 

Guideline:	Assessment of Diet:
Guideline 1: 'to achieve and maintain a healthy weight, be physically active and choose amounts of nutritious foods and drinks to meet your energy needs.' (Department of Health and Ageing, 2013, p.6).	'body will go into starvation mode, stripping carbohydrate and fluid stores.' (Health Direct, 2013, para. 10). 'does not recommend exercising' (Health direct, 2013, para. 10).  Does not support guideline. It encourages unhealthy practices over consuming nutritious foods and drinks. It also does not promote physical activity.
Guideline 2: 'Enjoy a wide variety of nutritious foods from these five groups every day.' (Department of Health and Ageing, 2013, p.6).	'severely low in nutrition and energy.' (health direct, 2013, para. 10). Promotes water consumption but does not support guideline. Does not encourage consumption of food groups: Grains, Vegetables, Dairy and meats/protein. Although Lemon is in the fruit category, fruits should be consumed to a minimum due to high sugar content. 'Eat for Health' states only 2 fruits should be consumed per day (Eat for health, 2013, p. 42, table 2.5).
Guideline 3: 'Limit intake of foods containing saturated fat, added salt, added sugars and alcohol.' (Department of Health and Ageing, 2013, p.6).	Does not support guideline. Is not directly mentioned, however encourages high amounts of added sugar from the Maple Syrup.
Guideline 4: 'Encourage, support and promote breastfeeding.' (Department of Health and Ageing, 2013, p.6).	Does not support guideline, as it is not mentioned anywhere.
Guideline 5: 'Care for your food; prepare and store it safely.' (Department of Health and Ageing, 2013, p.6).	Does support guideline to an extent. Some recipes call for lemon juice to be freshly squeezed (Lemon detox diet, 2017, para. 7). This is  preparing the food safely, as it lowers chance for harmful substances to contaminate. It does not mention storing the food, however would be assumed the drink is consumed immediately.

Recommendation about this Diet

Dietitian-Association-Australia (DAA) do not recommend this diet. Not one positive nutritional aspect was found. (Health direct, 2013, para. 8). It 'does not provide your body with the essential nutrients' (Health direct, 2013, para. 9).  The DAA suggest cutting down high-processed foods, alcohol and caffeine, and consuming a balanced diet including fruit, vegetables, wholegrain and water instead. 

Furthermore, it does not encourage majority of the Dietary Guidelines as seen above, or meet the recommended Nutrient Reference values, making it unsustainable in the long term. 



Referencing

Department of Health and Ageing. (2013). Australian Dietary Guidelines. Retrieved from https://www.eatforhealth.gov.au/sites/default/files/files/Copyright%20update/n55_australian_dietary_guidelines(1).pdf

Detox and Body Cleanse. (2017). Lemon Detox Diet Recipe, Retrieved from http://www.detoxandbodycleanse.com/detox-diets/lemon-detox-diet-recipe/ 

Detox and Body Cleanse. (2017). Lemon Detox Diet, Retrieved from http://www.detoxandbodycleanse.com/detox-diets/lemon-detox-diet/

Health Direct. (2013). Diet Reviews, Retrieved from http://www.healthdirect.gov.au/diet-reviews

Okpala, B. (2015, July 3). Lemon and Mint detox water. Global food book. Retrieved from https://globalfoodbook.com/recipes/lemon-and-mint-detox-water

The Lemon Detox Diet. How to Make the Detox Drink. Retrieved from https://lemondetox.com.au/how-to-make-the-drink.php

Bonnie Huynh_DTN1NHW_LemonDetoxDiet