Cleanse
From RationalWiki
Cleanse means to clean, wash, or purify something. In alternative medicine and some fad diets, however, it has a more specific meaning: removal of alleged "toxins" stored in the body. In this context, it is also commonly referred to as detox. The term is also common in most major religions, sometimes in a symbolic sense, but also in specific ceremonies and customs.
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[edit] Religious usage
Possibly the best known example of ritual cleansing is the Christian baptism. Although not so common now, the custom of washing the feet of another person has a symbolic meaning, as well as the more practical benefit of ensuring that guests have nice smelling feet. There are repeated Biblical references to cleansing, in some cases with fire.
Religions such as Islam and Judaism also use ritual cleansing in their ceremonies.
Muslims must complete an ablution prior to praying, cleaning specific parts of the body as described in the Qur'an.[1]
[edit] Alternative medicine
"Cleanses" are part of a belief that the colon, liver, and kidneys have years of built up "toxins" in them which are the cause of all disease; the cure for all illnesses then is to cleanse all the "toxins" from one's body. First of all, it is not true that toxins are the cause of most diseases. Diseases have a variety of causes: bacterial, viral, nutritional, genetic, and many others. Secondly, the kidneys and liver are already hard at work cleansing toxins, which are excreted every day. The idea that toxins somehow build up in these organs is just woo.
The most popular such "cleanse" advocated by alternative medicine advocates is the colonic, which supposedly "cleanses" the colon. Other cleanses include liver and kidney cleanses, often using herbal tea concoctions containing herbs which are purported to flush out toxins, or more esoteric practices such as coffee enemas and the use of homeopathy in which tiny amounts of toxins (usually heavy metals in this case) are taken on the mistaken assumption that this will cause the organs to flush out larger amounts of the same substances. Other purported cleanses include lymphatic cleanses, which the Lemonade Diet claims to do, and candida yeast cleanses. Fasting is sometimes attempted as an all-purpose cleanse of the entire body.
"Death Begins In The Colon" "How cleansing can help you beat occasional constipation, bloating, tiredness and skin problems while gaining more energy and a flatter stomach" [2]
None of these practices is really necessary, nor effective. Well-functioning bodily organs already perform this function.
However, for those who have had their brains cleansed of toxins by alties, health food stores are eager to sell you packets of pills containing herbal mixtures claiming to totally cleanse all your other organs. The effect on your wallet is similar - but also, guaranteed.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
[edit] Footnotes
- ↑ Islamic ablution before prayer. The smell of burning oxen is pleasing to the lord, but not the stench of stinky worshipers
- ↑ DrNatura, The global leader in cleansing and detoxification
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