How Does A Juice Cleanse Affect Your Microbiome?

Juice Plus Diet Plan

January might as well be Latin for “time to revamp your eating plan,” because it can seem like everyone you know is either doing Whole30, vowing to go keto, committing to a vegan life, or sticking to anti-inflammatory foods. And though it may not be as trendy as it was a decade ago, plenty of people are resetting their system with a good old-fashioned juice cleanse. This is controversial, of course. In one camp, you have wellness experts who say it’s good to reboot your system, wiping out all the nasty gunk that’s been hanging around in there.

And hey, intermittent fasting—a component of many cleanses—can be good for the metabolism. But then you have the health experts in the other camp who believe that juice has way too much sugar and the whole trend is not only overhyped, but harmful. Richard Lin, CEO of the customizable probiotics company Thryve Inside, decided to do a little investigating in order to find out exactly what happens to the body when someone goes on a juice cleanse. For his research, he took in-depth looks at 10 participants’ microbiomes before, during, and after an eight-day cleanse.

While his experiment doesn’t definitively proclaim one stance on juice cleanses as the “right” one, it does give some helpful—and surprising—insight into the process’ health effects by taking a truly inside look at how the gut reacts. Keep reading to find out how going on a juice cleanse affects the microbiome. Just hours into the participants’ juice cleanses, Lin and his team saw something really interesting happen: There was an increase in the amount of a specific bacteria strain called phascolarctobacterium.

“This bacteria, in very high levels, is protective against issues like inflammatory bowel disease, eczema, asthma, and obesity,” Lin says. “When the levels of this bacteria is decreased, you see more of those issues.” The inflammation-fighting bacteria continued to increase throughout the cleanse, ultimately doubling the amount that was in the gut before. “Part of the reason for the increase could be from the fasting,” Lin says. Lin and his team saw an increase in another very specific bacteria: bacteroides plebeius, which helps the body digest seaweed.

A little random, right? “We’re still trying to figure out why we saw this increase,” Lin says. Good’s (Re)New Year program has you covered! But if you have persistent gut problems, you might want to consider the low-FODMAP diet. Is this simple device the secret to youthful skin? Plus, the GIFs to demonstrate the on-fleek technique. Good is obsessed with your health and wellness. Thanks for signing up for our newsletter! Good emails don’t go into your spam or promotions folder, please add news@wellandgood.com to your email contacts. All rights reserved. Read our Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions.

For starters, ensure your health is in a good state. Next point to note is to take a look at your juicer. Using a centrifugal juicer is not advised as it is not as effective as other types of juicers to extract nutrients. You may want to invest in a better juicer or enlist the help of a dietician or juicing company.

You now know how to pre-cleanse, you know what to do during the cleanse, and you can even prepare yourself for the time once the juice cleanse is done. We’ve explained to you the risks and gave you tips on how to juice cleanse safely. Therefore, all that is left is to outline the common juice cleanse mistakes people make so that you don’t make the same ones.

Many people embark on a juice cleanse to be trendy - do not do this. Sometimes, being trendy can put your health at risk, so be sure you are at a state to be able to complete a cleanse with minimal complications. Also, don’t just go on a cleanse that worked for your sister or cousin, get a program suitable for you.

Another common mistake is that people will work out during the cleanse - this can be dangerous and lead to injury, as you may be weak and burning off too many calories while not consuming protein for muscle repair. Take the three days off during your cleanse to rest and not exercise.

Don’t abuse a detox juice cleanse as a way to purge, as some people will alternate between cleanses and detoxes while binging in-between. A cleanse of detox should set you on the right path of health, not a destructive one. As you can see, there are some benefits to juice cleanses and then there are risks, too. Only you can decide if a juice cleanse is right for you and you may even wish to consult with your doctor or expert beforehand.