Would a detox diet significantly improve my health?

No, not really.

Although it can help someone that is dipping their hand in the biscuit tin and/or eating a pack of Doritos everyday, but only if they take up some long-term healthy habits as a result, of course.

A detox diet won't suddenly reverse the bad health status of someone that has lived the Western Lifestyle for 40 years.

It is what it is...2 days of not eating rubbish (although it's often 2 days - or more - of not eating anything, which has its own detractions, and that's another story!)

So detox diets might seem like a good idea, and might even give you piece of mind and help kick-start a new program, but just realize that they are not a quick fix to your health problems.

The LONG-TERM FIX is dumping the Western Lifestyle, as I have said many times before.

Besides, if you think you can actually remove all the toxins in your body, think again. It can never happen. Every breath you take, every move you make, you are creating waste products in your body.

In fact, research studies have found that ALL of us contain surprisingly high concentrations of toxins in our blood, all due to AIR pollution.

So no matter how "great" your detox diet, you'll never be able to combat toxins that enter your blood through your lungs.

And many toxins are fat-soluble - meaning they are stored in our fat cells for months, and slowly released over time - not just 2 days.

You'll never truly detoxify...but enough of the science class, let's get to the bottom line on detox diets...

So is living on a juice diet for 2 or 3 days going to kill you?

No. It's probably healthier for you than a weekend in Amsterdam.

But is it going to add years to your life?

No, of course not.

So unless a 2-day detox diet is really off the wall unhealthy, they are generally neither helpful nor harmful.

All that matters is what you do on a consistent basis for the other 363 days of the year...year in, year out.

If you pick up motivation for healthy habits from your "detox", then maybe it can help you.

But if you go right off the detox and back to Kebabs and Blue WKD, then what was the point at all?

You know what I'm all about - lifestyle change.

It's nothing radical, its nothing fancy or magical. If you want to succeed you simply have to make changes for good.

You aren't going to make all the changes overnight or be able to stick to each one the first time you try it (Hey, I'm still trying to get better and healthier everyday, and I've been at it for the past 10 years).

Hard truth: It might take you years before you perfect your healthy eating habits and kick your cravings.

But as you do, you'll have the rest of your life ahead of you for high-energy living thanks to healthy eating.

Eat well, live well.