Master Cleanse-Lemonade Diet

Review

 

The Master Cleanse is a liquid fasting program that has been around for over 50 years, but it hit the pop culture radar several years ago when songstress Beyonce revealed she'd dropped 20 pounds (fast) for the movie "Dreamgirls" on Master Cleanse. It's since become a tabloid magazine and celebrity favorite (Gwyneth Paltrow, Jared Leto, etc.) for rapid results.

Also known as the Lemonade Diet, the Lemon Cleanse or the Maple Syrup Diet, it was created by a nutrition guru named Stanley Burroughs to rid the body of toxins and internal wastes accumulated through poor diet, lack of exercise, stress, chemical exposure, food additives, etc. It gained wide popularity amongst the hippie, health-conscious types in the 1970s with the publication of Burrough's book "The Master Cleanser." It's supposed to make you look younger (improve your skin), ease chronic pain, rid you of years of built-up waste and increase your energy in a mere 10-14 days. And the best - you'll lose 20 pounds too! The kicker - no solid foods are allowed. None. No supplements either. You consume only the Master Cleanse all day, every day, for two weeks.

The Master Cleanse drink is:
2 tablespoons fresh-squeezed lemon juice
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1/10 teaspoon cayenne pepper
10 ounces filtered water

The plan calls for 6 or more servings of the drink per day. You are also allowed a "salt water flush" in the morning (2 teaspoons of salt in a quart of water) and an herbal laxative tea at night. You can expect to feel very hungry for the first few days, and throughout the fast you may experience headaches, fatigue, dizziness, sluggishness, diarrhea, nausea or constipation. Exercise is not a part of the Master Cleanse program, which is probably because you will be so fatigued from starvation you'll have little energy to do more than sleep. After you slog it out for 10-14 days, you can slowly ease back into solid food. Start with soups.

Will you lose weight on Master Cleanse? Of course. You are - literally - starving yourself. But bear in mind that what you're losing is water weight and muscle (without protein the body will burn muscle tissue) - so while the scale and the mirror may be showing you what you want to see - you've not actually lost any fat. And when you start eating again - and you know you will - that water weight will be back in a flash. Further - who wants to suffer through a fast and end up with the same amount of fat and less muscle?! Remember that muscle mass - even at rest - keeps your metabolism burning calories at a higher rate.
Health experts have multiple complaints about this plan: It lacks every essential nutrient - calories, protein, carbs, fiber, vitamins, minerals and fat. It can't possibly provide enough energy for normal bodily processes and most importantly: there is no medical evidence proving that fasting actually detoxifies the body. The liver detoxifies the body - and unless you have been diagnosed with liver problems, it's doing the cleansing job just fine on its own.

The biggest problem with the Master Cleanse is that once you stop it, you'll probably be hard-pressed not to eat everything you can get your hands on. It's important to note that Beyonce commented publicly on how difficult, how uncomfortable, how frustrating and how miserable it was to stick with Master Cleanse, and that she did regain most of that weight immediately upon going back to her regular life. The verdict: it'll definitely change your pants size for the short term, you'll suffer immeasurably for it, and when it's all over you'll be back where you started. We'd only advise for it if you have a movie role to prep for.