Your liver and kidneys already filter the waste from your body 24/7, and they do this without any help from the trendy detox supplements. A few of these natural substances do have legitimate medical uses, though. Separate the science from the slick marketing and you'll save more of your cash and stay healthier in the process.
That's not to say that all detoxes are ineffective - but some are certainly more marketing than they are fact. Today, we'll talk about which ones actually work and which ones you can probably pass on.
Let's compare these two popular detox options so you can find your perfect match!
How Both Substances Work Inside You
Activated charcoal does its job through a process called adsorption. The charcoal gets heated to extremely high temperatures during production, and this creates thousands of small pores all throughout the structure. When substances move through your digestive system, they attach to the surface of these pores and get trapped right there.
The pores in activated charcoal work like little pockets that grab onto and trap some molecules. Research has shown that activated charcoal binds to many types of substances, and it all goes back to its massive surface area. A single gram of activated charcoal can have a surface area of as much as 32,300 square feet if you account for the microscopic pores that are packed inside of it.
Bentonite clay takes a different strategy altogether. When the clay particles mix with a liquid, they develop a negative electrical charge. From there, the negative charge works like a magnet for any positively charged particles that float around in your digestive tract.
Medical-grade activated charcoal and the supplement versions you see in stores aren't quite the same. Particle size really matters here because smaller particles create more of a surface area for the charcoal to bind to toxins and other substances. Medical versions go through a much stricter manufacturing process to get more uniform particle sizes and higher purity levels. Supplements can vary quite a bit in how well they actually work because the standards just aren't as strict for those products.
The clay needs water for its electrical properties to work. When mixed with water, it turns into a gel-like substance that can capture toxins as it moves through your digestive tract. It binds on a chemical level - not through physical pores like the ones that charcoal relies on.
What the Research Shows
Activated charcoal does have some legitimate medical applications, and emergency rooms have actually relied on it as a treatment option for decades. Hospitals stock it specifically to treat cases of poisoning and drug overdoses. But there's one big limitation. Time matters more than anything else - it delivers the best results when administered within the first hour after a patient has ingested the poison or taken an overdose. The World Health Organization even includes activated charcoal on its list of necessary medicines, and this shows how much the medical community counts on it for emergency situations.
Activated charcoal has become quite common in wellness products over the past few years. Some companies sell it for hangovers, others for bloating, and some of them even want you to take it as a regular detox supplement. But none of these wellness claims have any connection to the emergency medical applications that actually have scientific evidence behind them.
Bentonite clay has just one FDA approval for internal use on the record. A product called Novasil got the green light for treating irritable bowel syndrome with diarrhea, and as far as bentonite clay products go, it's the only one that's made it through the full FDA approval process for oral consumption.
External uses work quite differently. Bentonite clay masks and skin treatments have been used for centuries. Multiple generations have relied on it for the treatment of irritation, acne and other skin problems. Skin use has a much longer history than internal use. Your body absorbs what goes on your skin very differently compared to what goes through your digestive system, and this matters quite a bit for safety and for how well it works.
The Marketing vs The Science
The science behind these detox products just doesn't match up with what you'll see on their labels or marketing websites. A 2016 review published in the European Journal of Pharmaceutics looked at the activated charcoal claims in detail and couldn't find any evidence that it works for general detoxification in healthy people. When they searched for proof that it does something helpful, nothing turned up.
Bentonite clay has the same problem if you dig into the research. Most of the studies were done on animals or in lab settings with test tubes and petri dishes. There isn't much data on how it performs when consumers apply it at home, and without that, it's pretty hard to know how well it works.
The term "detox" shows up everywhere in wellness marketing. But it's misleading if you look at how your body works. Your liver and kidneys filter out toxins and waste around the clock, and these organs do this job pretty darn well on their own - it happens automatically every day, and it doesn't need any help from supplements or trendy detox products.
The British Dietetic Association has been pretty direct about where they stand on this. They say that detox products aren't something you need if you're already healthy. Your body takes care of this work on its own - it already came equipped with everything that it needs!
To be fair, most of these products aren't going to hurt you. The big problem is that there's not much solid evidence behind their detox claims. What these companies tell you about their products tends to sound much better than what the research actually backs up.
Risks that Come with Your Medications
The biggest problem with activated charcoal is that it binds to the medications in your digestive system. Taking birth control pills alongside it can make them less effective. It does the same with antidepressants, heart medications and plenty of other prescriptions too.
Back in 2022, the FDA actually issued a warning about this exact problem. Activated charcoal can't tell the difference between toxins and the medications you need - it just attaches to them at the same rate.
Constipation is another problem that comes up with activated charcoal. Anyone who takes it every day can wind up with intestinal blockages, and this happens because the charcoal actually slows your entire digestive system down by quite a bit.
Bentonite clay has its own set of problems. Back in 2016, the FDA tested a few clay products and found some lead contamination in some of them. Not every clay product has this issue, and it's fortunate. Still, it's a helpful reminder of why you need to be careful about where your clay comes from.
Each one of these products can also affect how well your body absorbs nutrients if you're taking them day after day. One case from 2020 documented one person who drank the clay water every day and developed a bad case of hypokalemia - a pretty dangerous drop in potassium levels that needed medical treatment to reverse it.
These products aren't something to take lightly or to add to your everyday habits just because you want to try them. The human body already has a very effective detoxification system in place - the liver and the kidneys take care of toxins pretty well on their own.
Your Body Has a Natural Detox System
Your body already has its own detoxification system, and it's been working just fine without any outside assistance. When you learn about how this system operates, it will make it way easier to see which products you actually need (and which ones you don't).
Most of the heavy lifting in this process happens in your liver, and it breaks down toxins through two main pathways ( phase I and phase II detoxification, if we're being technical). Your kidneys are working just as hard, doing their part. Every day, they filter your blood around 60 times to pull out the waste products and keep your system clean.
And it doesn't stop there. Your lungs get rid of toxins with every breath that you take. Your skin releases them whenever you sweat. The lymphatic system helps out as well - it moves waste materials out of your tissues and pushes them back into your bloodstream so other organs can filter everything out and remove it from your body.
Your body takes care of these processes on its own, and you don't need any supplements to support it. Cruciferous vegetables like broccoli and cauliflower help the liver make the enzymes that it needs for detoxification. Plenty of water is as important - your kidneys work way better when they have enough water to flush everything out the way they should.
Back in 2015, the Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics published a review that examined the available evidence on detox products and diets. Quality sleep matters. Regular physical activity matters. A diet built around whole foods matters. Each one of these habits delivers more benefits to your body than any detox pill or powder can claim to give.
Your body's detoxification systems have had millions of years to evolve and develop. They work extremely well on their own, as long as you give them what they need to get the job done.
Keep It All Natural
Activated charcoal and bentonite clay do have medical applications, and doctors will prescribe them for certain health conditions when it makes sense. But the evidence just doesn't support taking them every day for general detoxification if you're otherwise healthy. Your liver, kidneys and digestive system work constantly to filter and remove toxins from your body, and they're really effective at this job without any extra help. Taking prescription medications means you need to talk with your doctor before adding either of these to your everyday life. Charcoal and clay can interfere with medication absorption, and your prescriptions might not work the way they should. This could be dangerous, depending on what you take.
Quick fixes and trendy wellness products might look pretty tempting. But I'd recommend you stick with the basic health habits that have been proven over and over again by decades of legitimate scientific research. A full night of quality sleep, enough hydration throughout the entire day, a diet full of whole foods (especially fruits and vegetables) and physical activity on a steady basis - these habits are always going to do far more for your health than any supplement or detox product you could ever buy. Basic lifestyle habits don't get the same level of attention or hype as whatever new wellness trend is making the rounds on social media. But they are what your body actually needs on a biological level to work the way it should and to get rid of waste materials every day. What you choose to put in your body is your decision, and the goal here has been to give you the most accurate information available so you can make those decisions with confidence.
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