So I’ve never actually done a detox before. I’m in the group that believes your body doesn’t actually need an external product in order to “detox”. That’s what your liver does, right?
That said, I was intrigued when I was contacted by Amrita to do a review of their “Easy Detox“. My initial thoughts were “this isn’t for me”. I don’t do meal replacements or juice detox programmes. I like physically eating my food and I like to eat a good amount. However, after reading a bit more I found it wasn’t actually a detox to replace meals, but rather as well as. Well OK, I can get on board with that.
What is it?
It’s an “all natural body cleanse” which is designed to support your body’s natural detox abilities and “clear out toxins”. It’s a 100% organic blend of herbs, spices and Thai fruit (interesting). It’s apparently used in their Luxury Wellness Retreats and was featured in Vogue, which sounds all very grand.So the blend itself is an interesting concoction. And may I say, not an entirely pleasant looking blend. I was sent the Easy Detox Mini Kit, which contains nine sachets of the detox blend which are taken over three days (before each meal basically). You get quite a comprehensive guide with the sachets to explain how to take the sachets, what’s in them etc.
As part of the detox there are certain guidelines to follow too, such as avoiding these things:
- Caffeine
- Sugar
- Dairy
- Meat
- Fatty foods
Now I’m not going to lie. I didn’t avoid caffeine. I enjoy coffee and don’t think I drink too much to be an issue (see my caffeine post from the other day). I naturally don’t eat that much dairy as I drink almond milk and have Alpro soya yogurt (I just prefer the taste). During the week I don’t tend to have many exciting treats or use sugary sauces on food so other than naturally occurring sugars I think I did OK with this (I’m no dietitian though!). Meat? Well, it may also surprise you to know that I don’t eat a huge amount during the week. I eat salmon for lunch and I just made sure to eat different fish for dinner instead. It was quite easy.So you mix one sachet with 180ml of water. 180ml isn’t that much at all so makes the “concoction” quite potent and, well, bitty. It doesn’t all dissolve. But I found the mixture with water really unpalatable. No disrespect to the company but it was revolting. So I quickly switched to adding coconut water (which was advised if water didn’t cut it). You can add the mixture to smoothies or soups but this was a bit too much faff for me. Coconut water was FAR better. It’s still not an entirely pleasant experience but a lot better than plain water.
So what did I achieve?
It’s tricky to say really. Though the detox isn’t primarily for weight-loss, it is one of the purported outcomes for strictly following. But I’m obviously not trying to lose weight and I’m pretty sure that would be a hard feat considering I’m quite small already and I eat a lot.
I think if you were on the first steps of a weight-loss journey and had weight to lose this could be a helpful way to supplement healthy eating and exercise. The sachets are packed full of ingredients that sound rather good which could support a healthy lifestyle. It’s also supposed to help things, er, move through quickly. I can’t say I noticed much difference as I don’t have any issues with getting blocked up. I eat enough fruit and veg! It perhaps made me feel a bit more alert and fresh but who knows if this was down to the detox.
Amrita offer a few packages of detox:
- Mini: 9 sachets taken over 3 days with food
- Classic: 21 sachets taken over 7 days with food
- Deluxe: 35 premium single-serve sachets, taken as either a 7-day “intensive” or 14-day “relaxed” programme with food.
As detoxes go, this was rather painless and didn’t disrupt my lifestyle too much with suddenly not being able to eat my normal food or being hungry. It was more of a supplementation than anything. Ideal for people who need a jump-start to weight-loss perhaps if they’ve not been eating great beforehand.
Have you ever done a detox?
Are there foods you actively avoid?
**Full disclaimer: I was sent the detox for free in exchange for a review. All opinions are my own honest ones.**
I really hate mixing powders with water- the only one I can do it matcha powder (which I go through phases of having when I remember). Usually when I have something (like a sample or something) I end up throwing most of it away as it goes all gritty. The worst one I ever tried was spirulina, which was meant to be good for all sorts of minerals but made the drink taste like fish- it took all morning for me to get the taste out of my mouth. At least with this it’s an add on instead of meal replacement- those sorts of diets are really bad for you I think.
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Thank you for reviewing our product. We suggest that you blend the powder with coconut water or fruit juice, and fresh fruit – we use raspberries or blueberries. One thing we have found with any powder (not just ours) is that if you blend it with a banana it thickens the mixture and holds the powder in the shake or smoothie better – hopefully this helps!
Thanks for this article, I may start my detox with this. I’m glad I read your post before I start mine, it’s my first time and I’m looking for a starter recipe and I love the idea of yours! Thanks!