Joyce Jiang, a young professional woman in Hong Kong, sat down with her friends in a restaurant one evening. But instead of ordering a meal, she took out a bottle of juice. “I can’t eat anything,” she said. “I’m doing a detox and it’s my third day — two more days to go.”

Joyce•江（音譯）一位香港年輕白領(lǐng)，某晚她和朋友來(lái)到一家餐廳聚餐。但是她并未點(diǎn)餐而是拿出一瓶果汁。“我什么也不能吃，”她說(shuō)，“今天是我排毒的第三天，還有兩天才大功告成。”

Juicing, a trend originating from the US, is starting to attract health-conscious middle-class Chinese. But it’s not for losing weight. They consume nothing except fruit and vegetable juice for days or even weeks, with the intention of cleansing their bodies of toxins that have accumulated over the years.

果汁排毒這種健康風(fēng)潮起源于美國(guó)，如今正受到追求健康的中國(guó)中產(chǎn)階層人士的青睞。但是這并不是一種減肥方法。他們會(huì)一連數(shù)日、甚至幾周的時(shí)間只喝果蔬汁，為的是要清除多年來(lái)囤積在體內(nèi)的毒素。

A recent Wall Street Journal article reported that detoxing and cleansing has become a big industry in the US with celebrity endorsers and millions of dollars in venture capital funds. Carrying a bottle of juice has become a status symbol in fitness circles.

《華爾街日?qǐng)?bào)》近日刊登文章指出，在美國(guó)排毒凈化已經(jīng)成為一項(xiàng)極具規(guī)模的產(chǎn)業(yè)，各界名流爭(zhēng)相為其代言，并拉來(lái)上百萬(wàn)美元的風(fēng)投資金。在健身界，隨身攜帶一瓶果汁已經(jīng)成為一種社會(huì)地位的象征。

But can such detox regimens really flush out toxins from our bodies? As The Wall Street Journal article points out, the question we should be asking is: Are our bodies really overwhelmed with toxins?

但是這種排毒法真的能夠清除體內(nèi)毒素嗎？這篇發(fā)表在《華爾街日?qǐng)?bào)》上的文章指出，我們應(yīng)該弄清楚的問(wèn)題是：我們體內(nèi)真的充滿了毒素嗎？

First of all, what are toxins? “Nobody has ever been able to tell me what these toxins are,” Donald Hensrud, a nutrition specialist told The Wall Street Journal.

首先要說(shuō)的是，什么是毒素？營(yíng)養(yǎng)專家唐納德•韓思魯?shù)略诮邮堋度A爾街日?qǐng)?bào)》采訪時(shí)表示：“到目前為止，還沒(méi)有人能夠告訴我，這些毒素到底是什么。”

In a comment piece on juicing hype in the US, Katy Waldman, a staff writer for Slate magazine, also declared that after days of research she still didn’t know what a toxin was.

而美國(guó)《石板》雜志特約撰稿人凱迪•瓦爾德曼也在一篇探討果汁排毒炒作的評(píng)論文章中指出，經(jīng)過(guò)幾天的研究過(guò)后，她還是沒(méi)有弄清毒素是什么。

Detox advocates define “toxins” very broadly. Mark Hyman, a US physician and author of six best-selling diet books, told The Wall Street Journal that the biggest toxic threats come from the American diet. According to Hyman, Americans eat too much sugar and flour, which overwhelms the liver’s ability to cope.

排毒擁躉們對(duì)毒素的定義太寬泛。身為六本暢銷節(jié)食書作者的馬可•海曼醫(yī)師在接受《華爾街日?qǐng)?bào)》采訪時(shí)表示，最大的毒素威脅來(lái)源于美式飲食本身。海曼醫(yī)師指出，美國(guó)人過(guò)量攝入了糖和面粉，致使肝臟不堪重負(fù)。

Hyman says Americans are also being plagued by heavy metals (including mercury from large fish), harmful chemicals, as well as “spiritual toxins”, such as loneliness. He says people can reduce their exposure to and enhance their ability to get rid of such toxins with the right balance of foods, vitamins and minerals.

他提到，美國(guó)人同樣深受重金屬（包括大型魚類中所含的汞）、有害化學(xué)成分以及孤獨(dú)等“精神毒素”的侵害。他表示，人們可以通過(guò)減少與這些毒素的接觸，以及保持飲食、維他命和礦物質(zhì)的均衡攝入，進(jìn)而到達(dá)增強(qiáng)自身排毒能力的目的。

But even Hyman concedes further research is needed to better understand the mechanism of a detox.

海曼也承認(rèn)需要通過(guò)進(jìn)一步的研究才能更好地弄清排毒方法。

Eating more vegetables is great, as some detox regimens ask people to do. But many mainstream experts dismiss the detox claims as pseudoscience. They argue that humans already have a highly efficient system for filtering out most harmful substances.

一些排毒養(yǎng)生法倡導(dǎo)人們多吃蔬菜，這的確對(duì)健康大有益處。但是很多主流權(quán)威專家并不承認(rèn)排毒這一說(shuō)法，稱其為偽科學(xué)。他們認(rèn)為人類自身已經(jīng)具備一套高效的排毒過(guò)濾系統(tǒng)。

“The whole cleansing concept is silly,” Elizabeth Applegate, a senior lecturer in the nutrition department at the University of California, Davis, told Slate magazine. “The body doesn’t need any help getting rid of compounds it doesn’t want. That’s what your liver and kidneys are for.”

“整個(gè)排毒凈化理念根本就是無(wú)稽之談。”加州大學(xué)戴維斯分校營(yíng)養(yǎng)學(xué)系高級(jí)講師伊麗莎白•艾伯蓋特在接受《石板》雜志采訪時(shí)表示。“不用借助任何外力的幫助，人體便能清除那些無(wú)用的化合物。這就是肝和腎的功能。”

What about the psychological benefits some detox proponents claim to have? They say it gives them a sharp mind and makes them feel happy and see things more clearly.

那么一些排毒擁躉們口中的心理益處指的是什么呢？他們稱排毒還給他們一個(gè)清醒的頭腦，令他們更開心，看事物也更清晰。

“Placebo effect,” Applegate said. “It’s a survival mechanism. You’re all amped up and alert because you need something to eat.”

艾伯蓋特說(shuō)：“這是安慰劑效應(yīng)。其實(shí)就是一種生存機(jī)制，在你需要食物時(shí)，就會(huì)興奮和警醒起來(lái)。”