DON’T BE TEMPTED BY A TEATOX

SO-CALLED ‘teatox’ products are herbal ‘detox teas’ sold in health food shops that are meant to be drunk two to three times a day, either around 30 minutes before each meal, or once in the morning and once at night.

Often, these teas, or at least the evening brew, contain a herbal laxative called senna,

which makes you lose water weight. This can trick you into thinking the tea is effective for weight loss when it’s not (you are really just losing water weight and when you stop the laxative, you will put that water weight back on). Laxatives don’t cause fat loss or ‘detox’ the body. And beware: senna can have side-effects, including fatigue, dehydration, dizziness, cramps, colon damage, pain, diarrhoea and dependency on laxatives.