I have been hearing about various “cleanses” for more than thirty years now. Most recently, people have been asking me about benefits and possible risks of “smoothie cleanses”. These smoothies contain lots of green vegetables that purportedly “cleanse” toxins from the body. There is no evidence that they can actually do that, but including more green vegetables in the diet should be helpful overall, because green vegetables contain many anti-oxidant and essential fatty acids (omega 3 and omega 6) that contribute to good nutrition and may be able to counter inflammation2 .
Important note:
Green vegetables contain oxalates, which can exacerbate kidney diseases when ingested in high doses (such as in cleanses). People who need to be wary of smoothie cleanses include people with kidney diseases, bariatric surgery, and antibiotic use3 .