The Master Cleanser

Trinity Digest 4/18
by Nicole Collins

A 1940s diet focused toward eliminating body toxins has resurged this past handful of years chiefly through human testimony, but also by supplemental literature published in recent years.

A ten to forty-day fast by another name, the Master Cleanse calls for a lot of water mixed with fresh squeezed lemons or limes, grade B maple syrup (dark amber), and cayenne pepper. That’s it.

I heard about the MC, also known as the “Lemonade Diet,” as a college freshman at a Leslie Feist Concert in Hollywood. And it was not via endorsement by the up-and-coming Feist, but by a girl in the audience who’s prized accessory was a Nalgene containing a lemonade concoction.

She was a friend of a friend, and I observed her later at Baja Fresh on Hollywood Boulevard as I destroyed a fajita burrito and she sipped on glorified water. Her self-denial and sticktoitiveness intrigued me.

Nutritionist Stanley Burroughs created the cleanse in the 40s and it was published in the 70’s as “The Master Cleanser,” a 50-page booklet written to bring the reader hope, knowledge and truth. It originally proved itself after healing stomach ulcers forty years ago suffered by a Bob Norman.

The MC types are mostly health-conscious individuals who are interested in eliminating body waste by purging their systems of toxins and impurities, such as food additives and pesticides.

“Lose Weight, Have More Energy & Be Happier in 10 Days” is the title of Peter Glickman’s book that republished Burrough’s original recipe, but revamped the method and appealed to the mainstream in 2005.

“While popular diets and fasts come and go, master cleanse remains a perennial favorite, a kind of folk regimen that owes its popularity to word of mouth and the Internet” wrote Lolo Ogunnaike for the New York Times Dec. 10.

Beyoncé Knowles told Oprah viewers of her 20-pound loss on the diet to prepare for her lead role in “Dreamgirls” in 2006.

Robin Quivers, known via Howard Stern, shed 73 pounds over three separate fasts in 2004, as told to People magazine.

Skinner comedian actress Tina Fay was suggested to have been dieting via the MC through a loaded question in a an episode of NBC’s “30 Rock” this past year.

Critics condemn the MC for its seeming eating disorder tendency risk and also by a common American presupposition that you will die if you miss a meal.

“Since the days of Jesus Christ, who fasted for 40 days, men and women have abstained from food for many reasons; for health, for political ends, and for spiritual enlightenment,” wrote Herman Schneider, who goes on the cleanse two or three times a year.

Now a college senior, I started the MC Monday, Mar. 24 and endured the minimum ten days. I didn’t eliminate anything significant, such as fabled parasites or ropes that line the large intestine of poor-eaters, and I lost about five pounds (all gained back already).

I certainly experienced an increase in energy and now, post-cleanse, I crave real food, such as raw fruits and vegetables, nuts and seeds.

“The Internet teems with testimonials to the cleanse, also known as the lemonade diet, claiming that it fights disease, clears the mind as well as acne, and increases energy. Bloggers chronicle their daily fasting. Master cleanse video diaries can be found on YouTube, and a cottage industry has developed with various companies peddling cleansing kits including all ingredients for the beverage except lemons,” reported Ogunnaike (NYT).

I have joined the thousands of bloggers, and posted daily journals of my MC experience at www.nicolecollins.blogspot.com.