Get the toxins out, absorb the vitamins, minerals and antioxidants and come away from the detox looking and feeling great. The idea has been around for generations, centuries even. But fasting, often the main component of a detox, is not enough, according to a woman who is about to co-ordinate a series of juice retreats in Clare.

The juice retreats, explains Galway resident Aisling Battersby, will consist of three-day residential programmes incorporating fasting from food but participants are allowed to drink a selection of juices and smoothies.
“When you are cleansing your body from the inside out, it affects every level of your health. When your body is healing from the inside, everything is improved right the way out to your skin and your weight. It is simple; really making everything work from a deep level in the inside will result in a healthier outside,” she outlines.
Aisling has been studying health for 10 years. She studied naturopathy with the Institute of Complementary and Integrated Therapists for four years and is a qualified yoga teacher, having run her own centre for over three years in Galway. She is qualified in colonic hydrotherapy, massage, sports injury therapy, reflexology and has trained with sports and coaching techniques, reiki, kinesiology, shiatsu and craniosacral therapy.
Aisling developed the idea of holding a juice retreat from her own interest in detoxing.
“Fasting is very good for you but people tend to be deficient in minerals and vitamins and anti-oxidants so fasting has become almost bad for you if you are unhealthy and most people don’t realise how unhealthy they are. When you take lots of juices, you get the vitamins and minerals, the essential fatty acids and the antioxidants that you need and then your body can do a semi-fast,” she claims.
“The reason you would want to do a fast is to give the liver a chance to clear out the body, the pancreas a chance to rebalance sugars, the stomach a chance to build up digestive enzymes and for the bowel to build up good bacteria. We try to do this with the juice fast. You would have been able to do this years ago with just a fast but now you need the juice. You aren’t really hungry when you are drinking juices and teas and that,” she adds.
The Meath-born health specialist believes that detoxification is vital to maintaining a healthy immune system and promoting a feeling of well-being.
Over time though, she says, “your body’s natural ability to detoxify cannot keep up. As a result, toxins from the food you eat, the air you breathe and the water you drink begin to accumulate in your body, increasing the workload of the other eliminative organs, that is, bowels, kidney, skin, liver, lung and lymph.”
“The modern western diet tends to be too low in fibre and too high in fat, salt and artificial additives,” reflects Aisling. “The average diet is high in meat and sugar and many of the foods we eat contain pesticides, chemical additives and environmental pollutants. This eventually results in conditions such as loss of vitality, poor health, gas, bloating and many other minor ailments, which can also lead on to more serious disease.”
Even though detoxing can have an impact on the external appearance, most of those who decide to take part in the juice retreats do so for increased vitality and more energy. That said, they are not suitable for everyone.
“Anyone who is very sick would need to make sure they go to their doctor or contact me to make sure they can do it. There will be the option for people who really want to do it but who have to eat to eat some wholegrains,” Aisling outlines.
“If people are honest with me and tell me in advance of any medical conditions they have there shouldn’t be any problem. I wouldn’t want to do it if there were any health risks,” she continues.
Aisling recommends a week-long detox before the retreat, whereby participants abstain from alcohol, nicotine, caffeine, sugar, dairy, wheat, meat, fish and eggs.
“If they do that, they should have loads of energy, should be happier and should be full of life afterwards,” she says.
The juices and smoothies are made from fresh organic raw vegetables and fruit rich in vitamins, minerals and antioxidants that are juiced for efficient absorption and, Aisling adds, they should taste good too. The juices are rich in nutrients, so they should keep hunger at bay, leaving participants to enjoy the other treats for the body and mind.
During the retreat there will be sessions in yoga, massage, meditation, nutrition discussion and lectures, breathing techniques, massage training, instructions on cooking and advice on recipes.
Aisling is holding her first juice retreat in Loughnane’s Hostel, Feakle on the weekend of October 2. This will be followed by a number of others this year and Aisling is hoping to hold another next year in Spain. To find out more, call 087 6722395.