Can kinoki detox foot pads save your sole?

Erin Inquires: Can you tell me how Kinoki Detox Foot Pads work or is it a hoax? It is a product that you place on your feet to remove the toxins from your body.

The Left Brain de-feets Kinoki:

I’m going with HOAX on this one, Erin.

The power of vinegar

According to their website, Kinoki Detox Foot Pads claim to draw harmful toxins through the bottom of your feet by using distilled bamboo vinegar. All you do is place the pads on the soles of your feet. As you sleep, the vinegar sucks the evil toxins from all your organs, through your blood stream, until they pass through the bottom of your foot where they are absorbed by the pad. It works on all kinds of contaminants including heavy metals, metabolic waste, microscopic parasites, mucous and even cellulite. You can tell it really works because as the pad absorbs toxins it changes color from white to gray-black.

What a load of crap!

The idea that toxins can be sucked out of your body through the soles of your feet is completely absurd. Dr. Stephen Barrett, M.D., part of the Quackwatch network, did a great job of debunking detox foot patches. He points out that skin is not a permeable membrane, so substances will not easily flow out of the body through the skin. And even if materials could pass through the skin this way, that’s not how detoxification works. True detox involves the liver and kidneys working together to filter the blood. The skin just doesn’t work that way; all it can do is emit sweat, which contains water and salt (and a little sebum).

The Beauty Brains bottom line

This entire concept is so unscientific that it boggles the mind. Yet, even Amazon.com sells detox pads like this! Let the buyer beware!

Want more Beauty Brains brilliance? Get your copy of the Beauty Brains book here.

Note: Comments on this post have been closed due to the fact that they are slowing down the system. If you would like to discuss the topic further, go to the Kinoki Foot pad discussion on our forum.