Champneys Detox Pad - Dissection

Some time ago I posted an article about Champneys Detox Pads, showing how the icky brown ‘toxins’ that supposedly come from your feet can be elicited by adding clean water to the pad. I suspect this is because the pads contain wood vinegar (pyroligneous acid), a marvellous substance that is a white powder when dry, but turns brown and smelly when water is added. Is this the secret of the detox pads? Only one way to find out - dissection time!

I’ll be carefully opening a single detox pad. I hypothesise that the pad will contain some kind of powder which will turn brown when mixed with water. I also expect that there will be some kind of absorbent material in the pad to hold the moisture in. OK, enough talk, let’s go!

Here is the pad, as it comes. Notice the protective cover… possibly to keep out moisture?

Anyway, it has to come off, and for that we turn to my trusty dissection kit. Every boy should have one.

One small incision… Notice the foil backing of the pad. Could this be designed to make your foot a bit sweaty when you wear it?

The naked pad in all its virginal glory. Let’s see what secrets lie beneath.

The first surprise of the day - nothing but powder! There’s no absorbent pad in sight.

Here’s a blurry close-up. It looks like ground up kitty litter (hint). Now it’s time to introduce my lovely assistant.

This is Tara. When her mum told her that the pads could draw out all the red wine and cigarette nasties in someone’s body, Tara shot her the most withering look imaginable. She is five years old. We thought we’d mess around with the powder a little. I gave Tara a glass of water and told her to mix in some powder.

The effect wasn’t really noticeable. Too much water.

Attempt #2 -Tara added a little water to the powder.

Result = it turns brown and sludgy! (and smelly)

The sludginess got my interest. Perhaps the detox pads do not have an absorbent material because they use another mechanism. Here’s what happens when you increase the powder to water ratio:

Yep, it looks to me like Champneys (or rather Trading Angels, the people who make these pads) add some kind of thickener to the powder to lock in that moisture. My guess is some form of starch, like the cellulose pulp used in disposable diapers, or expanded clay, as used in cat litter (told you it was a clue!). In fact, the ingredients listed on the box include purified silica (also used in cat litter), tourmaline (another silicate), chitosan (another gelling agent), ‘polyolic acid’ (ditto), and … wait for it… starch! In fairness to Champneys, almost all these products are listed “helps to retain moisture” - the joke being that they retain moisture in the pad, not in your body.

So there you have it. Champneys detox pads contain a powder that turns brown, sticky and smelly when wet. Which means none of these things are a result of ‘toxins’ exiting the body. It’s almost as if they’re added to make it look like something nasty came out…

NEW! More slamming science in:
Champneys Detox Pads - the clinical trial

NEW! Even more science punkery in:
Scientific Study on Detox Pads

56 comments February 13th, 2008