Gwyneth Paltrow's flax and dandelion January detox plan

For most people the prospect of a New Year health drive means little more than cutting back on the booze after a few too many festive sherries or a shuffle around the park to counteract that extra helping of Christmas pudding.

But if you are Gwyneth Paltrow, the prospect of a January detox is a decidedly more serious business－aimed less at tackling the effects of trifle or chocolate log than the poisonous chemicals feared to be hidden in everything from furniture treatments to rubber bath ducks.

The actress, one of the most devoted A-list proponents of a strict health and fitness regime, has offered the world her latest musings on the most effective New Year purge, complete with puréed garden weeds, "infrared sauna" sessions and, of course, colonic irrigation.

She has published a detailed January detox plan on her lifestyle website Goop, which is dedicated to "health, fitness, and the psyche" and features essays on tantric sex techniques alongside baking recipes for children such as pancakes made from coconut flour and quails' eggs.

Her seven-day diet will, she hopes, help rid people not only of the extra pounds gained over Christmas but" heavy metals, fire retardants, and pesticides".

It extols the virtues of flax seeds, safflower oil－made from a thistlelike plant－and the "mild laxative" effects of eating dandelion leaves.

Those recovering from festive overindulgence are also advised to turn to chia seeds, liquidised almonds, kale and stevia, the sugar substitute perhaps best known from US television series Breaking Bad in which it was laced with the poison ricin to kill one of the main characters.

But nutritionists warned that the recipes are likely to leave many people struggling to sleep from hunger－and could leave them facing a financial headache as they try to source ingredients such as "young Thai coconuts".

"January always signifies detox time for us, and this year is no different," Paltrow explains in a personal foreword to the plan.

"The more we research, the more concerned about environmental toxins we become."

She explains that she had turned to Bruce Lourie, an "environmental thought leader", to come up with a something which would help people "not only drop some accumulated weight, but to get rid of some of the heavy metals, fire retardants, and pesticides in our systems, too".

The site goes on to explain that the recipes had cut out most forms of grain "without going overly ascetic" and incorporated a range of garishly coloured smoothies containing ingredients to give people "an extra kick in the pants".

"Detoxing is a nebulous and overly-marketed concept, though, and there's a lot of c**** out there, so we asked Bruce Lourie ... for his two cents," it adds.

A typical day includes a glass of lemon water, followed by a beetroot smoothie for breakfast; lentil-based soup and wrap for lunch and a supper of "fried rice" made with chopped cauliflower acting as a substitute for rice.

Dr Carina Norris, a registered nutritionist, said: "There are an awful lot worse detox diets out there than this but my view is, it is just not necessary."