Do you feel toxic—full of gunk? Most people have too many toxins going in and not enough coming out their four elimination systems. This causes many illnesses and, often, excess weight gain.

A healthy Colon (Large Intestine) is most important to your feeling good. Dr. Bernard Jenson and many other doctors believe that death begins in the colon. People seem to forget that what goes in, must come out. Your colon is like a tunnel—if three cars go in, then three cars must come out. If you eat three meals a day, you should have two to three bowel movements a day.

Colon Information
The colon is typically about 59 inches long and is our body’s garbage container. It has been documented in many books that there is a direct relationship between parts of the large intestine and the corresponding reflex areas of the body. Therefore, toxicity or other problems in the colon produce a reflex symptom in the corresponding organ or tissue. For example, if you have a problem with your ear, it could mean that the specific part of the Colon supplying nutrients to that ear might be damaged or toxic. Organ tissues are as healthy as the blood that feeds them; the blood is only as clean as the bowel from which nutrients are supplied.

Your colon is only as healthy as the rest of your digestive system. Digestion begins with the saliva in our mouths, continues in the stomach and small intestine.

The small intestine, not to be confused with the large intestine or colon, is approximately nine-feet long and receives food mass from the stomach, bile from the liver and gallbladder and pancreatic juice from the pancreas. Lining the entire surface are minute fingerlike villi through which the digestion products (simple sugars, amino acids, and fatty acids) are absorbed. Beneficial bacteria live in the small intestine, and they produce B vitamins, kill harmful organisms and are known as intestinal flora or pro-biotics, (acidophilus). These are often confused with enzymes, which aid in digestion in the stomach.

When you take an antibiotic, you kill all the bad and beneficial bacteria in your body. This allows fungus and other harmful organisms to take over. It is important to take a pro-biotic (beneficial bacteria or acidophilus) after completing your antibiotic. It is also important to take it in the correct form. If you just eat yogurt, which contains L. acidophilus - the beneficial bacteria it contains won't make it past the acid in the stomach to the small intestine, and it will not be helpful. It is best to take an enteric-coated capsule. Enterics live in your intestines and when your body sees them, they bypass the stomach and open up in the small intestine so the beneficial bacteria are now in the optimum place to help you.

Whatever digestion takes place in the large intestines results from bacteria. A large number of fermentative bacteria are found in the middle portion of the colon. They change carbohydrates into carbon dioxide and lactic acid. The most important but not the most common bacteria in the colon is E. Coli, which when found in the colon, not harmful to us, but is actually helpful.

Also directly related to colon health are two valves: the Illeoceccal valve (between the large and small intestines) and the Valve of Houston (between the large intestine and the rectum). These are one-way valves that must open and close properly in order for fecal matter to move in the right direction and not get clogged. Often if these valves are not working properly, you can experience gas, diarrhea or constipation. A chiropractor
(Palmer Graduate) can usually make sure these are working properly for you.

In addition, there is an emotion related to each organ of the body. This is explained in many Chinese medicine books. The colon's emotion is Control. Often if there are colon problems, either you are trying to control something or someone, or someone or something is trying to control you. The Feelings Buried Alive Never Die by Karol Kahn Truman is very helping in working out these issues.

Spring Cleaning or Cleansing
Before cleansing your colon, follow these informative guidelines.

It is important to make sure you support your liver and kidneys when flushing. Many times people take products to clean their colon, and forget about supporting the liver and kidneys. It is also important to make sure you are getting enough enzymes for your digestion. Remember digestion produces toxins as a by-product, and you need to make sure there are enzymes to help carry these toxins out of the body. If digestion is poor and what is going in your body is bad in the first place, the colon can never be cleaned properly.

When cleansing, it is important to make sure you are eating foods high in Fiber—these include fresh fruits and vegetables. In fact, berries are probably one of the richest sources of fiber for the body.

Another option is to fast. Many people will fast for a few days while they are detoxing. They may only drink fresh organic juices, or organic chicken broth. …And of course lots of water.

There is a great deal of water absorbed in the colon. Fluids of the body are conserved in this way and, in spite of the large amount of secretions (saliva, etc) add to the food during its process through the body, the contents of the colon are gradually dehydrated. That is why it is very important to drink a lot of clean water.

Cleansing
One time my washing machine wasn't working correctly. I had the inner workings of it all cleaned out and it works fine now. Our bodies are similar. It is a good idea to detoxify them every 6 months to a year. This is especially true since our food is not as pure as it should be. When we eat food, the digestion process creates toxins as a by-product. If we eat organic food, we don’t get as many toxins. But if we eat non-organic food we are also ingesting antibiotics, hormones, synthetics, pesticides, etc. We also ingest toxins from the air (gas stations, car smog, cigarettes, smoke, and many other air pollutants) and water (weed killers, fertilizers, chlorine and more).

Even people who take herbs may notice that they stop working as well at some point. Sometimes this is because our machinery may be polluted and we need to take specific herbs to help cleanse our colon.

Some of these herbs include Senna, Cascara Sagrada, Psyllium Seed and Psyllium hulls. It is important to make sure that you know how each of these products work. Senna is very strong and must be used with caution. It pulls potassium out to the body, which can stop your heart if taken for too long. Often dieter’s teas and other products contain Senna to make your bowels move more often, helping you lose weight. If you are having diarrhea from taking Senna, or are taking it more than a week or two, it is important to take a potassium supplement, eat lots of potatoes/bananas and check with your health professional to make sure it is the right product for you.

If you are not having at least 1 bowel movement a day, a good choice is taking Casara Sagrada and Psyllium Seed together. Cascara is a stimulant and acts like a hose to wash fecal matter out of the colon. Psyllium Seed is like a scrubber brush - it cleans the walls out and lets the Cascara wash it away. Taking this 1-2 times a day will help keep your bowel movements regular. If your diet improves, overtime, you will find you won’t need to stay on this forever, and will be able to migrate to Psyllium Hulls or something else not quite as strong.

If you are having at least 1 bowel movement a day, Psyllium Hulls adds extra fiber to your diet to help you have at least one more bowel movement a day and helps your body push out extra toxins that may be present.

Remember your colon is a muscle and must be exercised just like every other muscle in the body or it will stop working. Many people often ask my opinion on colonics/enemas. I think colonics should be used sparingly if at all. They are very important for emergency situations: however, they should not be used more than once or twice a year.

I had a friend when I was young who was always giving herself enemas. She is still doing that daily now because her muscles shut down since she did and is still doing the work for them. It is also important to remember to replace minerals and friendly bacteria if you do have a colonic since it is not a natural process and can pull out useful nutrients as well as harmful ones.

There are also herbs to help absorb toxins out the body including Hydrated Bentonite Clay, Algin, Chickweed and Chlorophyll. These can be taken with cleansing herbs to help your body push harmful toxins out more effectively.

Choose Cleanses Wisely
There are many cleanses from which to choose. Visit your herbalist to find the best one for you. Remember, sometimes when people start cleansing, they get clogged or constipated. It’s like throwing too much garbage out the front door at once. This can be normal, just make sure you are eating right, drinking water, and taking the right herbs. It is also important to make sure your valves are working properly as mentioned above.

After You Cleanse
After you cleanse, it is always important to rebuild tissue and provide important nutrients to repair damage and build new cells. One product that is helpful is flaxseed. Flaxseed is high in fiber, and also high in iron, which is good for most women. It also contains important essential fatty acids for your skin, hair, arteries, brain, organs and tissue walls such as the colon. It can be purchased in seeds to put on top of salads, cookies, or any casserole; as a ground meal for meatloaf, oatmeal or other hot dish; or as a liquid or capsule. It has a nice nutty flavor and is so good for you.

Happy spring cleansing!
Top

close window