Colon Cleansing
With spring, I’m reading a lot of things on colon cleansing. It upsets my stomach! What bothers me is the wealth of mis-information many of those who promote it spread.
There are several reasons people may consider colon cleansing, but a popular reason is for weight loss. Not that there is ANY good reason to go on a colon cleansing diet, but this is probably the LAST reason. Some people believe it could help kick start a new, healthier diet. Yea, it could do that.
Other people believe that a colon cleanse will ‘clean’ their colon. The belief is that going on a diet of either just fruits or some concoction of juices and other substances will slough off the dead cells lining the gastrointestinal tract. However, most people who benefit from this aren’t eating a healthy diet high in fruits and vegetables and whole grains to begin with. If they just switched to a ‘healthy’ diet, nothing would need to be ‘cleaned out’.
Finally, the last justification people give for colon cleansing is that it will remove toxins from the body. This probably drives me the nuttiest. There are two phases of detoxification the liver goes through (which is where detoxification takes place, NOT the colon), and in order to most effectively do this, which it is quite good at, it needs all macronutrients – carbohydrates, proteins and fats. However, this does not mean a diet of cheeseburgers, French fries and diet sodas! An excellent example would include fresh fruits and veggies, whole grain starches, such as brown rice, plant-based proteins, such as beans and legumes, and healthy, plant-based fats, such as olives and avocado. Once the body has the nutrients it needs, the liver manages to prove that the body is a miraculous machine.
Sometimes one or another of the phases of detoxification needs help. Then modification of the diet can support healthy detoxification, but not from eliminating whole food groups.
So, the bottom line is this: Clean your house, clean your skin and hair clean your car. Be kind to your colon and feed it ‘happy, healthy‘ food, not cayenne pepper in a glass!
For three excellent articles on the topic, click these links:
http://acudoc.com/Detoxification.PDF
http://acudoc.com/Intestinal_Health.PDF
There are several reasons people may consider colon cleansing, but a popular reason is for weight loss. Not that there is ANY good reason to go on a colon cleansing diet, but this is probably the LAST reason. Some people believe it could help kick start a new, healthier diet. Yea, it could do that.
Other people believe that a colon cleanse will ‘clean’ their colon. The belief is that going on a diet of either just fruits or some concoction of juices and other substances will slough off the dead cells lining the gastrointestinal tract. However, most people who benefit from this aren’t eating a healthy diet high in fruits and vegetables and whole grains to begin with. If they just switched to a ‘healthy’ diet, nothing would need to be ‘cleaned out’.
Finally, the last justification people give for colon cleansing is that it will remove toxins from the body. This probably drives me the nuttiest. There are two phases of detoxification the liver goes through (which is where detoxification takes place, NOT the colon), and in order to most effectively do this, which it is quite good at, it needs all macronutrients – carbohydrates, proteins and fats. However, this does not mean a diet of cheeseburgers, French fries and diet sodas! An excellent example would include fresh fruits and veggies, whole grain starches, such as brown rice, plant-based proteins, such as beans and legumes, and healthy, plant-based fats, such as olives and avocado. Once the body has the nutrients it needs, the liver manages to prove that the body is a miraculous machine.
Sometimes one or another of the phases of detoxification needs help. Then modification of the diet can support healthy detoxification, but not from eliminating whole food groups.
So, the bottom line is this: Clean your house, clean your skin and hair clean your car. Be kind to your colon and feed it ‘happy, healthy‘ food, not cayenne pepper in a glass!
For three excellent articles on the topic, click these links:
http://acudoc.com/Detoxification.PDF
http://acudoc.com/Intestinal_Health.PDF
posted by Margie Geiser, MBA, RD, NSCA-CPT at
4:42 AM
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