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The Complete Home Guide to Herbs, Natural Healing, and Nutrition
thorough colon cleansing. The cleanse can last between two and three
weeks or, if taken at a gentler pace, between two and three months. This
cleanse should be directed and supervised throughout by a practitioner
after initial checks for individual suitability. If the program is not
appropriate for any reason, such as work commitments or children, it can
be modified and used on a two-day basis, just like the short liver and
kidney cleanses. Use the capsules and powders to suit individual
requirements.
The cleanse must be accompanied by a good diet without coffee, sugar,
wheat, dairy products, and so on. Mucus-forming foods must be avoided
as they can cause excessive stickiness in the colon, slowing down passage
of the feces and pasting old fecal matter to the walls of the colon. It is
important to note that excessive mucus clogs up the whole body, not just
the colon, so avoid animal products, eggs, cheese, and all wheat.
Useful additions while cleansing include
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Organic flaxseeds or psyllium husks (the fluffy, soft seed tops of a
large fleawort, Plantago psyllium, found growing in Asia). Both plants
soothe, heal, and attract water into the bowel.
It is vital to drink plenty of water— two quarts a day at least, but four
quarts would be better. Some find tepid water (nonsparkling spring-
water) easier to consume and more detoxifying.
Good foods: oats, rice, seeds, fruit, vegetables, herbal teas.
Chamomile and cascara capsules: This is very strong formula, designed
for the modern bowel. It can be used on a weekly or daily basis on its own
but is also a vital part of a three-pronged approach to the cleanse. I’ve
known patients on massive doses of very strong bowel drugs who were
experiencing painful side effects like gas, while still having very irregular
movements. They have found this formula excellent; it is strong but
gentle and contains the following powders: cascara sagrada bark, garlic
cloves, barberry root bark, aloe gel, cayenne pod, senna pod, gingerroot,
and chamomile flower. (Available from The American Botanical
Pharmacy.)
People who may need to use this are those who are constipated
because of an inherited lazy colon or through fiber and water deprivation
or those who use morphine and other opiate drugs for pain relief. But
there can be many, many other reasons for constipation. The number of
people with lifelong genetic and behavioral tendencies toward this
condition is rising by the day as junk-food consumption increases. The
herbs help to retrain and regulate bowel function, promoting natural
peristalsis; they also facilitate water absorption in the bowel and
encourage liver, gallbladder, stomach, and pancreatic function. These
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