umm... enema!?!??! - Raw Food Chat

FaerieLink3 · 12-31-2007

So I have been spending my evening reading The Raw Food Detox Diet book by Natalia Rose and I have reached an interesting section...

Enema...??? They are saying these are important in detoxing the body... but umm... do I have to?? Have you??

My mom says no way no how.... I am leaning that way...and I am sure its all personal choice...but ....if it is something common and very important... I might have to think more about it...

Opinions??

Double Helix · 12-31-2007

There are different schools of thoughts on cleansing the body.

One school of thought is to irritate the body to cause a cleansing reaction. This includes enemas, herbs, colon-cleanses, saltwater flushes, senna teas, salt baths, etc. What they do is really cause the body to become irritated so that it expells things quickly. Sometimes they'll cause more mucus in the body to protect it from an unfriendly and irritating visitor.

This type of cleansing can be harsh but it is a way that many people utilize speedier detox.

The other school of thought is to let nothing harm the body. Anything that can irritate the body such as the above, even things like sea salt, garlic and onions are not eaten as they cause irritation to the body.

This is a different way to allow the body to cleanse and heal on its own time without being forced to cleanse via irritation.

Hope that information helps.

FaerieLink3 · 12-31-2007

Thank you so much for your reply....

Can I ask what your personal opinion is??

nothinkingbehind · 12-31-2007

Hi Faerie,

I always thought that I should cleanse, etc, and did a few times. Then I went raw and as soon as my raw intake was up over 50%, I naturally cleansed my entire system. At first I thought I was going to poop like that forever! Then it settled down and I've been quite regular and cleansed, etc since. So I've determined that for me, I won't be cleansing with anything but raw foods again. As long as I eat the things that I know are good for me, I think my body works quite well.

Melissa

Double Helix · 12-31-2007

Faerie IMO I wouldn't do a colonic myself, and I don't see a reason for someone to do it if who is already on a good diet.

FaerieLink3 · 12-31-2007

OMG....poop like what?!?! Lots? Bad? Will I be able to function at work!?!? hehe

I am (and so is my mom) glad that you two personally dont do it... she is a tad worried about that and personally I dont think I would be into it... >_<

Thanks again...

-Jessica

nothinkingbehind · 12-31-2007

Well, just poop like ..... often..... a few times a day, which was abnormal for me before raw. I just felt like I was cleaning out, you know? But no, I have never really had pain or any discomfort really, just going a lot for a couple of days. Then it got better for a day, then it got worse for a few days.... all in all I think it took a couple of weeks to regulate, but now i hardly ever have any bowel issues. My suggestion would be to work on raw before you do anything else. See if natural works, if it doesn't, then decide what's best for you from there.

Melissa

Lotusblu · 12-31-2007

In shifting my eating habits, I too have noticed a change in my elimination. I have always been regular and have not suffered with constipation issues, but it has become more frequent. We are actually suppose to eliminate several times a day when we are healthy.

Cheers!

MeadowLark · 12-31-2007

LOL~! I'm in total agreement with Lotusblu! Everywhere that I have read; we should have a normal bowel movements after meals. Eating plaenty of veggies and fruits are going to keep us "going" in a very normal fashion

Nope! You're not gonna spend forever in the restroom. It wont interfere with work or play

( unless you pig out on flaxcrackers of some such:P )
MeadowLark

message boards · 01-04-2008

FaerieLink3,

I would never get an enema or anything similar to that. Not to sound crude, but we have "in" holes and "out" holes--ya know what I mean?? Part of why I think the living foods lifestyle is so wonderful is that we are eating so much more naturally and the way God originally intended for us to eat. It is a very normal process for you to consume food--it only comes back out your mouth if you are sick. Similarly, food and liquid EXITS the colon, not the other way around.
Many people who have written books on raw food were likely involved in many other alternative therapies before or after they went raw. Some bring their knowledge of these other practices with them into the raw food community. Colon hydro-therapy or enemas are definitely NOT a required aspect of this lifestyle. I would agree with the first line of thought that Double Helix mentioned: enemas "work" because your body so quickly wants to rid itself of the intruding wash that it seems as though the therapy "works" for the better. I've heard supporters say how much mucus the body dumped out after the enema and therefore how grateful they were to get it out of their system. But your body PRODUCES mucus to remove foreign invaders--for instance: if you were to inhale, say, fiberglass dust from a building project (as my husband did last night!) your lungs would produce a ton of mucus to help you expectorate the irritant. Now, should my husband have said "boy, that fiberglass sure is great for ridding my lungs of all this mucus that must have been building up for years!" or rather realized that the fiberglass dust CAUSED the excess mucus in the first place? If you are giving your body the best sort of nutrition available (living foods) you will have no problem becoming comfortably "regular" in your bowel movements and your body will take care of cleansing the colon all by itself. I have looked into colonics and found a lot of dangerous things that can happen if you do them, like accidentally perforating the bowel with the tubes or causing nasty infections. If anyone reading my post is a supporter of colon hydro-therapy, please don't consider this a personal attack on you, but I do have strong concerns against the practice.

I wish you luck on your raw food journey!
mb