Consumer Reports on Cleanses

The November 2018 Consumer Reports banner article is “Natural Cures... Which Work, Which Don’t". Under the general heading of “Detoxes & Cleanses”. "A colonic is a procedure in which a machine pumps water into your rectum through a sterile tube and are purported to help people lose weight and rid themselves of toxins. These practices aren’t just unpleasant; research shows they’re not needed and can be dangerous. Your body naturally gets rid of toxins on it’s own so there’s no need to waste time and money on these methods. A research review found that colonics had no benefit and can cause side effects ranging from cramping and nausea to kidney failure and death.”

I have had dozens of colonics over the years and agree that they hold no mysterious magic in regard to "removing toxins”. We all know the popular culture has shifted toward rejecting enemas, but most of us are quite clear that they serve a useful purpose in our lives. They provide a pleasant and immediate relief from constipation as well as a sensation of well-being. Most of us here find colonics and enemas anything but unpleasant. Legitimate research finding colonics cause “kidney failure and death”? Anyone aware of any legitimate reports on this?

I've seen some articles that say you can deplete electrolytes and damage your heart and/or kidneys IF you have kidney disease and take colonics. Articles are written by colon hydro-liar-pists so I don't think there is much credence in them. Couldn't find any legitimate research connecting the two.

I'm sure there are circumstances whereby, an individual suffered various complications in the aftermath of a detox, cleanse, or other type of "alternative" treatment or therapy. Some are likely studied or reviewed in various research efforts and subsequently published.

These articles certainly raise awareness to potential issues that may influence outcomes that are dependent on a multitude of personal contraindications, desired results, or alternatives to "regular" medicine or therapies.

There is no doubt in my mind that someone has had a negative reaction to a colonic, enema, or other type of intrusive therapy. The ultimate cause of those negative reactions may be attributable to a host of underlying, often unidentified, circumstances.

Sometimes, people hear of a negative reaction and assume that the same will happen to them. While I may consider such information, I'm unlikely to forego alternative therapies just because someone else may have had an issue or developed an aversion to a treatment.

The whole point is that I try to remain reasonable, sane, safe, and perceptive when engaging in any therapy. While moderation seems wise, I do admit that some may not share my enjoyment regarding the frequency of some of these therapies.

I have referred to Dr. Benjamin Miller, Dr, John Eichenlaub, and others who likely have aged out of their medical practices. Each seemed to be proponents of the judicious use of enemas to address a variety of ailments. While colonics were less available in the distant past, the utilization of enemas and typical delivery systems have been around for quite some time.

Dr. Miller referenced the "magical virtue of enemas" many seniors believed in. He also gave tacit permission "you may take an enema" to deal with "nuisance ailments" including constipation or straining at a BM. Dr. Eichenlaub gave a recipe for "bowel flushing enemas" to address various types of digestive issues.

Others recommend drinking a glass of water or giving your child fluids prior to giving them an enema to minimize potential dehydration. Adding salt and/or soda is said to limit fluid transfer internally. Limiting the number and volume of enemas is often suggested. Electrolyte imbalances can have serious consequeces and may affect the internal organs. Again, one must be safe and sane.

I have enjoyed enemas and colonics for more than 60 years. While I may not be more or less healthy as a result, few people have found as much enjoyment, therapeusis, and stress relief as I. I don't resort to typical medicines nearly as often, and believe that I am better off in the long run.

There are case studies. Kidney failure is often connected with phosphate enemas, and many of the serious side effects are in people with compromised health anyway (including renal issues, heart issues or bowel issues causing weak points) or "stupid enemas." Yes, they can harm. Do keep in mind that the cases you read about are the ones where something went wrong though - few people write case studies about when that enema went perfectly. Also the larger studies I have read show little adverse effects if you are reasonably careful and passably healthy.

In the context of the CR report, colonics and enemas have not been shown to do anything for many of the things they are claimed to "cure." If something has no benefit than even limited risks are unacceptable. For relieving a bout of constipation they're probably OK (hope they are, I use them for that often), and for fun, well, you'll just have to make your own call.

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"few people write case studies about when that enema went perfectly."

Maybe we should do this...... Maybe one of the moderators can make some sort of chart, with times and date, and lots of detailed questions, to gather technical detail.

Every time regular users of this site would log on, It would ask you for your enema history to be updated. After 6 months or a year this site would have a good case history of lots of people who have had good enemas. This would be great ammunition, to combat all those fear mongers about enemas.

Maybe we should do this...... Maybe one of the moderators can make some sort of chart, with times and date, and lots of detailed questions, to gather technical detail.

Every time regular users of this site would log on, It would ask you for your enema history to be updated. After 6 months or a year this site would have a good case history of lots of people who have had good enemas. This would be great ammunition, to combat all those fear mongers about enemas.

This would be mostly pointless as far as getting valid information*, as most members here wouldn't know what to include and the information may or may not be reliable. Essentially what we'd get is another "when was your last enema" thread.

* Granted, many of the actual case studies are not detailed enough to get much out of either, at least in the parts before the doctors got involved. They may say "patient took a soap enema." OK, good, well - how much, how much of what kind of soap, ... of course we're talking people of varied educations who are in a stressful situation, so it is probably difficult to get full and accurate information.

Maybe we should do this...... Maybe one of the moderators can make some sort of chart, with times and date, and lots of detailed questions, to gather technical detail.

.... After 6 months or a year this site would have a good case history of lots of people who have had good enemas. This would be great ammunition, to combat all those fear mongers about enemas.

That would be a totally biased and useless study - polling klismos about enema use. Who are the fear mongers you want to "educate"?

As im very often constipated, i did think about colour coding the calendar , covering the days i pooped naturally or when i needed an enema or soap, and if id pooped normally what id eaten the day before etc....... seemed a good idea at the time, but got forgotten about.

This is interesting, given the numerous testimonials on YT from people who claim enemas have helped THEM, plus the prevalence of Gerson videos, again with personal claims from individuals. Coffee enemas seem to be "the rage" now, and folks on YT often swear by them and there are many testimonials about enemas and colonics both. For those who say, "it's nothing but a feeling you get," or, "it's just a placebo," what is good health but feeling better and being more functional? I've known a fair number of colon therapists, and most of them said they got involved in that therapy because they personally found it helpful for their own ailments.

In short, I don't buy the idea that enemas can't be useful.

There have been numerous medical experts that say a patient's mental attitude is a factor in their recovery from an illness. Keeping that in mind, consider these positions on enemas:

1. Most studies today claim that there is no medical advantage to enemas as a cure, for just about anything.

2. I am not aware of any legitimate study that shows that enemas (other than obvious dangerous solutions) have had a negative effect on someone's health.

So considering neither side can definitively claim enemas are good or bad, if an enema improves your mental attitude isn't that good? Even though an enema can't cure arthritis or make you lose weight, if it makes you feel better even if it is all your mental attitude, isn't that of benefit?

I'm a real Consumer Reports devotee, as well as other reputable health newsletters. Cheryl's right. And just to add to her comments, she didn't happen to mention directly the sexual aspects, sexual benefits, and just plain fun of enemas, either with a partner or solo (which she's written about previously). So for those reasons alone, they're sure wonderful in MY book!

This subject has been discussed on many threads here on this site. And we all seem to circle back to the same conclusion. People who have been doing enemas for most all of their life (me included) have suffered no ill effects. We keep doing them because they do provide some noticeable benefit(s). The list of benefits is long but range in relief from constipation, to a feeling of well being and sexual release. People who have been doing enemas regularly for many years seem to get into a rhythm in which they know how their body reacts to enemas and stay within the bounds of doing no harm and gaining a desired benefit.

So don't pay any attention to the noise in the media claiming negative health effects. We know how to give ourselves enemas and benefit from them. That's all you need to know.

When ever I see an article that says "research shows" or "studies have shown".... on either side of the argument about the benefit/risk of enemas I tend to shrug it off as unsubstantiated BS. Besides constipation relief, enemas probably do (for people who like them) create a sense of well being (endorphins?). For others, so does binge eating, jacking off, running a marathon, driving a fast car or whatever...

I don't believe any of the naturopath claims of health benefits - they can't substantiate them, but I enjoy enemas and colonics just to relax. So, we don't need to buy into a health benefit reason to justify enemas - just enjoy them.

I read this article when it came out. I remember thinking I could substitute the word coffee, or eggs for enemas or colonics. Read more than one article, eggs will kill you this week, next week they are OK. Same with coffee. I have been eating eggs, drinking coffee, and enjoying enemas all my life. I'm seventy years old and feel fifty.

Couldn't find the exact show but this one will suffice to get the point across.

https://www.npr.org/sections/13.7/2015/06/08/412825282/what-junk-food-can-teach-us-about-junk-science

The people doing the so called peer review I heard on another show lack the credentials and knowledge to even know what they are reading and evaluating. This ends up in the main stream media and people think it is on solid ground when it is a bunch of BS. There is another factor involved too with some of the stuff that goes on, money. I have learned that you need to follow the money trail and you will find your answers.

Given all the recent studies coming out about the gut-brain axis and it's impact on everything from depression to general health, I increasingly wonder if some of the non-consitpation benefits of enemas don't have some legitimate, scientific grounding.

The people doing the so called peer review I heard on another show lack the credentials and knowledge to even know what they are reading and evaluating. This ends up in the main stream media and people think it is on solid ground when it is a bunch of BS. There is another factor involved too with some of the stuff that goes on, money. I have learned that you need to follow the money trail and you will find your answers.

Some of the people who "peer reviewed" for various journals were called up by some researchers (these were actual experts). They were quite surprised to find out that they were supposedly reviewing for journals they had never heard of in some cases. Scientific publishing is now big business with big business "creativity"

I have never seen a medically scientific study promoting enemas as a health procedure other than relieving constipation ( if even that ). Please post some legitimate studies supporting the health benefits of enemas Other than being fun or erotic I have never seen anyone to support this other than naturopathetic practioners

Other than that, enjoy them as I do. 😄

I've read many of the same articles, but from experience I believe there is a legitimate gap between the results of pure scientific studies and the way we actually feel after "a good enema."

I've seen it with my husband, who rarely gets sick and is not especially fond of enemas. He'd been in bed for a couple of days with a slight fever, not that big of a deal, but he kept saying he just felt yucky with a headache and a creepy stomach.

In the old days, doctors would have recommended an enema. I can't imagine that today with most docs, but the reality is that after I put him back to bed after "inviting" him to the bathroom and giving an old fashioned warm water enema, that he slept all afternoon and told me he felt much better. Headache was gone and his stomach was calm. (There was a lot stuck in there to came out. I'm sure that was part of the "yucky" feeling.) However, we won't find these scenarios in medical books today.

I have a friend who spent many years as a nurse before the hours on her feet caught up with her and she got a job with an insurance company. Now she has a desk job reviewing insurance claims. She said the insurance companies are driving doctors and nurses in many ways these days by deciding what they will cover and what not.

Without admitting I am a proponent of the old fashioned enema, I steered her around to the subject by having that issue of CR on the table, and asking her if she read it. She said she had not read that article but in general terms, enemas and colonics are rarely approved because they are labor intensive (therefore expensive) with little or no scientific data to support that they are beneficial. She did admit that there also is no data that they are harmful but nobody is doing studies on that.

How I love zombie threads! 🧟‍♂️

This link is to a report that references 20 studies that found colon cleansing offer few verifiable benefits and that some side effects include kidney failure.

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/232044#1

The article's tossing around the words “risk” and “death” to emphasize the low probability of injury/fatality is no different than someone proclaiming rollercoaster rides cause deaths or that sexual intercourse causes heart attacks. Heart attacks during sexual intercourse and death when riding roller coaster riders have been documented and not infrequently. But people enjoy both intercourse plus roller coaster rides, sometimes concurrently. Attempts at prohibition of either is going to be very unpopular.

The denizens here are no different than the roller coaster riders and participants in sexual intercourse, they are seeking pleasure. They are aware of the minimal probability of and methods to minimize risks.

But people enjoy both intercourse plus roller coaster rides, sometimes concurrently.

@Victoria1951 Are you saying some people have sexual intercourse while riding a rollercoaster??? Sounds really kinky and risky - I'd bet more people fall out and die while doing this than from heart attacks!!!!! 😜😜😜😜😜

The hormones called estrogen and testosterone have interfered with rational thinking and occasionally lead to catastrophic outcomes. While intimacy on roller coasters is bizarre (kinky) in my world view, there are recorded instances along with subsequent arrests for indecent exposure that transpired in roller coaster cars decades back when roller coasters used flat board bench seating. More modern conformal seating, designed to prevent the buttocks from moving laterally, discourage intimate behavior were being recumbent is advantageous. You can have no doubt that youth and hormones are just as worrisome for safety officers as it is for parents.

The hormones called estrogen and testosterone have interfered with rational thinking and occasionally lead to catastrophic outcomes. While intimacy on roller coasters is bizarre (kinky) in my world view, there are recorded instances along with subsequent arrests for indecent exposure that transpired in roller coaster cars decades back when roller coasters used flat board bench seating.

The hormones are still interfering with rational thinking. A couple performed an undisclosed sex act on a Ferris wheel in Myrtle Beach a year ago - and posted the the video of it on a porn site. The 36 year old suspects were charged with indecent exposure and preparation of prohibited obscene material.