What can you drink to clean out your colon

If you're wondering how to cleanse your colon, you may be looking for information on popular methods such as taking supplements, using laxatives, or visiting a colon cleansing clinic. However, at best, these methods may not be necessary and, at worst, they can potentially be harmful to your health.

If you like the idea of "cleansing" your body, and of course, doing so safely, you need look no further than the produce and bulk food aisles of your local grocery store. Part of why so many people are plagued with a bloated, constipated feeling, the very feeling that leads them to consider colon cleansing, is a poor diet.

Without proper nutrients, natural whole foods, and plenty of fiber and water, the digestive tract doesn't function optimally.

Pros and Cons of Colon Hydrotherapy

Strategies for Improving Colon Health

If you want to improve your colon health, give the following a try:

• Increase the servings of vegetables and fruit you eat. Aim for 8 to 10 servings daily. This may sound like a lot, but it's doable. Add fresh or frozen blueberries, blackberries, or raspberries to your morning cereal. Snack on vegetables dipped in hummus, or fruit plus a handful of nuts.
• Make all your grains whole grains. Don't be fooled by color. Just because bread is brown, does not mean it's whole grain. Look for the word "enriched" in the ingredient list. If you see this word, it's not whole grain.
• Focus on adding non-bread sources of whole grains. Brown rice, barley, quinoa, oats, millet, rye, spelled, buckwheat, amaranth, and other new-to-you foods are great sources of fiber as well as vitamins and minerals your diet may be lacking.
• Try "flipping" the food pyramid. You may be familiar with the food pyramid, which shows grains as the foundation. Instead, make fruits and vegetables the foundation of your diet, followed by grains, then protein foods (beans, fish, eggs, poultry, meat). Make sweets just an occasional treat.
• Flax-i-fy your diet. Ground flaxseeds are one of the best ways to improve digestion and elimination by helping move stool out of your system. Try ground flax sprinkled on your cereal, salads, oatmeal, or yogurt. This is one of the single most effective ways to improve your body's ability to eliminate waste.
• Drink more water. Water, plain and simple, will make everything in your body function better, including your digestion and elimination. Don't worry about the old advice that you should drink eight, 8-ounce glasses a day. Instead, use the color of your urine as a guide. If it's pale yellow or straw-colored, you're getting enough water. If it's any darker than this, drink up!

Frequently Asked Questions

• What is the fastest way to clean out your colon?

  If you need to clean out your colon for a colonoscopy or other medical procedure, your healthcare provider will advise you on bowel prep. A bowel prep typically starts the day before your procedure. It involves drinking an osmotic laxative, such as MiraLAX with Gatorade.

  Your diet will also be limited in the days leading up to a bowel prep. A low-residue diet—meaning no high fiber foods—should be started three days before the procedure and a liquid diet started 24 hours before the procedure.  

• Can a colon cleanse help you lose weight?

  Yes and no. You will likely see weight loss on the scale after a colon cleanses, but it is not the same as losing weight. The weight lost from a colon cleanse is leftover waste from your digestive tract and not actual body fat.

  However, the weight lost from a colon cleanse can motivate some people to kickstart more sustainable weight loss.

• What is the difference between a colonic and an enema?

  Enema and colonics both involve flushing the colon. An enema is a one-time infusion of water into the colon typically done at home. Colonics involves multiple infusions administered by a trained hydrotherapist using special equipment. 

  Most of the time, we can rely on our colon to be a self-cleaning organ. After all, the primary function of the digestive system is to push waste from our bodies. But your colon doesn't exactly evacuate all your waste in one fell swoop or sitting. Even if you’re assuming the proper pooping position with your feet up on a Squatty Potty, some of your fecal matter ends up stuck inside your colon between flushes. This lingering waste may not be ideal if you have constipation or other issues with bowel movements.

  Luckily, there are ways around these pooping problems. We’ve compiled six easy ways to detoxify and renew your colon for a better bathroom experience. Implementing these solutions and using a toilet stool to unclog your colon can help you have more effortless and satisfying eliminations.
  
  

  Shop Stools

   

  1. Detox by drinking more water

  The easiest way to detoxify your colon is to drink more water. Water helps keep things moving through your digestive system and prevents constipation symptoms. If your body doesn’t get enough water, your colon may begin to pull water from your stool to maintain hydration. If you’re adequately hydrated, your body has a much easier time flushing waste out.

  How much water should you drink to help detoxify your gut? Experts say you should aim to drink about half your body weight in ounces of water per day. If you weigh 150 pounds, for example, your goal is to drink 75 ounces of water (a little more than half a gallon or 9 cups) per day. 

  2. Detox by dieting

  Diuretic foods and herbs can help the body expel waste and speed up detoxification. What are some examples of diuretic foods? Good question. Diuretic foods include celery, cucumbers, ginger, lemons, peppers, and parsley. Herbs such as dandelion root and parsley seeds have also been known to help alleviate constipation symptoms and keep you regular. 

  Doctors also recommend eating a healthy amount of fiber. Fiber keeps the colon healthy by reducing constipation symptoms and fighting diverticulosis, the accumulation of tiny bulging sacs on the wall of the colon. Fiber comes from fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Experts recommend eating about 25 grams of fiber daily to keep things moving properly.

   

  3. Detoxify through exercise 

  You already know that exercise is good for your overall health. But did you know it can also help detox your colon? Any activity that gets you moving and sweating will help keep your colon functioning properly.
  
  Whether walking around the block, taking a jog, or going for a hike, exercise has been proven to improve circulation and blood flow through your digestive tract, allowing your colon to perform at optimal levels. As long as you keep moving and stay active every day, you’ll be able to have cleaner-feeling stools faster than ever before.

   

  4. Change your pooping posture

  How you sit on the toilet can significantly affect how well your colon expels waste. Most toilets are designed for sitting, not squatting. The American toilet design can cause uncomfortable shifting or twisting of your body as you try to get properly aligned over the bowl. Squatting using a toilet stool helps you avoid straining while pooping, so you can move your business out of your colon without much effort on your end.

  
  

  The squatting position offers several additional health benefits, such as improved blood flow through lower extremities and helping prevent stagnation between organs within our abdominal cavity. Not sure which toilet stool is suitable for you? Use our guide to find the stool that best suits you.

   

  Find the Right Squatty Potty for You

   

  

   

  5. Take probiotics to improve gut health

  Adding a daily probiotic to your diet can help cleanse your colon and detoxify your gut. Probiotics are good bacteria that live in your gut and help keep it healthy. Probiotic foods or supplements won't only help your digestive system function more effectively, but they've also been shown to boost your immune system and improve brain function. 

  When it comes to supplements, you might need to shop around until you find the right one that works for your gut composition. If you want to add probiotics to your diet naturally, fermented foods like sauerkraut, kimchi, or miso contain natural probiotic bacteria.

   

  6. Look into a colon cleanse

  
  Colonic irrigation, also known as a colonic or colon hydrotherapy, is an alternative medical treatment that involves flushing out your entire large intestine with water. 

  
  

  Proponents of colon cleansing believe that colon cleansing improves health by removing toxins, boosting your energy, and enhancing your immune system. However, there's no concrete medical evidence that colon cleansing produces these effects. In most cases, if you’re maintaining a healthy lifestyle and pooping in the right position, your digestive system and bowel already efficiently eliminate waste material and bacteria from your body without the help of a cleanse. 

  
  

  Check with your medical provider to see if this procedure is right for you.

  The final turd

  So there you have it, six different ways to detox your colon and improve your health. By drinking more water, eating a healthy diet, and adopting a natural squatting position with a

  What is the fastest way to clean out your colon?

  Drinking plenty of water and staying hydrated is a great way to regulate digestion. Drinking lukewarm water has been shown to be good for digestion as well. Also, try eating plenty of foods high in water content. This includes fruits and vegetables like watermelons, tomatoes, lettuce, and celery.

  How do you cleanse your colon yourself?

  Take ½ cup of apple juice, add 2 tablespoons of lemon juice, and a teaspoon of ginger juice. Mix it in ½ cup of warm water. You can drink this mixture once a day to help detoxify the colon and encourage proper digestion.