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Friend or Enema?

The debate on colon hydrotherapy

By Christy Breithaupt

Cleanliness is the American way of life. We clean our hair, our homes, our cars, our clothes. We marvel at the sight of a shiny kitchen floor and rejoice at the scent of fresh laundry. We clean with Joy, with Zest, with Cheer.

With our own bodies, however, many of us only graze the surface when it comes to getting clean. And while we may sparkle on the outside, toxins enter our systems through the air we breathe, the food we eat and the elements that come in contact with our skin. They take many forms, from pesticides to artificial ingredients.

According to many naturopathic doctors, these toxins are responsible for much of our bodies’ unhealthy behavior. Detoxification, or the removal of toxins, is a major function of the liver, lower gastrointestinal tract and kidneys. But some studies claim that although food preparation has evolved, the body’s process of breaking down food has not.

Humans may carry between 10 and 25 pounds of waste in their bodies throughout their lives, says Denise Strauss, certified by the International Association for Colon Hydrotherapy (I-ACT) and a colon hydrotherapist at Healing Waters Cleansing Center in Livonia. This settled waste is full of toxins that can be flushed out with colon hydrotherapy, Strauss says.

The procedure, also known as colonic irrigation, is similar to an enema, though it involves multiple infusions of water into the colon, whereas an enema involves a single infusion. While lying on a fiberglass table, the client inserts a small tube into the rectum and draws a sheet over the exposed lower half. The technician then massages the patient’s midsection as a machine infuses about 20 gallons of purified water through the colon in the span of 45 minutes. Each time the colon fills, waste is pushed out of the body, through the tube and into the machine. Clients can resume daily functions immediately following the procedure, according to Strauss.

ARE THERE BENEFITS?

Colon hydrotherapists suggest clients attend back-to-back sessions in the first and second week, then once a week for eight weeks, for a total of 12 initial sessions. The average cost per session is around $60, Strauss says. Monthly maintenance is recommended, but Strauss, who has more than 200 clients, says each person is different.

Technicians are not required to be doctors, and there are risks in using equipment that has not been properly sanitized. Strauss recommends finding someone who is I-ACTcertified and uses a Food and Drug Administration-registered device.

Carol Wagner, owner of Instafirm Body Wraps in Troy, says many of her clients use colonics. They suggested she have one following an illness. “It wasn’t that embarrassing at all,” Wagner says of the procedure. “It did make me feel better.”

Ann Varner, of Dearborn, who was diagnosed with cancer last year, endured 10 days of constipation as a side effect of chemotherapy and went for a colon cleansing. Within hours, Varner says, her agony was over. She continued treatment throughout her chemotherapy. Now cancer-free, Varner says she will continue to have the procedure done.

“I would say it’s a very gentle process. It doesn’t hurt at all. It just makes you feel so clean when you’re done,” Varner says. “I feel very energetic and very alive.”

Though many who practice hydrotherapy attest to its benefits, there is limited scientific research to support these claims, and the medical establishment does not recognize the theory of detoxification through colonics.

EXPERTS ADVISE CAUTION

According to Mitchell S. Cappell, M.D., Ph.D., director of the division of gastroenterology at William Beaumont Hospital, there are three medical situations in which an enema may be medically appropriate: in preparation for medical procedures such as colonoscopy, in an elderly debilitated patient whose colon is impacted with stool, and in cases of colonic volvulus, when the colon twists upon itself.

“I would caution that there are no proven medical benefits [to colon cleansing] in general. Stool is a normal part of life, and we are meant to handle it in our colon,” Cappell says.

In several medical conditions, colonic hydrotherapy can be highly dangerous, according to Cappell. These include toxic ulcerative colitis in which the colon is highly inflamed, an extremely dilated colon, colonic obstruction not due to impacted stool, and peritonitis (generalized infection of the abdomen from an intestinal leak or tear).

“I would caution a person, if they have medical symptoms, to see a physician first to see if they have a medical disease,” Cappell says. “Then, consult with a physician before using any unconventional therapy.”

If nothing else, according to Strauss, being hooked up to the machine gets clients to examine their health practices. “It helps (clients) be more aware of the stuff they’re putting into their body,” Strauss says.

For Christy Breithaupt’s first-hand account of the colon cleansing process, visit www.vitalmichigan.com.