Colon Detox Methods

Eating on the run or consuming mainly a diet of fast food of refined flour, sugar and fat can lead to irregularity. Ideally, healthy adults have at least one bowel movement a day. Some people report having only two or three in a week. Many turn to colon detox formulas to help. These, like the more common enemas or laxatives, should be used with care and under a doctor's supervision.

Drink Hot Lemon Water

In his book, "The New Detox Diet," author Elson Haas, M.D., recommends ways people can re-establish regular bowel habits. One is by drinking a cup of hot water with half a lemon squeezed into it. Doing this first thing in the morning will often prompt a bowel movement. If it doesn’t, Dr. Haas recommends eating more soluble and insoluble fiber daily by snacking on fresh and dried fruit, unsalted nuts and drinking liquids between your meals to help relieve irregularity.

DIY Coffee Enema

In "The Seasonal Detox Diet," author Carrie L'Esperance advises readers that a coffee enema can help alleviate constipation. She writes that coffee enema helps some people to clear the colon more easily than an enema made with only water. Coffee has palmitates that help the liver release bile. As coffee drinkers know, coffee can stimulate the peristalsis action of the colon. She writes that coffee enemas generally work immediately and are not habit-forming.

Consume Fiber

Dr. Haas has also recommended that his patients eat a high-fiber diet all the time to help keep the entire gastrointestinal system healthy. The U.S. Dept. of Agriculture (USDA) recommends a varied diet of whole fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins, non-saturated fats such as flax seed, canola, olive and fish oils, legumes and nuts.
Dr. Haas writes that by eating fresh fruits and vegetables, you consume the soluble and insoluble fiber needed to move waste through the colon. He also recommends people increase dietary fiber by eating ground flax seeds and whole grains including millet, quinoa, oats, groats and basmati rice.