Home Remedies For A Dual Action Cleanse Of The Colon

If you don't have at least one bowel movement a day, you might consider doing a colon cleanse. Get medical clearance from our doctor first if you have never done a colon detox before, or if you have any serious medical issues.

There are several home remedies for colon cleanses and one way to approach it is a "dual action" process: consume herbs, foods or supplements to soften the stool and others to help the body move it out of the large intestine. Always discontinue any detox program and see your doctor if you become weak or experience adverse effects.

Dried Fruits and Kitchari

One detox program, recommended by Vasant Lad, author of "The Complete Guide to Ayurvedic Home Remedies," includes eating dried fruits such as figs and prunes to provide more dietary fiber. He suggests consuming hot water with the juice of half a lemon in the morning to help prompt a bowel movement. To promote regular bowel movements, he recommends eating an easy-to-digest dish called kitchari. It is made of equal parts basmati rice and mung bean cooked together with spices such as cumin and eaten with ghee, which is butter with the milk fat removed.

These are Ayurvedic remedies, part of the holistic healing system that originates in India and is practiced worldwide. For this colon cleanse, eating one to two small servings of kitchari daily for several days and drinking water between meals is said to provide sufficient nutrition and its high-fiber content encourages detoxification.

Consume Fiber

Increasing both soluble and insoluble fiber is the idea behind the dual-action colon cleanse designed by John Lust, a naturopath, and Michael Tierra, who has a doctor of Oriental medical degree. Both are authors of "The Natural Remedy Bible." In it, they advise consuming at least 6 to 8 g of fiber a day. They suggest eating bran, fruits, vegetables and whole grains to provide both types of fiber to provide bulk to stool. They also recommend eating nonsaturated oils such as flaxseed oil, buttermilk and yogurt that can help lubricate the colon and assist in the last stage of cleansing.

Include Herbal Teas

Carrie L'Esperance, author of "The New Seasonal Detox Diet," recommends consuming seasonal fruits and vegetables as well as herbal teas and supplements. Her two-part colon cleanse is centered on a whole-foods diet that changes as the seasons change: eating corn, blueberries and cherries during the summer and squash, sweet potatoes and apples in the fall. And, she advises readers to sip teas that are known for helping the colon cleanse, including senna, cascara sagrada and buckthorn root. These detox teas are easily purchased online or in health food stores.

As part of her detox program, she encourages readers to add 1 tbsp. or more of ground flaxseeds to boost dietary fiber. The idea is to eat a changing, varied diet of fruits, vegetables, whole grains for "roughage" and also drink teas that help prompt peristalsis to assist colon cleansing.