How to Clean Out the Colon With Dietary Fiber

The Mayo Clinic says you don't need to use pills or supplements to clean out your colon, and you don't have to have high colonic treatments. The digestive system cleans itself out continually, and you can support its natural efforts by using dietary fiber. The Vitamin Stuff site says that fiber acts like a "broom" in the colon. There are many ways you can work more fiber into your diet. If you do this regularly, you will help your colon clean itself out on an ongoing basis.

Step 1

Eat oat cereal or fiber-rich cereal for breakfast. Choose cereals that give you at least 5 grams of fiber per serving. Alternately, the Mayo Clinic says you can add unprocessed wheat bran to any cereal to increase its fiber content.

Step 2

Use whole-grain bread instead of white bread for your meals. Make sure the bread package lists a whole wheat or another grain as its first ingredient. It should provide at least 2 grams of fiber per serving to have a beneficial effect.

Step 3

Add more vegetables to your diet. The Mayo Clinic recommends working them in with other foods whenever possible. For example, you can add extra vegetables to spaghetti sauce. Eat vegetables such as baby carrots or cauliflower throughout the day as snacks.

Step 4

Add peas, beans and lentils to your diet. The Mayo Clinic says you can add them to dishes like salads or soups. You can also have nachos with baked tortilla chips and refried blacks beans. Salsa can be added to give you more vegetables.

Step 5

Eat fruit as a snack and at every meal. Many fruits, such as apples, pears, oranges, bananas and berries, provide dietary fiber that will help cleanse your colon.

Step 6

Drink plenty of water throughout the day. According to the Mayo Clinic, dietary fiber is most effective at cleansing your colon when it absorbs water. The moisture makes your stool bulky and soft, which lessens constipation.

Tips and Warnings

  • Snacks can be a good source of dietary fiber. Besides fruit and vegetables, the Mayo Clinic says you can snack on whole-grain crackers or low-fat popcorn to support your colon-cleansing program.
  • If you eat too much fiber, it can cause gas, cramping and abdominal bloating. According to the Mayo Clinic, you can avoid this by introducing dietary changes slowly, over a period of several weeks. This will give the bacteria in your colon time to adjust.

References

Last updated on: Nov 9, 2009

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