Enemas and colon cleansings can be used to empty the bowel for stuffed excessive content, to treat functional bowel problems, or to improve the general health. Usually the term enama is used for singular irrigations to soften the content of the bowel so that the content in the end part easily goes out, or installation of drugs into the colon. Colon cleansing usually denotes a series of irrigations until the whole colon is clean.

How can enemas or colon cleansing improve health:

There are many conditions that can be improved by doing regular colon cleaning for a period, for example twice a week.

Bloating: Colon cleansing can help against bloating or inflated stomach and excessive gas production. This is often caused by an over-filled colon. There may be old hard stool laying in areas of the colon that do not get out very rapidly. This stool makes it difficult for the rest of the content to pass. An overfilled colon can also result from lack of daily stimulation of the colon to move. The colon is stimulated by fibre in the food and by daily bodily exercise. A diet with too less water or a diet with too less or too much fat can also cause these kinds of problems. Then content accumulates in the bowel, and passes through only when the pressure has got great enough. Colon cleansing can help to overcome this situation, but should be combined with a change of diet habits and lifestyle changes.

Edema: Colon cleansing can help against edema in the body. An over-filled colon will make the pressure in the abdominal cavity increase. This hinders blood and lymph to drain fast enough back towards the heart, and the body tissues get inflated with stuffed fluid.

Poisening from a bad microbial flora: Many persons suffer from a bad microbial flora in the colon. These bacteria, yiests and fungi make products that are toxic to the body, and make a person susceptible to other diseases. The symptoms of such a poisening are tiredness and all kinds of diffuse pain in the stomch and the rest of the body. Colon cleansing can flush out the bad microbial content and allow healthy microbes to take over the space. However, for a good microbial content to remain, change to better lifestyle is necessary.

Problems with upptake of nutrients: An over-filled colon or poorly working colon, will affect the whole digestive system, will hinder uptake of nutrients, and make a person under-nourished This can result in under-weight, general weakness or general problems with dayly functions. Cleaning out and letting the colon start from scratch can help the digestive system to work more properly, and then nutrients are absorbed effectively again.

Hemorrhoids: Hemorrhoids are partly caused by increased pressure in the stomach. Colon cleansing that brings the stomach back in shape again can hinder hemorrhoids to develop as a complication to the stomach problems. However, when there allready are hemorrhoids present, one must be more cautious when performing colon cleansing. A small enama can help to flush away hard stool and thereby improve the situation. Bigger colon cleansing regimes can however increase the pressure in the stomach temporarily, and this can worsen the hemorrhoids.

Headache, fatigue, and loss of appetite: An over-filled colon or a colon with bad microbial content can cause these kinds or symprtoms. Most often the symptoms are caused by the mechanical impact an overfilled colon exerts upon the abdominal organs and further on the rest of the body. Colon cleansing for a period may help to relieve such symptoms.

About the diet: colon cleansing can help to get an ill treated colon and stomach back in shape. However, in order to hold the digestive system healthy thereafter, it is necessary to adjust the diet and general lifestyle.

Anatomy of the Colon:

The rectum is the end point of the digestive tract. The rectum is powerfully musculated, and is surrounded by the powerfull levator ani muscles. The anal sphincter closes off the rectum from the body outside. You can easily stretch the anus to about 1 inch and also further  if you proceed slowly and cautiously. Between the anus and the ending colon there is also a spincter or ring of muscles.

The sigmoid colon is a looped section of the bowel just above the rectum, shaped like the letter s - sigma, The loop occurs at about a depth of ten inches, as can be felt if you push a firm object into the rectum, and up through the inner sphincter. The sigmoid comes in two sizes in humans. Some people have long sigmoids and some shorter ones.  Those who have the big sigmoid can probably take about a full quart of water more than those with the short one.

The descending colon is in the left side in the lower abdomen, and can be easily felt with compleetely relaxed abdominal muscles. It goes from the left wall of the pelvis up to the splenic flexure, that is covered by the left rib cage.

The transverse colon extends from the splenic flexure to the hepatic flexure on the other side right across the abdomen, and is sagging down at the middle, by many people as much as 3/4 of the way down at the middle abdomen.

The ascending colon extends on the right side from the cecum where the small intestine ends, up to the hepatic flexure. The small intestine expels its content into the ascending colon in liquid form. This colon part has greatest vulum and greatest ability of water absorbance.

While standing upright in front of a mirror with good light against the abdomen, after taking the colon cleansing soultion, the contour of these structures can be seen clearly.

Here is an illustration showing the anatomy of the rectun and colon:

How to perform enemas

The person getting the enema should lay in a position so that it is easy to get to the rectal opening and so that there is little pressure in the colon. Possible positions are: Laying on the stomach, laying  on side with the legs bent up against the stomach or laying on back with the legs bent and spread in a frog-like position.

The rectal opening and the tip of the syringe should be well lubricated, for example by using vaseline or a lubricating gel.

Then spread the area around the rectal opening with your fingers.

Then you insert the nozzle or tube very cautiously and slowly so that it does not hurt or cause the resceiver to cramp or squeeze. If you meet resitance, pull back the nozzle somewhat and cautiously negotiate the angle of the nozzle so that it goes in unhindered.

Then you press or let flow the enema solution in. Do it slowly so that its get time to be distributed up and around the interior in the rectum or colon.

The resceiver should then lay still to let the enema solution work. The solution will after some time stimulate the colon so that it causes urges to expel. Then the receiver should go to the toilet seat and take a good time to let the colon pass all content.

If one enema is not enough, it can be repeated.

For small enemas, clean lukewarm water can be used. Bigger or repeated enemas should however have dissolved salt to hinder excessive water to be taken up through the colon into the blood stream, since dilution of the blood can be dangerous. Practical solutions to use are these:

Warm water with salt: Warm water with 1 tablespoon of salt to each quart.

Baking soda enema: 2 tablespoons of backing soda to each quart of water.

Mixed salt and baking soda: 1 teaspoon of baking soda and 1 teaspoon of salt to each quart.

Colon cleansing the colonic way

By this method you use a thick cathter with a inflatable baloon to hold it in place in the rectum, or  a hollow speculum in your rectum. The cathter or speculum shall be in place the wole time and not be taken out for expellation of the enema fluid. There must be a tube used to pump in the fluid and another divergent tube through which you can empty the colon. There must also be valves or clamps to be opened and shut appropriately for instilling and emtying the fluid. There must also be a pump to pump in the fluid and a great container to hold all the fluid needed in a series of flushes.

When everyting is in place and the catheter or speculum is inserted into your rectum, you pump in the fluid slowly. You shall not use too much fluid. The colon shall not be filled completely. Then massage your stomack to distribute the fluid inside your colon. The open the outlet and let the fluid go out. You can ease the emptying by pressing at your stomack. Repeat this procedure several times until your colon feels clean.  By this method the end part of the colon will be cleaned out first, and step by step steadily higher parts of your colon will be cleaned out.

About vaginal Douche ( Vaginal Enema)

Vaginal douche is not reccomanded generally as a hygienic procedure. Regular douches can actually introduce new unfriendly bacteria into the vagina and cause infection. It can also flush away protecting secrets and friendly bacteria and ease the way for infection by unfriendly bacteria. However, vaginal douche for a certain period can be useful for special condition

By yeast infection vaginal duching with medications prescribed by the doctor is sometimes recommanded.

By bacterial vaginosis douching 6 days with a mixture containing the friendly bacterium Lactobacillus escidophilus can often help to restore normal vaginal flora and taking avay symptoms like bad odor, unpleasant discharge,  itching swelling and irritation. By bacterial vaginosis the ballance of different bacterial strains in the vagina is disturbed so that thare are too much of some sorts of bacteria and too less of others, and too much bacteria alltogether.

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. This information is nutritional in nature and should not be construed as medical advice. This notice is required by the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act.