Colon Knowledge is Power
I believe that when we empower ourselves with the right knowledge we can more directly guide our own health. So let's take a look at just what the colon is and what you can do to keep your plumbing in optimal condition.The large intestine comes after the small intestine in the digestive tract and measures approximately 1.5 meters (or about 5 feet) in length. The large intestine is mainly responsible for storing waste, reclaiming water, maintaining the water balance, and absorbing some vitamins, such as vitamin K.
By the time the chyme has reached this tube, almost all nutrients and 90% of the water have been absorbed by the body. At this point some electrolytes like sodium, magnesium, and chloride are left as well as indigestible carbohydrates known as dietary fiber. As the chyme moves through the large intestine, most of the remaining water is removed, while the chyme is mixed with mucus and bacteria known as gut flora, and becomes feces. The bacteria break down some of the fiber for their own nourishment and create acetate, propionate, and butyrate as waste products, which in turn are used by the cell lining of the colon for nourishment. This is an example of a symbiotic relationship and provides about one hundred calories a day to the body. The large intestine produces no digestive enzymes--chemical digestion is completed in the small intestine before the chyme reaches the large intestine. The pH in the colon varies between 5.5 and 7 (slightly acidic to neutral).
So to sum this part up, the colon absorbs water and electrolytes from undigested food that has been passed from the small intestine. At intervals, rhythmic contractions move the waste matter towards the rectum to be expelled before it becomes toxic waste.
There are 4 sections to the large intestine.
=>Ascending => Traverse=> Descending=> Sigmoid
Ascending colon The ascending colon extends up from the cecum at the level of the ileocecal valve to the bend in the colon called the hepatic flexure, which is located beneath and behind the right lobe of the liver; behind, it is in contact with the rear abdominal wall and the right kidney. The ascending colon is covered by peritoneum except on its posterior surface.
Transverse colon The transverse colon of the colon is from the hepatic flexure to the splenic flexure (the turn of the colon by the spleen). It hangs off the stomach, and attached to it by a wide band of tissuemesentery known as the greater omentum. On the posterior side, the transverse colon is connected to the posterior abdominal wall by a transverse mesocolon. The transverse colon is encased in peritoneum, and is therefore mobile (unlike the parts of the colon immediately before and after it). Cancers form more frequently further along the large intestine as the contents become more solid (water is removed) in order to form feces.Descending colon The descending colon is the part of the colon from the splenic flexure to the beginning of the sigmoid colon. It is retroperitoneal in two-thirds of humans. In the other third, it has a (usually short) mesentery. Arterial supply comes via the left colic artery.
Sigmoid colon The Sigmoid colon is the part of the large intestine after the descending colon and before the rectum. The name sigmoid means S-shaped . The walls of the sigmoid colon are muscular, and contract to increase the pressure inside the colon, causing the stool to move into the rectum.
Slow Decay = Accelerated Aging
An unclean, unhealthy bowel leads to the development of parasites. The stagnation of waste in the bowel releases putrefied matter into the blood, poisoning the nervous system and the brain. This can lead to deep mood swings and disorders like depression and chronic fatigue.This toxicity in your blood causes all sorts of symptoms that directly hamper our lives. Bloated organs, foul breath from toxicity in the lungs, skin that lacks elasticity and glow. These are just a few symptoms evolving from an ignored colon.
In essence, we age prematurely. Our thinking is affected and our ability to process information is slowed. While these symptoms can obviously be associated to aging they don't require numerous years behind you to be in your life.
It is imperative we cleanse this toxic waste from our colon. It is not designed to continue processing feces. Yet the majority of people have a bowel that is between 15 and 40 lbs! Just imagine that much waste toxifying in your colon. How can we expect to be healthy if we treat our bodies like a dump, allowing waste to rest in our bodies?
Bowel movements are the basis of your health. If you don`t have at least 1 bowel movement per day, you are already walking your way toward disease. Man`s body has not changed very much in the past several thousand years... however man`s diet has certainly changed a lot. All the refined sugar, white flour, hormone/antibiotics-filled meats we constantly ingest constitute an assault on our bodies. We are continuously violating our bodies by eating terrible foods. Colon cancer is the 2nd leading cause of cancer deaths in the U.S.
So, all congestion and toxins must be removed, and it must begin with cleansing of the bowel.
One of the most frequent bowel problems that people experience today is constipation. A constipated system is one in which the transition time of toxic wastes is slow. The longer the "transit time," the longer the toxic waste matter sits in our bowel, which allows them to putrefy, ferment and possibly be reabsorbed. The longer your body is exposed to putrefying food in your intestines, the greater the risk of developing disease. Even with one bowel movement per day, you will still have at least three meals worth of waste matter putrefying in your colon at all times.
Disease usually begins with a toxic bowel. Those having fewer bowel movements are harboring a potentially fertile breeding ground for serious diseases. Infrequent or poor quality bowel movements over an extended period of time may be very hazardous to your health.
Mucoid Plaque----Even a thin layer of mucoid plaque weakens the body. Nature intended mucoid plaque to be sloughed off. But due to stress and diet, most Americans have many hardened layers of mucoid plaque. The healthy colon weighs about 4 pounds. One autopsy revealed a colon choked with 40 pounds of impacted mucoid plaque! A proper colon cleanse and detoxification program prepares your body for optimal health by removing the mucoid plaque.
Begin transitioning to a diet rich in raw fruits and vegetables with very few cooked or processed foods to help keep your digestive system free of mucoid plaque. Regular and easy elimination will be the rule, toxins will not build up and foods will be fully digested and utilized.
Natural Ways to Keep your Colorectal Region Clean and Healthy
Please note: A number of the following ways to keep your colon and rectum healthy are tied to preventing chronic constipation.
Chronic constipation is the single greatest cause of having an unclean and unhealthy colorectal region because over time, constipation causes your bowel walls to face excessive pressure - pressure that is created by you straining to go and by your colon walls creating stronger contractions to help eliminate hard stools.
Excessive pressure on your colon walls can cause little pouches called diverticuli to form. Sometimes, small bits of waste material can get lodged in diverticuli.
Eat substantial meals; don't nibble on small amounts throughout the day.
Each time you eat a substantial meal, you stimulate stretch receptors in your stomach that are responsible for triggering normal and mass peristaltic waves throughout your small and large intestines, ensuring regular movement of waste material through your colon and rectum.
Also, eating substantial meals allows significant "chunks" of waste materials to travel together through your colon, turn into well formed stools, and get eliminated from your body in an efficient manner.
Don't suppress the desire to go.
If you regularly suppress the urge to have a bowel movement, waste materials spend more time than is optimal in your colon, causing excessive dehydration of waste materials and formation of hard stools.
Ensure adequate intake of water and/or water-rich foods.Water helps to move waste materials along, and is absorbed throughout the entire length of your colon. Insufficient water intake can cause stools to form far before waste materials reach your rectal pouch, which can cause constipation.
This doesn't necessarily mean that you need to drink several glasses of water per day. If you eat plenty of water-rich plant foods, then you can rely on your sense of thirst to dictate how much water to drink. For more guidance on this issue, please view:
Eat fiber-rich foods regularly.
Fiber adds bulk to the boluses of waste material that travel through your large intestine, and this bulk is essential to your colon's ability to turn waste materials into well formed stools.
A diet that is rich in vegetables, fruits, legumes, and whole grains ensures high fiber intake.
Ensure adequate vitamin D status.
Adequate vitamin D status significantly lowers your risk of developing all types of cancer, including colorectal cancer.
When you aren't able to get regular exposure to sunlight, enough to tan without getting burned, look to ensure adequate vitamin D status by eating healthy foods that contain vitamin D........
Wild Salmon Cod Liver oil Sardines Organic egg yolks
Ensure adequate vitamin A status.
As mentioned above, glands that line the mucosal lining of your colon are responsible for releasing mucous that is needed to lubricate your feces; vitamin A is needed to maintain the health of these specialized cells that release mucous.
It's best to ensure adequate vitamin A status by eating healthy foods that contain vitamin A. Pre-formed Vitamin A: Organic beef liver Organic lamb liver Organic eggs Organic butter Cod liver oilProvitamin A: Sweet potatoes or yams Canteloupe Spinach Carrots Butter nut squash
Ensure adequate intake of healthy fats.
All of your cells, including those of your large intestine and nervous system, require a constant influx of undamaged fatty acids and cholesterol to remain fully functional. If you don't ensure adequate intake of healthy fats, your nervous system and the smooth muscles that surround your digestive passageway - both of which are responsible for creating peristaltic waves throughout your digestive tract - may deteriorate in function.
Also, intake of healthy fats is necessary for optimal absorption of fat-soluble vitamin A, which, as mentioned above, is critical to building and maintaining the mucosal lining of your colon.
Healthy foods that are rich in healthy fats include: avocados, organic eggs, olives, extra-virgin olive oil, coconut oil, coconuts, raw nuts, raw seeds, and cold-water fish.
Build and maintain a population of friendly bacteria in your digestive tract
Large populations of friendly bacteria can keep your digestive tract clean and healthy by:
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Promoting optimal digestion, thereby preventing build-up of toxic waste materials
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Taking up space and resources, thereby helping to prevent infection by harmful bacteria, fungi, and parasites
Work at feeling emotionally balanced.
As mentioned above, stress can interfere with your ability to clean your colon through its effect on your enteric nervous system. Most people who have come to me over the years with a chronic colon-related health issue have had significant emotional stress in their lives.
If you have a challenge with colon and rectal health, I encourage you to take a careful look at ways that you can minimize emotional stress in your life.
Here's the bottom line on this topic: Your body is well designed to keep your colon and rectal regions clean and healthy. If you follow the steps outlined above, you can rest assured knowing that your lifestyle choices are minimizing your risk of having colon-related health issues.
An ideal bowel movement is medium brown, the color of plain cardboard. It leaves the body easily with no straining or discomfort. It should have the consistency of toothpaste, and be approximately 4 to 8 inches long. Stool should enter the water smoothly and slowly fall once it reaches the water. There should be little gas or odor.
Stool That Sinks Quickly
Rapidly sinking stool can indicate that a person isn't eating enough fiber-rich foods, such as vegetables, fruits, and whole grains, or drinking enough water. This stool is often dark because they have been sitting in the intestines for a prolonged time.
Pale Stool
Stool that is pale or gray may be caused by insufficient bile output due to conditions such as cholecystitis, gallstones, giardia parasitic infection, hepatitis, chronic pancreatitis, or cirrhosis. Bile salts from the liver give stool its brownish color. If there is decreased bile output, stool is much lighter in color.
Pale stool may also be shiny or greasy, float, and be foul smelling, due to undigested fat in the stool (see soft and smelly stool).
Soft, Smelly Stool
Soft, foul-smelling stool that floats, sticks to the side of the bowl, or is difficult to flush away may mean there is increased fat in the stools, called steatorrhea. Stool is sometimes also pale.
Mucus in Stool
Whitish mucus in stool may indicate there is inflammation in the intestines. Mucus in stool can occur with either constipation or diarrhea.
Green Stool
The liver constantly makes bile, a bright green fluid, that is secreted directly into the small intestine or stored in the gallbladder.
Loose Stool
In traditional Chinese medicine, loose stools, abdominal bloating, lack of energy, and poor appetite can be signs of a condition known as spleen qi deficiency. It doesn't necessarily involve your actual spleen, but it is linked to tiredness and weak digestion brought on by stress and poor diet.
Pencil Thin Stool
Like loose stools, stool that is pencil thin can be caused by a condition known in traditional Chinese medicine as spleen qi deficiency.
Other symptoms of spleen qi deficiency are: easy bruising, mental fogginess, bloating, gas, loose stools, fatigue, poor appetite, loose stools with little odor, symptoms that worsen with stress, undigested food in the stools, and difficulty ending the bowel movement. Spleen qi deficiency can be brought on by stress and overwork.
Eating certain foods in excess is thought to worsen spleen qi deficiency. Offending foods include fried or greasy foods, dairy, raw fruits and vegetables, and cold drinks, all believed to cause "cold" and "dampness" in the body. Dietary treatment of spleen qi deficiency involves eating warm, cooked foods. Ginger tea and cinnamon tea are also warming.
Pencil thin stool can also be caused by a bowel obstruction. Benign rectal polyps, prostate enlargement, colon or prostate cancer are some of the conditions that can cause obstruction.
Infrequent Stool
With constipation, infrequent or hard stool is passed with straining.
Pellet Stool
Pellet stool is stool that comes out in small, round balls. In traditional Chinese medicine, pellet stool is caused by a condition known as liver qi stagnation. Liver qi stagnation can be brought on by stress. Lack of exercise can worsen the problem.
Yellow Stool
Yellow stool can indicate that food is passing through the digestive tract relatively quickly. Yellow stool can be found in people with GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease). Symptoms of GERD include heartburn, chest pain, sore throat, chronic cough, and wheezing. Symptoms are usually worse when lying down or bending. Foods that can worsen GERD symptoms include peppermint, fatty foods, alcohol, coffee, and chocolate.
Yellow stool can also result from insuffient bile output. Bile salts from the liver gives stool its brownish color. When bile output is diminished, it often first appears as yellow stool. If there is a greater reduction in bile output, stool lose almost all of its color, becoming pale or grey.
If the onset is sudden, yellow stool can also be a sign of a bacterial infection in the intestines.
Dark Stool
Stool that is almost black with a thick consistency may be caused by bleeding in the upper digestive tract. The most common medical conditions that cause dark, tar-like stool includes duodenal or gastric ulcer, esophageal varices, Mallory Weiss tear (which can be linked with alcoholism), and gastritis.
Certain foods, supplements, and medications can temporarily turn stool black. These include:
* Bismuth (e.g. Pepto bismol)
* Iron
* Activated charcoal
* Aspirin and NSAIDS (which can cause bleeding in the stomach)
* Dark foods such as black licorice and blueberries
Dark stool can also occur with constipation.
If you experience this type of stool, you should see your doctor as soon as possible.
Bright Red Stool
When there is blood in stool, the color depends on where it is in the digestive tract. Blood from the upper part of the digestive tract, such as the stomach, will look dark by the time it reaches exits the body as a bowel movement. Blood that is bright or dark red, on the other hand, is more likely to come from the large intestine or rectum.
Conditions that can cause blood in the stool include hemorrhoids, anal fissures, diverticulitis, colon cancer, and ulcerative colitis, among others.
Eating beets can also temporarily turn stools and urine red.
ICP™ from Young Living Essential Oils
A healthy digestive system is important for the health and proper functioning of all other body systems. And, keeping the colon clean and healthy is critical, because of its role in the absorption of nutrients.Go to my "How to order Young Living Oils" pageTherefore, an on-going colon cleansing program is important. By continuing in a daily pattern of cleansing, you clear the toxins from your environment — and therefore, in your foods — from your system.
ICP™ provides you with an effective combination of soluble and insoluble fibers, which help to decrease the buildup of wastes in the colon, improve nutrient absorption and help maintain a healthy heart. ICP™ contains psyllium husk, oat bran and flax and fennel seed. These are enhanced with therapeutic-grade essential oils.
Each serving of ICP™ provides you with:
- 3 grams of soluble fiber, and
- 1 gram of insoluble fiber.
All of this makes ICP™ an important part of your on-going colon cleanse program.
How to use: Stir 1-2 tsp into juice or purified water, and take three times daily. Drink 8-16 oz of fluid per tsp ICP™. You may also sprinkle IPC™ on yogurt, cereal or other foods, or add it to Balance Complete or PowerMeal.
Ingredients: Psyllium seed powder, oat bran, flax seed, fennel seed, rice bran, guar gum, yucca root, plant cellulose, vegetarian protease enzyme formula, and aloe vera extract. Also contains the essential oils of fennel, tarragon, ginger, lemongrass, rosemary and anise.
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Re-Juva-nate Kit
Each Re-JUVA-nate Kit includes:
Re-JUVA-nate Kit™ contains powerful supplements that promote cleansing and rejuvenation. Juva Power and ComfortTone support healthy liver and colon function, while Detoxzyme enhances digestion.*
This kit also contains the Re-JUVA-nate Your Health booklet and an audio CD and cassette, in which Gary Young explains the Re-JUVA-nate Cleansing Program.Detoxzyme - A powerful vegetable enzyme complex that promotes cleansing, completes digestion and detoxifies. ComforTone - Contains herbs, minerals, bentonite, and essential oils that help with proper elimination and relax spasms that may occur. JuvaPower 14 oz. - An advanced phytonutrient fiber supplement that cleanses the liver and intestines simultaneously. Contains the highest acid-binding foods for superior results Re-JUVA-nate Your Health booklet Audio tape "The Re- JUVA-nate Program-Cleansing with Comfortone, Juva Power and Detoxzyme" by D. Gary Young, N.D.
Code 3159
