Colonic Irrigation – Not Just a New Craze

Colon cleansing has a huge presence on the Internet. The advertisements that seem to jump off the screen are those touting colon cleansing as the latest and greatest way to lose weight fast.  It would appear that colonics is the latest craze.  The history of colonic irrigation, or colon hydrotherapy, actually goes back hundreds of years and has gone in and out of favor over time.

The rationale for colonic irrigation, or colon hydrotherapy, was originally based on the concept of “autointoxication.” Autointoxication is an ancient theory based on the belief that toxins originating in the intestine can enter the circulation and poison the body. Autointoxication made a great deal of sense. Poisoning from the bowel had always had a powerful appeal and included the blessing of modern bacteriological science.

In the early 1900’s respected physicians advocated colonic irrigations citing the colon as a major factor in health. But by 1918, autointoxication was falling out of professional favor and drug therapy was entering an era of significant expansion.

By the 1930’s, in addition to the growth of drug therapy there was also a political reaction against lay practitioners, called “quacks,” distinguished by their excessive claims and aggressive marketing practices. There was a lack of scientific evidence for the effectiveness of colonics.

Up through the 1930s, the question of the proper use of colonic irrigations was at least debated with the help of some experimental data and clinical observations.

Some say that autointoxication has been refuted, yet there is significant modern literature that suggests that a modified version of autointoxication is quite reasonable in some cases. The modern perspective focuses on dysfunction of the immune system caused by toxins leaking from the gut, may allow bacteria to move from the gut to other parts of the body caused by a breakdown of the intestinal wall.

As always, history repeats itself and we find ourselves in a time of going back to more natural and holistic practices when it comes to taking care of our health. Once again, colon irrigation has found favor within the medical community. Conversely, the “quacks” are many of the claims that are made about colon cleansing, especially being the miracle cure for weight loss. Make sure to read the benefits of reducing toxins from the body.

The colonic device has made great advances and colon hydrotherapists can earn various levels of certification. At Ocean Clinics our colon hydrotherapists are certified by the International Association for Colon Hydrotherapy (I-ACT). I-ACT standards include 100 hours of training for their basic level of certification. Ocean Clinics hydrotherapists hold the highest level of Advanced training and take on-going courses to offer the most up-to-date care available for our clients.

Source:  Colonic Irrigations: A Review of the Historical Controversy  - International Association of Colon Hydrotherapy