Neurological effects and emotional connections
Scientific evidence is pointing out to an independent influence from our gut to our emotional brain. It follows therefore that realigning abdominal tissues would facilitate the healthy flow of information that create our feelings.
Colonic has a therapeutic influence on how we feel about our bowels which are often the seat of emotional afflictions. Yet our emotional brain and the gut are directly connected. The Vagus nerve continuously mediates from the gut to the brain and neurotransmitters (such as serotonin) produced in the intestines control the behaviour of our Gut and flood our Brain. Colonic has been shown to stimulate gut serotonin and directly affect the Vagus nerve. This undoubtedly accounts for the fact that a colonic generally leaves someone feeling peaceful, uplifted and clearer headed.
Colonic hydrotherapy gives meaning to that “gut feeling” we so often disconnect from yet is our most immediate experience of intuition. Colonic irrigation facilitates the conscious connection with our gut in a clean and safe situation. There is no obvious smell or direct contact with faeces.
Effects on gut bacteria
Colonic hydrotherapy targets bowel function as well as bowel flora thus enabling the delicate and reciprocal interactions that exist between the mind, the gut and the microbes that populate it, to be harmonised.
Through the use of deep abdominal massage, varying water pressure /temperature against the bowel walls and specific implant, colonic hydrotherapy directly affects peristalsis (the natural movements of the gut that help propel bowel content) and bowel function.
The combination of massage and water deeply cleanses and washes out the Colon. This releases gas pockets and built up stools relieving abdominal bloating and pressure on the lower back, bladder, ovaries/prostate and diaphragm.
The effect on gut bacteria is influenced by a number of factors. Recent research on the microbiome (gut microbes) has highlighted fascinating facts about the relationship between gut microbes, our immune system and our brain. There are some complicated interactions between the different types of organisms and our immune system. Bacteria and, in some cases, the toxins they produce can be picked up from the gut by our lymphatic system and transported to the brain (or anywhere else in the body) contributing to various inflammatory responses in remote sites. This type of chronic low grade inflammation has been shown to explain the process behind degenerative diseases such as Alzheimer, Parkinson’s and cardio-vascular diseases, arthritis, diabetes, etc. Colonic hydrotherapy has a definite effect on gut microbes and relieves the strain on the immune system caused by excess toxins from less than ideal gut microbes. However, colonic does not “strip” the gut. It is a gentle procedure which, unlike laxatives, does not irritate the delicate gut lining and does not alter gut microbiome. Research has shown that the microbiome will soon reconstitute itself.
Generally the specific strains and species that live in our gut are established in the first two years of life. They are sensitive to drugs, antibiotics in particular. The equilibrium between all the different types is altered by many factors from exercise and hormones to stress and diet. Together with dietary and lifestyle adjustment colonic is a powerful treatment to improve gut microbe’s balance. It can also be effectively used to flush out parasites and organisms that are not part of the established microbiota but are trying to set up residence and creating symptoms. The symptoms of parasite’s infestation are varied but generally include gut inflammation causing pain, sometimes diarrhoea and often sever bloating.
