Are Probiotics Good for a Colon Cleanse?

Are probiotics needed for a colon cleanse?
You’re looking for the best way to cleanse your body, while trying to sift through the dozens of options–like colon cleansing, juicing, enemas, teas, acupuncture, hydrotherapy, etc. And then you run across this word you’ve seen at least ten times: probiotics. If you think they are bacteria…you’re almost there!

What is a probiotic?

A probiotic is a type of microorganism (a tiny, microscopic organism) that helps your body function in various ways. Its name is of Latin origin, meaning “for life.” These microorganisms aren’t a rarity: they are everywhere in nature. But even though they are bacteria, that doesn’t mean they are “harmful germs.” Despite the word association, people are beginning to favor these bacteria. Data from a 2012 national health survey showed that about 4 million adults had used probiotics in the last 30 days. That’s a lot of people who like bacteria! With that many people interested in probiotics, we must wonder: Are probiotics even good for a colon cleanse?
Yogurt is a great source of probiotics!
Yogurt is considered a great source of probiotics.
In the context of a colon cleanse, probiotics are loosely related to irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). While sellers of supplement-based probiotics would never claim they solve IBS, they’ll place a litany of asterisks next to claims to be safe. There has been quite some research on the relation between probiotics and colon cleansing, but scientists say it’s far from conclusive. Let’s sift fact from fiction about probiotics.

What do probiotics do?

Many look to use probiotics to allieviate a host a health problems, such as…
  • Digestive disorders like diarrhea or IBS
  • Allergic disorders like eczema or hay fever
  • Liver disease
  • The common cold
The full list is far more exhaustive than this one, but regardless of the length, it’s important to note one thing: Not all probiotics are the same. I’ll show you what I mean. Take this hypothetical example of an advertisement: Not all probiotics are the same. See the list of links to the different products at the bottom? Those are Google Adword site-link extensions, and they’re intended to give you multiple options when you see an advertisement. The problem is… you don’t know the difference between Probiotics A, B, or D. While realistically, the advertiser would have differentiated each of them with a unique product name, we can’t know which probiotic does what for which problem. In other words, we’re not sure if the problem we’re trying to fix will be solved by A, B, D, or none of them.

Here’s why:

Depending on the probiotic we use (because there are 10x as many probiotics as there are cells in our body), researchers are unsure which does what, and if it does what they think it does. One type of probiotic may do nothing similar for the body that another probiotic does. It’s like saying since a Corvette and a Buggy are both just vehicles for transportation, they’re the same. Not all probiotics are equal. Even if the probiotics look the same, have the same source, and are touted to treat the same ailment–they aren’t. We could be [figuratively] washing our car with dish soap. According to the FDA, no probiotics have been approved as demonstrating substantive treatment of any health problems. In other words, the FDA, the grand arbiter of claims, is not giving us a verdict: so don’t get high hopes about probiotics.

How do probiotics respond to the colon?

As mentioned above, probiotic benefits vary from spectrum to spectrum–but do they interact with the colon? In order to answer what probiotics target, we have to learn [briefly] about process of cleansing the colon. If you look at your body’s digestive process, there are five main processes from start to finish:
1. First, you ingest food or liquid through the mouth (obviously). 2. Second, the food or liquid travels to the stomach to become digested as chyme. 3. Third, the chyme travels through the small intestine for the bulk of its nutrients to be absorbed. 4. Fourth, the chyme travels through the large intestine where the water or any liquids are absorbed. 5. Last, the chyme, now pretty much a ball of waste, is situated in the colon for ejection.
For a fun, interactive look at the colon process, see it here. Probiotics’ role is located in the gut, the stomach. They are responsible for the “gut micro-biota,” some scientists call the “forgotten organ.” When probiotics are used for a colon cleanse, they target these microbiota, which are responsible–or at least largely contribute to–your gut health. But what determines our gut health?

Your gut health at infancy

When you’re first born (oh the good ol’ days), your intestinal tract was sterile. You were CLEAN. Then, your gut was colonized by maternal and environmental bacteria, and then was populated by feeding and other contacts. As you age, and as you come into contact with different bacteria, your gut health can decrease. However, because of the motility of your colon–from the pushing function of peristalsis, from bowel movements, and from the various acids in your stomach–your gut is actually quite bacteria free. Relatively, of course. Some studies have demonstrated a possible link between probiotics and long-term impacts to your colonic microbiota–as scientists have long thought that positive effects on the microbiota were transient (that your microbiota always fully recovered). This means there may be a foundation for the gut health from using probiotics.

Should I take probiotics, then?

That is your choice, but I wouldn’t bet on a significant improvement for your colon. If you are looking for something closer to “gut health,” then there are plenty of free alternatives for probiotics. You can eat…
  • Yogurt
  • Miso soup
  • Kefir (fermented milk)
  • Sourdough
  • Kombucha
  • Dark chocolate
But if you’re looking for colon health or a colon cleanse, we highly recommend one of these two natural cleanses: My Gentle Cleanse, a gentle colon cleanse formula made of natural herbs, designed to help alleviate bowel discomfort and irregularity, or… My Gentle Detox, a gentle, herbal detox made for those who suffer from bowel irregularity and need an extra push to achieve bowel relief.