Linking Breast Cancer and Colon Ecology

Colon therapists have for decades been preaching the relationship between a poor microbial colon ecology and cancer.  Most people would not think that breast cancer would come under this category taking into account its proximity being far from the colon, but this is not the case.  Keep in mind that our circulatory system carries the same blood supply to all of our organs and thus they are all connected.  There was an article in the Medical World News, Feb. 1^st, 1982, pg. 72 that connected constipation to breast cancer.  Also in that year the Saturday Evening Post reprinted an article from the Lancet in which two physicians, Nicholas L. Petrakis and Eileen B. King of the University of California found the same link.  These doctors studied the breast aspiration of 5,000 women and were able to link constipated women with a high percentage of abnormal (dysplastic) cells giving them a higher than average future risk for breast cancer.

Well that was nearly 30 years ago.  Yesterday I came across an exciting study being done by Rush University Hospital in Chicago.  I urge you to follow this website, it may save your life or someone you love. http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=news/health&id=7078853

Researchers are again finding a link between cancer and the colon; the organ people would rather not talk about.  It is truly exciting!  Yes, I knew this long ago and have been sharing this information with my clients for over two decades.  My education taught me this initially but most importantly my experience has proved it.  I have seen dozens of breast cancer patients in my office.  To my great joy these women have had wonderful outcomes.  The doctor’s diagnosis in most of these were not good, but the doctors became amazed at how well their patients recovered.  They were originally not optimistic that the chemotherapy would result in a total remission.  Additionally, in my 21 years I have never had a client that followed through with occasional maintenance colonics, usually four a year, be diagnosed with cancer.  That is a big statement but it is true.  Now with this study the reasons for this are being made more aware.

One of my sisters was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 40.  This was 15 years ago.  As my last post showed, not all people, including some family members have regarded what I do for a living of any relevance.  She has been one of those individuals.  I am now 52 years old and although having a strong cancer heritage, including my sister, I have not had cancer.  I am grateful but at the same time I know it is not just a coincidence. 

For more understanding of the relationship between the colon’s bacteria ecology and our health please read my blog, “IBS, a Distressing Condition.”  Oh, and one more thing, TAKE YOUR PROBIOTICS!!!

I Saw Henry!

I see all kinds of people in my office.  Henry was one I didn’t ‘see’ until 10 minutes after I finished his colonic.  Let me explain:

For several years Henry’s wife, Lorraine, had come to my office for a clean up colonic and afterwards would exclaim in her beautiful British accent how good she felt.

One day I received a desperate call from her. She asked if I could unplug her husband, who is 69 years old.  He had a hip replacement 9 days earlier and hadn’t moved his bowels and so was quite miserable.  I told her I could definitely help and would be able to see Henry at the end of my day.  She said that would work out great since Henry had his follow-up appointment with his surgeon early in the afternoon. 

A few hours later I received a frantic call from Lorraine.  The doctor told Henry “no way” with the colonic and recommended Fleet enemas instead.  Lorraine knew better and wanted to call the doctor but didn’t know what to tell him.  Among other things I told her about Dr. Steven Stryker, a G.I. professor that works out of Northwestern University, Chicago.  He believes in colonics and even has a colon therapist working for him out of his downtown Chicago office.  She called the doctor and after speaking with him his answer was, “I don’t care, do whatever you want.”

When they arrived, Lorraine ran into my office and told me, “We have a bear out there!”

I didn’t comprehend what she meant but I was soon going to find out!  Now, normally it is my custom to sit down with a new client, go over their history and help educate them as to how they can help themselves.  With Henry I knew he needed some fast relief.  As he came into my office shuffling his feet with his head down, I introduced myself and started to explain a few basics.  He quickly interrupted and said, “Just get this over with!”

This was a first for me, yet I conceded.  He got ready with his wife’s help positioning him on his left side.  I came back into the room and proceeded with the colonic while he faced away from me.  Typically the client also goes on their back during the process but with Henry I left good enough alone, and besides his colon was cooperating very well.  He didn’t speak a word to me until about 30 minutes of relief had passed, (literally), and then he asked, “Why don’t doctors recommend this?”  I told him they couldn’t recommend something they didn’t understand.  Shortly afterwards the colonic was over and I asked Henry to finish in the bathroom as I left the room.  When he came out he stood straight up with his hands on his hips and proclaimed, “Well, I feel rather beefy!”  I suppose you have to be British to understand the phrase but I got the point.  And so it was then that I saw Henry’s face for the first time and it was smiling.  I pushed the situation a little farther and asked for a hug, which he gladly gave me.  It was a rewarding moment indeed!

As Henry put on his shoes he asked me why doctors are so against colonics.  I told him not all are against colonics.  In my 21 years as a colon therapist I have definitely seen a shift, but this can only happen when patients such as him tell their doctors about their experience with colonics.  Henry quickly responded, “Well you can be sure my doctor is going to hear about this!”  Thank you Henry! 

IBS, a Distressing Situation

IBS,  (irritable bowel syndrome), is the number one cause of work absenteeism in America.  This is understandable considering that the symptoms can be very uncomfortable and socially embarrassing.  Typically a person with IBS has constipation with alternating diarrhea, abdominal pain and cramping along with gas and bloating.  When I was just 20 years old I was diagnosed with a spastic colon.  This was the diagnosis given 30 some years ago for what is now known as IBS.  Both terms actually describe the condition.  The colon’s peristaltic contractions that move waste along spasms hard and irregular compared to a healthy colon that has easier, consistent contractions.  The name IBS also defines the condition because the colon is actually irritated.  The irritation causes it to spasm.  The key to correcting this problem lies in getting rid of the irritation.  To accomplish this it is imperative to correct the ecology of the colon’s lining which should have a balance of about 80% friendly bacteria to 20% unfriendly bacteria.  It is normal for a healthy person to have some candida, a yeast form, amongst the unfriendly bacteria, but with those with IBS there is typically an over abundance of it.  To help those with IBS it is necessary to remove excess unfriendly bacteria and candida and replace it with friendly bacteria.  This is why colonics play a key role in achieving this.  Through the use of gentle clean water a colonic can soften old waste and mucous allowing for it to be released.  It is important for the therapist to use warmer water with a person with IBS since warm water relaxes the colon while cooler water, even a difference of 4 degrees, can cause the colon to contract.  In a person with IBS these contractions turn into spasms and would make the person uncomfortable and the colonic unproductive.

It is very important that friendly bacteria are increased by taking refrigerated probiotics several times a day.  Over the years of working with clients with IBS it is very common that the person can trace their problems back to a time period when they had several antibiotics over a short period of time.  Sometimes, as was my case, the constipation started as a young child after several courses of antibiotics.  Antibiotics kill friendly bacteria as they are targeting specific bad bacteria.  This is why it is important to be prudent when taking antibiotics.  For more information read what the FDA and CDC have to say on the subject at the following web addresses. 


http://www.fda.gov/Drugs/ResourcesForYou/Consumers/ucm143568.htm

http://www.cdc.gov/getsmart/antibiotic-use/know-and-do.html

Many people feel that when they have diarrhea they no longer have waste remaining in their colon.  This is far from the truth, especially in a person with IBS.  If a person were to get food poisoning they would experience diarrhea as a way for the body to quickly expel the poison.  But with a person with IBS, their bouts of diarrhea shows urgency for the bowel to expel toxicity yet the diarrhea is not effective in accomplishing this or otherwise the diarrhea would stop as it does with typical food poisoning.  The diarrhea is actually newer waste that has not had the proper transit time to allow the colon to remove valuable electrolytes and nutrients.  The thinner diarrhea passes past harder older stools as it rushes in urgency due to the mixing of new waste with toxic old matter in the colon.  This urgency also causes the uncomfortable spasms.  To help you understand this, picture a glass full of rocks.  If you added water it would naturally trickle through the rocks to the bottom of the glass since it is thinner than the rocks.  The same is true in the colon.  Many of my clients with IBS as well as those experiencing chronic diarrhea are surprised to see how much hard, formed stools come out of them during their colonics.  These hard stools are old and thus they cause fermentation and putrification in the colon.  The result is gas that translates to bloating.  I have had clients that have actually passed out at work due to the pain from the gas and bloating before they met me.  I well remember how much pain I suffered constantly for years before colon therapy corrected my IBS.  I feel that having this experience helps me to empathize with my clients so that I am more understanding of their distress.

In addition to removing excess unfriendly bacteria and reintroducing friendly bacteria it is necessary to repair the gut lining.  L-Glutamine along with deglycyrrhizinated licorice, slippery elm bark and marshmallow root are excellent for accomplishing this.  I use one of two professional products.  One is G.I. Benefits by DaVinci Labs and the other is Glutagenics by Metagenics Professional products.

Over the years I have seen countless people with IBS.  Some had it at a lesser degree and others at a more severe degree.  One particular woman named Vicky suffered horribly.  My heart ached for her when I first met her two and a half years ago.  She had not had a bowel movement for a month yet just prior to that she had orange colored diarrhea for two days.  She found work to be unbearable but as a divorced mother of two and the only provider she went to work anyways.  The daily abdominal pain she dealt with along with severe acid reflux and migraines made her life miserable.  Her initial colonics were quite uncomfortable.  This is not common in my experience as a colon therapist, even with the average person with IBS.  By using warmer water and my closed gravity system most people tolerate my colonics quite well.  Vicky was far from average but she knew there were no other answers for her problem and she had to get better.  As is common with most IBS sufferers, she had an overgrowth of candida.  She needed to take a product to kill the candidiasis as well as go on a restricted yeast-free diet so as to not continue to feed it.  This process is much easier and way more successful when done in conjunction with colonics to allow for the quick removal of the dead or dying excess candida along with any old waste.  I have had many clients that before seeing me had taken various products to kill candidiasis and followed the yeast-free restricted diet but with no lasting success because there was limited removal of the old waste and excess candida.  When they did this along with colon therapy they finally achieved success.

Vicky also needed to add digestive enzymes to help with the digestion of her food in the small intestine as well as hydrochloric acid to help with digestion in her stomach.  Often people have acid reflux due to lack of acid in the stomach causing the stomach to hold its contents too long allowing for the acid to travel up the esophagus.  Additionally, since the stomach lies just above the transverse section of the colon that goes across from right to left near the navel, constipation and/or gas can push pressure upwards towards the stomach also causing acid to go up the esophagus.  By eliminating the gas and the cause of the gas, constipated waste, the pressure is relieved and acid reflux often goes away.  So between adding hydrochloric acid to her stomach, during or after a meal, never before, and eliminating the constipation through colonics, Vicky’s acid reflux disappeared.


It would seem that adding a stimulant would help a person with constipation, but in actuality stimulants make the colon lazier and cause the constipation to worsen in the long run.  With those with IBS it is extremely critical that they avoid all stimulants, including caffeine products, because their colons are already over stimulated as expressed with the spasms they experience.  I have found, as in the case of Vicky, that drinking an herbal relaxant, chamomile tea, will help relax the colon from the spasms and allow for easier elimination.  

After several months of regular treatments Vicky had great improvement of all of her problems. I now see Vicky on a maintenance schedule.  She rarely has any migraines and if she does they are much milder.  Her IBS is under control as she has daily bowel movements as well as no more abdominal pain.  Vicky was one of my greater challenges in my 21 years as a colon therapist.  The best reward is to be able to help change the life of a very deserving person, one that I now call my friend.