This is a good question.

In natural healing you look at the body as a whole, you look at illness as symptons of your body's functions. Rather than only trying to help one recover from a cold for instance, you try to look deeper into the body and gather information to help that person discover the source for the sickness. A cold could very well be just that, a cold, or it could be a sympton of another illness or an area of your body not working right.

A cleansing is usually the first suggestion you give to someone who wants to regain their health. Many holistic and naturopathic healers believe that almost all illnesses are related directly to the intestines and colon. Here is the reasoning:

We all know that when you eat, the food goes from your stomach to be broken down, into the colon and intestines for further processing and then to the kidneys for elimination. But what happens if you have a "pocket" in your intestines, or some part of your colon is not shaped properly and the food gets stuck in there. Or what if the food isn't being properly flushed out of your body, properly and totally?

The food sits in your system and turns putrid and toxic. Holistic and natural healers believe that the toxins your unprocessed or (unwashed-out) food are being reabsorbed into the blood stream, and from there cause sicknesses to develop in your body. If the good nutrients are being absorbed from your intestines into the blood stream then it stands to reason that the toxins are as well.

It is possible to have from anywhere from 0-30 pounds of waste stuck in your gut. When John Wayne died they apparently found 30lbs of such stuff in his digestive system, gross!

Many people have recovered from illnesses and allergies simply by cleansing and keeping their intestines well cleaned. The goal is to have one bowel movement per meal. I know some people who have attained this, personally, I haven't, but I don't eat very much either.

The cleansing:

There are many ways you can do this. One is to just fast and drink water for a few days. Another is to do it with just fruit juices and herb teas and water.

You can buy a book "The Stanley Burroughs Master Cleanse" at amazon.com for $6, it outlines a whole cleansing program based on maple syrup, lemon juice and cayenne pepper.

You can buy some herbs from a herbal shop (I can reccommend one I trust with good quality and reasonable prices which is where I buy my supplies).

Another company I get my supplies from sells a complete cleansing kit, which I have also done, and it works to get the bowels moving. It contains a fiber drink powder, herb blend capsules and an enzyme vitamin to break down food at mealtimes.

It's recommended that you do a cleansing every 6 months. Fasting is also a very good thing to do for your health and for anti-aging, it gives your body a chance to stop working on processing and concentrate on rejuvenating. I personally can't fast, my metabolism is too fast and I start to shake after a few hours of not eating. I never survived Family fasts, they were treacherous on me.

Here is a recipe for a herbal home-made cleanse. If you have constipation problems, I would also recommend that you do a cleansing and increase your water intake.

1 part senna leaf powder
1 part cascara sagrada bark powder
1 part psyllium seed husks--ground
1/2 part ginger
"00" size gelatin capsules

It doesn't matter how much you make as long as the ratios remain the same. Mix your portions together in a glass or ceramic bowl, fill the capsules with the powder (you don't have to pack them in, just fill them up).

Take one at night before bed. If the next day you have no bowel movement, take another one before bed, and another one in the morning. If nothing happens, increase to two until you get some action. For me, one is effective, other people have to do larger amounts. START SLOWLY and build up, you don't want to get the runs, which is what senna will give you if you take too much.

Water:
that's a very important point to not forget, in any cleansing program you need to increase your water to 8-10 cups a day on average. If you do a cleansing and are getting a headache, it's a sign that your body may be releasing the toxins very quickly and you should cut back a bit on whatever you're using, slow it down, unless you just want to get it done and over with.

Have fun and let me know if you need more information.