supplements

Question
i was wondering if you knew anything about the acai berry and colon cleanse diet that ive been seeing all over. i recently got a free trial of acai-trim and power cleanse but i have not taken them yet. my biggest concern was the power cleanse. i dont want to take anything that could be harmful to my body. each capsule contains psyllium husk 500mg, ginger root 200mg, senna leaf 100mg, rhubarb root 100mg, apple fiber 100mg. and it says to take 1-2 per day. i was just wondering if that was too much laxative. also i have been researching the senna leaf and it seems like 200mg per day of that is an aweful lot. if you could give me any info on this colon cleanse i would really appreciate it. also acai-trim vit c 60mg, vit b6 4mg, vit b12 24mcg, chromium picolinate 120 mcg, freeze dried acai berry 100mg, green tea triple blend 480 mg. also 1-2 pills per day

Answer
Dear Briana,

I know that the acai berry has become a bit of a fad. It is highly praised as a so-called power food, based on numbers: it contains a lot of Vit C (anti-oxidants). This is a rather fragmented way to look at our nutritional needs. Colon cleansing, too, has become fashionable. It represents a quick fix way to deal with the past, bad habits, and undigested issues.

Vitamin C is great: it is a letter which stands for plant matter that has assimilated cosmic light. You will find it therefore in leaves (solar panels) and berries (sun soaked fruit). You will find the Vit. C qualities especially in the Rosacae family: the rose is well known to relate intimately with heart forces (our inner sun). The minute you start to freeze or dry (let alone pulverise and mechanically process) these berries you denaturate them and they become a chemical constituent (artificial) devoid of their truly special nutritional value, which is of an intangible essence.

By eating (some!) berries you stimulate the ability to derive cosmic properties though your metabolic system. This naturally will keep you ticking over and make you feel fresh, clean, light and fit. Berries are especially cleansing in that they stimulate bloodbuilding forces. An excess, however, taxes the metabolic forces at the cost of more refined thought processes. So as ever: all in moderation. Rosehips are just as good in that sense, especially if they grow locally. Or strawberries. Different botanically as they are, it is good to combine different "berries" and other fruits(incl. apples) Not everything called "berry" is botanically speaking a berry. Each group (based on carpel development) has a different relationship to the cosmos and the earth. When in general good health, all are equally valuable. Some may cause digestive problems when certain organs are diseased. For example, stone fruit cannot be tolerated well in liver patients, with the exception of dried apricots. The reasons for this go deep. But this to illustrate that we ought to reach for specific fruits only when we mean to cure a disorder, not in the vain hope that we will be lead to perfection. We cannot eat ourselves to heaven, we can only maintain happiness through the right diet for us (ever shifting for each individual with time and circumstance).

It is important to realise we eat in order to consolidate our spirit in matter, so that we may respiritualise substance. As vital to this mission as ingesting is, secretion, even EXcretion is also a powerful dynamic. We must try to be in harmony with the cosmic blue-print laid out for us as human beings. This evolves with time, and we have become harder and more individual over the cosmic ages. This according to the Anthropopsophic philosophy.  The way forward is to find one's own personal balance. Some foodstuffs work for some people better than for others. This helps to show up your weaknesses and point to where you need to anchor more to earth.

It is natural to want to cleanse, rejuvenate, revivify yourself in spring. It is why a 6 week period of taking birch elixer (Weleda) can be very effective. The bitter, tender, green leaves used for this tell you how this can work. The birch has always been a brave, pionering little cosmic messenger (as the Norse Rune Bjerka reveal). By appealing to the liver forces (stimulated by bitter) we cleanse on a deeper (spiritual) level. This is why birch elixer can do something meaningful for you (and according to Anthroposophical principles) vitamin supplements (dead energy) not.

The only real way to cleanse the colon is through a fast with some serious laxative cocktails or an enema. Some diseases do require an enema. For example when there is a dangerous build up of toxic waste in the colon (and fever ensues, or serious chronic constipation). A quick flush is necessary. More rigorous "stripping" of the slugs as is trendy at health farm retreats, these days, are not always beneficial, and seldom have a lasting effect. They are short sharp shocks which can be an educational experience in themselves, but your physical health is seldom directly effected by this. Hard science is on one line with Anthroposophy on that one.

I recommend you only use specific foods medicinally and special courses of treatment therapeutically after an EXACT diagnosis of your problem. For a simple, fresh, clean start other kinds of discipline and spiritual considerations will be required, and it may take a few years, several springs and harsh winters before this can be appreciated.

On a final technical note regarding your tablets: senna pods are not to be taken regularly - they are mildly toxic. Senna leaf I am not personally familiar with. Senna in general is an irritant, this is how it works laxatively, but it remains doubtful whether this is the best way to stimulate peristalsis. The underlying reasons for poor bowel movements should rather be addressed in the face of any long-term solution. Green tea is an excellent anti-oxidant, and a cup a day is highly recommendable as a relaxing drink. What a tripple blend might be, I do not know. It sounds fishy. Taking B6 and B12 as supplements is always risky. B12 must, generally, be supplemented for vegans, but then under strict supervision of a naturopath or GP. A long-term deficiency can severely damage health and performance in many cases.
Ginger is a great stimulant on the metabolic system. By all means add some to a hot lemon drink, with honey (a great cleansing, boosting tonic), maybe add a sprinkling of cinnamon or use sage a base tea for extra purification; otherwise just add to Chinese stir-fry. But again, it is important to experience the sensation of ginger, more so than to undergo its passive chemical composition in a tablet.
Rember, above all, different organic problems (causing different digestive outcomes) require different phytotherapeutic remedies. Often our gut is not happy because our organs are slacking off. If you then reboost the intestines you will not benefit anyway, because the organs are not fit enough to receive and process the nutrients. Also, the organs help digest (think of bile from the liver/gall system etc).  So stay holistic in considering your treatment options and pin the real problem.

I hope to have given you a slightly different angle to add to your research.
Perhaps, you will enjoy a fresh handful of acai soon!
Warmest wishes, Evelyn.

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