As we age the medical recommendation for all adults is to get a colonoscopy to screen for colorectal cancer. What used to be the gold standard for preventing colon cancer where doctors informed their patients that the colonoscopy is about 90% effective in screening for cancer is not as good as they once thought according to a recent Canadian study. The study reported that colonoscopies are only about 60-70% as effective at best and do miss out on a significant amount of tumors and polyps especially on the right side of the colon. The right side of the colon is called the ascending colon and is the beginning portion of the large intestine and where the small intestine connects to it. This is also the portion of the colon where the appendix is located. About 40% of colorectal cancer is found in this area of the colon.

Should you get a colonoscopy as you get older? It wouldn’t hurt but keep in mind its findings are limited. A better approach than relying on colonoscopies is to become aware of your bowel management. Let’s face it. You’re constipated and this is what contributes to not only your chances of getting colorectal cancer but any number of physical ailments. Just because you might be pooping one to three times a day does not mean your pipes are clean. Think about how much food you’re consuming and how much poop you’re producing. Typically people are pooping a lot less. In my practice I have yet to see anyone who’s not constipated (or at least aware of it). I define constipation as a state where there’s a disruption of flow within a tubular system creating a backflow throughout the whole system. You might be pooping frequently and yet your poops may be loose or separated, thin in diameter, and incomplete. Constipation can occur in various stages and despite what stage a person is in there’s a stagnation of flow within the body. When the gastrointestinal tract is affected so are all of the body’s systems.

The first thing you can do is to give your body a break and the best time for the gastrointestinal tract to get some rest is when it’s empty. This is equivalent to how the body repairs itself when we sleep at night. The digestive tract heals itself when it has less to do such as digesting and absorbing and metabolizing the food you eat. Nutritional fasting is one of the easiest and beneficial modalities one can do to accomplish this. There are two things I recommend: 1) Skip breakfast for a few days at first and only consume as much liquids such as herbal teas as you need to sustain you; 2) Drink blended meals. Blend fruit, vegetables, seeds, nuts and/or oils into smoothies and experiment with what tastes good for you. Please don’t torture yourself with something that doesn’t taste good. Try to have your first blended smoothie after 12 or 1 PM and drink as much as you want to get you through your day without any suffering. You can try this approach for half a day, one day, a few days, a week, or for however long you feel is right for you. The key is to try this every once in awhile just like you’d get an oil change for your car.

When following this approach your body gets a break and a greater chance to heal and at the same time get some nutrition to keep it going.