I've done about 40 colonics and maybe 25 self enemas. The issue is a really complex one. In my opinion the reasons to eschew cleanses (mostly provided by Nat. Hygiene, but also people like Aajonus) are as follows.
1.) That they remove
symptoms of disease
and likely because of this they are bad.
Its important to feel your pain in both these philosophies. Its also concluded that because there is no waste in your system that does not leave naturally that any sense of relief is either totally temporary or possibly some kind of euphoria or stimulation (from water I guess) that is harmful. Quite a tautology. Aajonus takes somewhat of a less stern view on this, as his belief is that it is
his particular diet that helps cleanse the bowels better than how it would on any other natural foods or even fasting alone and he has specific protocols for bowel function. Some rare hygiene people that do believe somewhat in impacted matter believe it to break down in lengthy fasting.
2.) That they destroy bacteria, mucus lining etc..
To me this is just total hearsay as most people that are really into this kind of thing are pretty excessive about it (defiantly one of the accurate criticisms) and they don't seem to have any problems re this issue even after decades of use or misuse. I can say for the most part they are not on RAF however, which does seem to require a particular balance of bacteria in order to have regular bowel function and avoid some possible health risks of food. Either way if one was to have a series of colonics, they could easily ease back into RAF with things like eggs. Juices of course work well. I haven't felt the desire to have a colonic in years really, but would consider it and take a similar approach myself if I did. I did a few enemas last spring on this diet with no problems. The enema just cleanses the very lower part of the colon, so I don't think its much of an issue. I'm pretty sure even Aajonus recommends enemas sometimes but I am not sure about that. Anyway the bacteria should repopulate in no more than 1 day, perhaps for sick people this isn't 100%.
3.) That is just too much pressure/water up your ass.
The reality is (as anyone who's actually had a gravity colonic before will tell you) the most painful pressure you will feel is the speculum entering your but, which can indeed feel strange and foreign. the actual water never feels dramatic in terms of pressure, sometimes the therapist (if they are good) will do kind of massage and hold the tube in such a way as to create pressure, but its never much more uncomfortable than taking an uncomfortable crap ever in your life. The non-gravity motorized machines can probably rip tissue and such, i'd believe that in a heartbeat. Generally to me this is kind of the equivalent of saying you can poke your eye out in the shower.
---
In summary I'm not sure colon cleansing is necessary when eating a diet that facilitates a proper breakdown and removal of wastes and plenty of raw fat to remove toxins, but I don't believe just because one is even having normal bowel movements that this is an absolute indicator of this. On the other end, I also don't think these cleanses are really great cures for short term constipation, and usually one can just go for those over the counter things. If ones goal is to have the best functioning internal bacteria then I would say perhaps be skeptical of colonics and enemas, however if that approach isn't working and people really arn't experiencing the best health (possibly shown by poor food absorption) I would give some kind of cleanses a try and then go back to the previous tactic.
---
castor oil is pretty commonly used that way, you can also just put packs on your stomach externally. doesn't make sense to me how that works but some people swear by it.