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Hunger exists to keep us alive, but it also can morph into a destructive force that could lead us to deforming obesity and even an early grave.

One question people who are interested in fasting and weight loss always ask me is whether or not appetite suppressants work. This has led me to research much on hunger and weight loss. The question is: How can I master hunger and not gain back all the weight I lose through fasting and dieting?

Some of my findings are outlined in this article and I hope it will give you hope and motivation to follow your goals and never give up.

Not a Panacea

Appetite suppressants can be "somewhat" helpful when fasting - but from experience I can tell you that they are NOT a panacea or fix all to the natural hunger pains when fasting or dieting. The only one that I would feel comfortable recommending is Hoodia because it is made from a plant. I would suggest that you use Hoodia, but NOT any other product that has chemicals of any kind or even caffeine - or other stimulant.

Powdered Hoodia has been the one that has helped me the most by "calming" the hunger. You can go online and Google "powdered Hoodia" and you will find an ample selection to choose from. What I do is put a tablespoon of the Hoodia in a cup — usually in the afternoon — and mix it with some water and a squeeze of lemon.

It tastes quite bad, but this approach is the one that I have found produces the best appetite suppression. I also use decaffeinated green tea and seltzer water with lemon to calm hunger. This combination has carried me through 7,14,21,30 and even 40 and 60-day water and juice fasts. It works like a charm. Something about the hot liquid hitting my belly, the Hoodia, and then the effervescence of the seltzer.

Hunger Flagellation?

Do not look at the hunger pains you go through when fasting and dieting as a punishment, or even as a torture to be endured (even though it certainly can feel that way). Instead, welcome the hunger pains as the clear and indivisible sign that your body is working overtime to overcome the very toxicity that you want to get rid of.

The toxicity - or the worst of it at least - hides in between your fat cells. So the only way for the body to deep clean itself is to dig into these cells. The process actually releases these toxins directly into your bloodstream, which in turn can cause pretty violent hunger pains, as well as headache, dizziness, nausea, weakness, diarrhea and fever.

These symptoms - as well as the hunger pains - usually go away completely between the fifth and tenth day of water fasting. From then on, many persons feel as if they could go on fasting indefinitely. Confront your hunger face-to-face and realize that this very hunger is the one that will lead you back to your old ways if you do not learn to master it.

A Demanding Child

Many persons feel that it is bad to feel hunger and that any sign of it has to be addressed immediately. Learn to ignore it. Learn to live with it. Now please, I am not saying here that you should starve yourself in an anorexic way. What I am saying is that the belly can be like a demanding child who insists on getting what he wants, when he wants it or else it throws a tantrum.

Discipline it and you find freedom. Try to constantly suppress it and sooner or later it will blindside you and lead you back to where you started. The fasting and dieting process, especially when you are new, is one that can take months and even years. In my case, I fasted on and off for an entire year.

I would fast for 21 days, eat for about two weeks, then fast for another month, eat for 14 days, fast another month etc. IT is about forming life-long "discipline muscles" that will allow you to assume control of your stomach, instead of the other way around. Many persons fast once, break the fast, and within a short period gain all the weight back, and then some.

Toe-to-Toe

The only way to keep that from happening is by facing the hunger directly and becoming "comfortable" with it, to the point where appetite suppressant, or no appetite suppressant, you have the ability to choose what you are going to put in my body.

The real "breakthrough" is mastering hunger in the long-term and being able to say NO - regardless of how hard and loud my stomach yelled for that particular food that I know harms me. This is true freedom, and it is my sincere desire that you find it and experience health and wellness in every area of your life!

At Fitness Through Fasting.com - you will find a growing number of fasting-related articles and topics to assist you achieve your weight loss, detoxification and health-improvement goals through juice and water fasting.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Robert_Dave_Johnston

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About two years ago I was recommended a completely new thing to me - coffee enema. My friend´s wife was using coffee enemas for detoxification of her liver and body. Thanks to the coffee enemas she got rid of her migraines, which she experienced regularly since she was a teenager. Even though I suffer from headaches very rarely, I decided to give the coffee enema a try. I have read about liver detoxification before, but all methods were based on drinking oil with acid juice, which was not the most attractive method for me :-). Furthermore, cleansing the liver with oil and acid juice took about two days, which was quite a long time. On the other hand caffeine administered into the rectum (no bad taste or nausea) was supposed to travel directly to the liver, open the bile ducts and increase immediatelly the flow of a bile, thus flushing the stones and toxins into the gastro-intestinal tract (into duodenum). 

The history of coffee enema reaches at least to 1920s, when German scientists Max Gerson found that caffeine administered into the lower part of large intestine could open the bile ducts, stimulate the production of bile in the liver and flush the harmful toxins out of the body. Max Gerson himself used coffee enemas and raw food to detoxify his body and cure himself. Dr. Gerson used coffee enemas clinically as part of a complex detoxification regimen, first for tuberculosis, then for cancer. According to his research caffeine will travel up the hemorrhoidal to the portal vein and then to the liver itself. Gerson noticed some surprising effects of this procedure. His patients could discontinue their painkillers once on the enemas and have noted the paradoxical calming effect of coffee enema.

So I gave it a try. On the internet and Gerson website I found this procedure:

How does one make a coffee enema?

Bring 1 quart distilled (or reverse osmosis) water to boil, add 3 tablespoons of drip ground coffee, lower the heat. Organic coffee is best, because it should not contain harmful chemicals, which are usually present in regular coffee. You can buy organic coffee it in you health food store. Coffee must contain caffeine, so be careful not to buy a decaf version

Turn of the heat after about 10 minutes. Let the coffee cool down to the body temperature. Caution! If the coffee is too hot it can cause serious interneal burns. It is safer to have it too cold than too hot!

You should strain the solution or use the french press to separate the coffee particles from the liquid, otherwise it can irritate you gastro-intestinal tract.

Pour the solution into the enema bag, hang it on a door knob or anywhere approx. 2 feet above the ground. Release the clamp and let the air come of the tube, then replace the clamp. 

Lie down on the floor on your back (or right side) and carefully insert the tube. Should you need lubrication, olive oil or water based lubricant are best.

Gently insert the tube into the rectum only a few inches and then release the clamp and let the first 1/2 of the of coffee flow into your rectum. Re-clamp the tube as soon as you experience the slightest amount of discomfort or fullness.

Try to retain the enema for at least 12 minutes. You may feel an immediate urge to get rid of the coffee, that is OK. The first discharge helps to clean the feces out of the colon so that second time you can hold more of the enema longer. It is best to hold the coffee for at least 12 minutes each time. After you have emptied the bowel, proceed with the remaining 1/2 of the coffee and likewise hold it for at least 12 minutes, then empty the bowel again.

Sometimes you may hear or feel emptying of the gallbladder. This occurs under the right rib cage, or sometimes more closely to the mid line. If after several enemas you have never felt or heard the gall bladder release, consider making the coffee stronger. Go up in 1/2 tablespoon increments per quart.

Always discontinue the enemas if there is any adverse reaction. If you find the enema helpful, do not use it more than once per day for any extended period without medical supervision.

What is my experience?

• coffee enema stimulated me quite a lot, so be careful doing it in the afternoon or evening or you may not be able to fall asleep
• I overused the enemas doing it several times per week and not drinking enough liquids, which would replace the lost electrolytes. I was also drinking quite a lot of coffee at that time (what a mistake). I experienced dizziness lasting several weeks, which later diappeared only after drinking a lot of fresh vegetable and fruit juices + oral rehydration solution. So be careful and use the enams with sense and not for an extended period of time.
• my eyes became clearer, like the eyes of a child or a very healthy person
• I felt very healthy and my skin was very soft and clear
• everybody was telling me, that I looked very young

Dangers of the coffee enema

• using too hot liquid can cause serious internal burns
• overuse of coffee enams can result in electrolyte imbalances and dehydration (my personal experience)
• inserting anything into the anus can cause anal tearing, so be careful
• coffee enemas should be avoided by pregnant women and people sensitive to caffeine
• caffeine can cause panic attacks in sensitive people
• too much caffeine may prevent deep sleep