Is it true that f***s can be retained on the surface of the intestines, as claimed by some product marketers?

Question

These products claim they will dislodge and cleanse the intestines, leading to weight-loss and improved health. Is this for real or basically snake oil?

Answer 1

Weigh yourself before and after you urinate. And see if your health improves.

Answer 2

I have no clue

Answer 3

It's snake oil. Your intestines are self-cleaning.

Answer 4

To answer your first question: Yes, some particles of f***s may be retained in your intestine. Your intestine isn't smooth, particularly the large intestine. In older people this is especially true as they develop polyps - outpockets of the large intestine.

However, this is rarely an issue and can actually help smooth out the intestine helping food pass through without issue.

2) Many of these products will dislodge these materials, but it's not a fun procedure. It can lead to damage to the tissues of your intestine.

3) Leading to weight-loss: Technically yes. If you remove retained f***s you will weight less. However, all it will do is change the number on the scale, you will look exactly the same. Your healthy weight has little to do with the number on the scale, and more to do with how you feel!

4) Improved health: a big NO. At best it won't kill you, at worst you'll have health problems due to scarring for the rest of your life. If you are having issues with your GI tract, go to a doctor! If retained f***s is the issue they will do a much more exact procedure that will result in minimal damage.

This is snake oil. Yes you lose weight, but it's meaningless weight. Many of these procedures are the equivalent of using a power washer to get rid of acne. Sure, technically it will work, but is it worth the risk?

Answer 5

Jennifer is a little confused.  The pockets that develop in the colon are diverticuli.  (polyps are little tumors, usually benign, but some develop into cancer)  Diverticuli can trap little bits of stool, but we're talking LITTLE.  Like the size of a pea.  If diverticuli get infected, that's diverticulitis, which is no fun.  The way to prevent this is to eat fiber.  Bran, salads, veggies.... no fancy or expensive products needed.  Fiber supplements can help too.

All the colon cleansing stuff IS a bunch of snake oil.  If you want a clean colon, see the paragraph above.  Fiber, fiber, fiber.

Answer 6

Please listen to every word proffered by MaviGozler.  Many of us get paid for our informed medical opinions.  He's offered his for free.  At the very least you might consider offering him "Best Answer" for a well-thought-out, brilliant answer to your question.  

There is not a bloody thing I can offer more eloquent nor accurate than what he has posited.

Answer 7

Nope, Snake Oil.

EDIT: of Interest:

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/colon-c...

Answer 8

The best way for you to find out if a product maker is selling you snake oil is for him to give you citations to peer-reviewed scientific studies in respected journals which show that f***s is retained.  Better yet, have him show you controlled studies in a respected medical journal where his product (or one with similar active ingredients) was tested INDEPENDENTLY and the results he claims were proven to occur.  Be careful of articles in magazines posing as scientific studies but which are really ads, and where the "scientist" was on the payroll of the company marketing the product.

You can also take the initiative and look up the scientific literature yourself in PubMed database (freely accessible) with certain keywords that you have:

"intestines AND (fecal OR f***s) AND retention"

might be a good boolean keyphrase to submit to PubMed.