# Caffeine Enema? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 25, 2000, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/caffeine-enema/47137 "2000-12-25T02:17:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![soulsling](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a5b964/32.png) [@soulsling](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/soulsling)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2000, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/caffeine-enema/47137/1 "2000-12-25T02:17:30Z")
My buddy and I hung out with a woman we had just met this weekend, over at her place. We noticed an IV bag in her kitchen, and asked her about it, because it looked like coffee grinds at the bottom of the bag. I said, “what the hell is that?” She said, “What do you think it is?” My buddy said, “Coffee grinds?, but in an I V bag?” She explained it was a caffeine enema, her “nutritionist” recommended it. My question… Is this for real? Does this work? Who the hell gives themselves a caffeine enema at home like this? (aside from this woman…)What’s the dope? ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2000, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/caffeine-enema/47137/2 "2000-12-25T02:55:06Z")
A few years ago, Michael Landon was dying of cancer. He said he had even tried coffee enemas as a cure because he had tried everything else. Obviously, it didn’t work. I can’t see how it would help at all, but I’m not a doctor. Sidenote: After telling Johnny this, Johnny replied, “Well, don’t ever invite me to breakfast at your house.” Landon thought it was funny. ---
**Author:** ![Aestivalis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Aestivalis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aestivalis)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2000, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/caffeine-enema/47137/3 "2000-12-25T03:46:45Z")
I read an article about a weeklong program that you can undergo in Thailand, during which you fast, drink tons of water and receive coffee and normal water enemas (high colonics) daily. Supposedly purges all the toxins from your body. The test subject lost around 15 pounds. Not recommended for the sqeamish though. Seemed pretty excruciating. I think it was in Maxim. ---
**Author:** ![Aestivalis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Aestivalis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aestivalis)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2000, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/caffeine-enema/47137/4 "2000-12-25T03:56:21Z")
I read an article about a weeklong program that you can undergo in Thailand, during which you fast, drink tons of water and receive coffee and normal water enemas (high colonics) daily. Supposedly purges all the toxins from your body. The test subject lost around 15 pounds. Not recommended for the sqeamish though. Seemed pretty excruciating. I think it was in Maxim. ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2000, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/caffeine-enema/47137/5 "2000-12-25T04:31:37Z")
I have been hearing about this since Steve McQueen went to a Mexican clinic for this treatment. But I’ve never found out why they use coffee. What’s the explanation for that? Why coffee and not herbal tea? Now, _drinking_ coffee, that encourages elimination. Is mainlining the stuff supposed to have the same effect, only stronger? ---
**Author:** ![Meephead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b782af/32.png) [@Meephead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meephead)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2000, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/caffeine-enema/47137/6 "2000-12-25T15:41:47Z")
I have information about this in a book at home. If memory serves me correctly, It is a misnomer to call it caffeine enema since very little if any caffeine is absorbed by the body this way. What this DOES do is, as previously stated, cause the body to flush out toxins. If overused, it can cause nutritional deficiencies, as the body rids itself of useful nutrients, especially iron. Why coffee? I don’t know. but it is fairly common. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2000, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/caffeine-enema/47137/7 "2000-12-26T03:01:16Z")
Enema therapy, colon “purges” and the like have been with us for hundreds of years (they were popular in the 19th century and were in part the subject of a movie a few years back). There’s a sort of endless fascination with elimination and bowel regularity in the U.S. that borders on the bizarre - for example the legends about how many pounds of residual poop John Wayne supposedly had in his colon at the time he died). Enemas/purges are useless for treating cancer and the idea of using them for ridding yourself of “toxins” is absurd, but they’ll always have adherents, as guaranteed by P.T. Barnum’s First Law. ---
**Author:** ![soulsling](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a5b964/32.png) [@soulsling](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/soulsling)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2000, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/caffeine-enema/47137/8 "2000-12-26T03:58:57Z")
I’m getting two different answers here. It does or doesn’t clear the body of toxins? I thought plain water would do that, why have an I V bag drip caffeine/coffee grinds in water rather into your body? Would **Cecil** care to take this up? ---
**Author:** ![Primaflora](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/898d66/32.png) [@Primaflora](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Primaflora)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2000, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/caffeine-enema/47137/9 "2000-12-26T05:04:46Z")
IIRC caffeine enemas are supposed to shock the liver into releasing toxins and therefore are ‘cleansing’ I have the highly scientific tome _Everybody’s Guide to Nature Cure_ 😉 here in front of me but the index sucks. I can’t find the section which covers caffeine enemas although I am certain it’s in there. I’m also vaguely remembering that the gall bladder had something to do with caffeine enemas. Supposedly they can induce the body to release toxins to an extent that can be life threatening. Ummm OK. I guess it depends on whether you believe that clearing faeces is going to remove toxins from your system as to whether a caffeine enema is cleansing or not. Certainly in naturopathy the bowel is considered to be a source of toxins and therefore high colonics and psyllium hulls are recommended. A clean bowel is a functional bowel and all that. ---
**Author:** ![Sofa\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/58956e/32.png) [@Sofa\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sofa_King)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2000, 7:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/caffeine-enema/47137/10 "2000-12-26T07:07:18Z")
When I start resorting to this in order to make it to work on time in the morning, someone please slap me in the face with a dead fish. ---
**Author:** ![G.Nome](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c89c15/32.png) [@G.Nome](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/G.Nome)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2000, 10:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/caffeine-enema/47137/11 "2000-12-26T10:26:34Z")
Tobacco enemas were the LSD of the Mayan Indians according to an article in a 1980s Omni magazine. Who else ever got that to work? Sofa King: You remember how you said your mother used to use a shoe rather than a fish (so it wouldn’t leave marks)? That’s specialised knowledge isn’t it? I need to know how to remove a stiletto from my brother’s head. ---
**Author:** ![Adolph\_Peewee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e47c2d/32.png) [@Adolph\_Peewee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Adolph_Peewee)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2000, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/caffeine-enema/47137/12 "2000-12-26T12:20:38Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by ishmintingas \* > \*\* What’s the explanation for that? Why coffee and not herbal tea? Now, _drinking_ coffee, that encourages elimination. Is mainlining the stuff supposed to have the same effect, only stronger? \*\* I was under the impression that coffee (as does Alcohol BTW!) only stimulated elimiation due to it inhibiting the release of Anti-diuretic Hormone (ADH) which basically increases the permeability of the nephrons in the kidneys/reduces the re-absorption, thus resulting in a higher urine out-put. I can’t really see how it could have a better cleansing effect when it’s introduced into the bowel tho…unless of course you’re clenching too hard and it stays in for a fair while! :wally ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2000, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/caffeine-enema/47137/13 "2000-12-27T18:31:14Z")
* * * When I start resorting to this in order to make it to work on time in the morning, someone please slap me in the face with a dead fish. –SofaKing * * * Er, excuse me, SofaKing. Wasn’t this comment intended for the “Bitch Slap” thread? ---
**Author:** ![Homer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/df788c/32.png) [@Homer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Homer)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2000, 10:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/caffeine-enema/47137/14 "2000-12-28T10:01:44Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Jackmannii \* > \*\*(they were popular in the 19th century and were in part the subject of a movie a few years back). \*\* Road to Wellsville –Tim