As we begin the discussion of the digestion, assimilation and elimination functions we need to first understand the anatomy of the body.
The digestive and elimination tract is one long tube, approximately 30 feet long. Also known as the alimentary canal, it includes the mouth, esophagus, stomach, small intestine (duodenum, jejunum, and ileum), colon (cecum, ascending, transverse, descending, and sigmoid) rectum, and anus.
The digestion process begins in the mouth. When you chew, the salivary glands produce saliva to mix with the food. The saliva enzymes (amylase) initiate the digestion of carbohydrates. Saliva also lubricates the food for its travel down the nine inch long esophagus through the cardiac sphincter to the stomach.
The stomach is a muscular sac with a mucosa lining that secretes hydrochloric acid and the enzyme pepsin to help digest food. These juices work toward digestion of proteins.
As food leaves the stomach, it enters the small intestine through the pyloric valve, where it triggers the release of hormones. The digestive hormones stimulate the liver and gall bladder to release bile and stimulate the pancreas to release pancreatin. The liver and pancreatic enzymes continue the process begun in the stomach of breaking down carbohydrates and proteins, but they also start the breakdown of fats. The walls of the duodenum also secrete digestive enzymes. The wall of the entire small intestine consists of folds that resemble accordion pleats. These folds have even smaller folds on their surface called villi. These increase the surface area of the small intestine to about the size of a tennis court. From the duodenum, the chyme continues on to the jejunum and finally the ileum.  The small intestine is where the majority of food absorption takes place. Each villus contains a capillary network that introduces the digested food nutrients into your bloodstream. The portal vein transports this digested food first to your liver and then if deemed acceptable, onward into your entire circulatory system to feed every cell in your body.
Any remaining food particles then travel from the ileum in the small intestine, through the ileocecal valve into the large intestine (colon). The colon is about 5-6 feet long and 2 ? - 3 inches in circumference. It continues the absorption of water, vitamins, and minerals from the intestinal contents. This process dries the intestinal contents and turns them into waste for release. During this process, due to the vacuum effect that occurs as the body absorbs the final bits of water, vitamins, and minerals, waste material is drawn to the walls of the colon. When there is inefficient peristaltic movement of the colon to move waste out, or if there is inadequate amounts of fiber in the matter, waste material will continue to build up along the walls of the colon until there may be only a small opening for it to move through. This problem may manifest itself with symptoms such as constipation, diarrhea, or very small bowel movements.
Ideally, one should have a bowel movement after each meal, in other words two to three bowel movements a day. Unfortunately, for many people, a single bowel movement daily is common, for others it may be one every few days or even one a week. We have even had some say that they will go two or three weeks between bowel movements! This ineffective and inefficient cleansing of the bowels has been demonstrated to contribute to many health issues.
As you can see from the description of the digestive system, there is much that the needs to be accomplished throughout each phase of the digestive tract. As such, it is vitally important to keep the digestive system working optimally. If there is a problem with the way that the stomach, small intestine or colon works, then the body is unable to digest food properly. If the food is not digested (broken down) properly then the body will be unable to assimilate the nutrients. 
It is important that we keep the digestive system working well. There are several ways to accomplish this and each compliments the other. Together they are much more efficient and effective than they could be individually.
One of the ways to help the colon cleanse quickly and effectively is through colon cleansing and hydration (sometimes referred to as colonics). Colon Cleansing/Hydration is a safe, effective method of removing waste from the large intestine, without the use of drugs. By introducing filtered and temperature regulated water into the colon, the waste is softened and loosened, resulting in evacuation through natural peristalsis. This process is repeated several times during a session. It is best used in combination with adequate nutrient and fluid intake as well as exercise. Today's sophisticated technology promotes both the safety and sanitation of this popular cleansing practice.
It is vital, in order to keep the colon clean, to get adequate fiber in the diet. When fiber is lacking, the movement of food through the digestive system slows. With the sluggish movement through the system, food remains for an extended period. This can cause a stagnation of the food, which can result in the food literally putrefying and rotting in the tract. When this happens, there can be a buildup on the wall of the digestive tract, which can inhibit the release of digestive juices and/or block the absorption of nutrients into the villi and thus the bloodstream, liver and cells. If the cells do not assimilate the nutrients, then they will not have the materials needed to rebuild, repair, and reproduce healthy cells. In this situation, the body has no choice but to produce inferior cells. Eventually as the body produces more of these inferior cells, it will result in inferior tissues, organs, organ systems, and final a complete body breakdown.
This breakdown does not happen overnight, but over a period, various symptoms may occur which can result in a variety of disease processes being diagnosed from a medical standpoint. 
When partaking of a healthy diet, consisting of large amounts of mostly fresh raw fruits, vegetables, (few) whole grains, raw nuts, and seeds, many people have found that it is possible reduce, reverse, and in some cases eliminate this type of a problem due to the high amount of fiber, unprocessed, and nutrient dense foods that are consumed.
Unfortunately, most people do not take in enough fiber to offset the typical "Standard American Diet" (SAD). To deal with this, we recommend our clients changing over to a whole foods diet with the elimination of processed foods. By including adequate amounts of usable, easily digestible fiber in the diet, it is often possible to prevent and reverse various colon problems.
For many people though, additional fiber is not enough. If the body has the nutrients needed to build healthy cells, then it will have access to what it needs to keep working towards a total, optimal health situation, but only if the body is able to assimilate the nutrients. What this can mean is that for some people, even though they eat an optimal diet, they may still have health issues because they are not able to utilize the nutrients. For most people, after many years of consuming the "SAD" foods, the body may have difficulty actually breaking down food. In order to deal with this we suggest using digestive enzymes. 
Digestive enzymes assist the body with the breakdown of foods, thus making it easier to assimilate the nutrients into the bloodstream, into the liver and then into every cell of the body. We use the enzymes with every cooked meal. Many people experience the best results when taking them with raw meals and between meals as well.
In addition, due to the highly processed foods that are consumed, the delicate balance of friendly and unfriendly bacteria in the colon can become unbalanced in favor of the unfriendly bacteria! Many of our clients find that by adding a regimen of good, healthy, friendly bacteria, probiotics and digestive enzymes that their digestive system seems to work much more efficiently by decreasing the amount of gas, bloating, and cramping that they experience.
Our goal is to have total health, where every body system, every organ, every cell is the healthiest that it can be. If that is your goal as well, I encourage you to call us today and schedule your appointment for a personal, private consultation where we can discuss your own situation and help you to find out what your choices are in order to improve your quality of health and thus your quality of life.