Salt Water Flush: What It Is + How It Can Level-Up Your Health

What is a salt water flush?

A salt water flush is a tool that is designed to help detox your body by flushing out old waste, possible parasites, and toxins from your colon. To do a salt water flush, you would drink a mixture of warm water and salt which essentially has a laxative effect. 

A salt water flush works pretty immediately - within 30 minutes or so - and can also be a great way to alleviate constipation. Salt water flushes are also used in certain cleanses like the popular Master Cleanse detox, but it’s not always advised to use on a regular basis unless you have a specific need or recommendation from your practitioner.

Benefits of a salt water flush

While a salt water flush is most often associated with detoxing, there are a lot more benefits for utilizing this wellness tool, including:

• Improved digestion
• Electrolyte replacement
• Migraine relief
• Constipation relief
• Detoxification

Research has confirmed that salt water flushes are great for cleansing the colon more immediately in cases of constipation. After all, you can’t really deny how quickly it leaves you running to the toilet! However, more research still needs to be done in order to confirm the effectiveness of salt water flushes for detoxification and whether or not they are successful in their claims to remove toxins from the body.

How to do a salt water flush

The key to doing a salt water flush is to do it on an empty stomach. Whether that is first thing in the morning or a few hours after dinner before bed, the most important thing is to make sure you don’t do this alongside food.

Once you have decided on when to do a salt water flush you can mix up your mixture:

1. Add two teaspoons of non-iodized sea salt in 4 cups of warm water. Stir until dissolved.
2. Add lemon juice if desired to enhance the flavor.

Drink the mixture as quickly as possible - it is not meant to be sipped on! You should experience a bowel movement within 30 minutes, give or take as it is different for each person. 

When to do a salt water flush

Only do a salt water flush if advised by your doctor or if you are experiencing the need for constipation relief since salt water flushes are not meant to do on a regular basis. If you are pregnant or have a specific medical condition, talk with your doctor to determine if this is the best choice for your health case.

Also, you should only do a salt water flush if you have immediate access to a toilet, especially when you first start doing salt water flushes as you are learning how your body is going to respond. The worst would be getting stuck in rush-hour traffic on your way to work!

Potential side effects

Since salt water flushes lead to multiple bowel movements, you are also losing a large amount of important electrolytes like sodium and fluid. Unless you are getting enough electrolytes throughout the rest of your day from food or supplements, you may experience some side effects from electrolyte deficiency, such as:

• Muscle cramps
• Headaches
• Fatigue
• Nausea
• Irregular heartbeat

For some people, salt water flushes don’t expel enough sodium which can lead to sodium overload. Therefore, it is not advised to do a salt water flush if you have any of the following conditions due to an increased risk of high blood pressure and other complications:

• Edema
• High blood pressure
• Cardiovascular problems
• Kidney problems
• Diabetes

How to improve the effectiveness of a salt water flush

Because salt water flushes are not meant to be done daily for long-term use, it is important to be supporting your body’s digestion and detoxification systems (your digestive tract, liver, gallbladder, kidneys) on a regular basis. This will not only help improve both of these areas of your health, it will also make your salt water flushes more effective when you do them.

Tips for healthy bowel movements:

• Stay hydrated
• Eat more probiotic-rich foods (kefir, sauerkraut)
• Eat more fiber
• Take a daily probiotic supplement
• Daily movement

Tips for a healthy detoxification system:

• Stay hydrated
• Limit alcohol
• Switch to non-toxic personal care and cleaning products
• Limit your consumption of prepackaged, processed foods
• Drink clean water
• Exercise
• Try a milk thistle supplement

The Takeaway

If you are struggling with constipation, salt water flushes can be a fantastic tool to get things moving. However, if you are dealing with chronic constipation or toxin overload, salt water flushes are not going to be the magic key to overcoming these health problems. 

A functional medicine practitioner can help you identify the root cause of your chronic constipation and help you determine a plan to achieve more sustainable, long-term healing so that you don’t have to consistently rely on salt water flushes for relief.

If toxin overload is a problem for you, they will also be able to look at your entire health case to identify your main areas of toxin exposure and come up with a detoxification plan, including how to best support your liver and other detox organs for optimal function.

If you’re interested in learning more about how a salt water flush or another detox option could work for you, schedule a telehealth appointment today!

As one of the first functional medicine telehealth clinics in the world, we provide webcam health consultations for people around the globe. 

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