Ashley Graham has no problem keeping it real on Instagram. The model and body-positivity advocate just shared a behind-the-scenes video of herself on Instagram just before undergoing a colonic (a.k.a. a colon cleanse), which she apparently does pretty regularly.
"I always show you guys a little picture of my knees and the drain-what's that thing called? a tank-but I figured I'd have my colonic therapist explain why I get them, and why you should be getting them," she says into the camera.
"Any kind of digestive distress," her therapist Lena responds. "Constipation, obviously, any kind of bloating, diarrhea...any kind of digestive issues."
As Ashley "mmhmms", Lena continues: "Another thing is inflammation. Whenever you have inflammation in the body, it can show up as breakouts or you can feel real puffy."
"Getting into there can help your face?" Ashley asks. "Exactly," Lena answers. "It's very anti-inflammatory-people see skin's glowing and less puffiness in one day, allover the body too if that was the issue."
View this post on Instagram When you know you're supported it's easy to feel sexy! Shop my #AshleyGrahamLingerie x @additionelle A post shared by A S H L E Y G R A H A M (@ashleygraham) on Sep 26, 2018 at 1:30am PDT
There's a third reason that seems to take Ashley by even more surprise: "Whenever you feel sick, the congestion and headaches go right away," Lena says. Ashley seems quite excited about that one, calling them "the sniffles" (how adorable).
But while Ashley's candidness is so appreciated, it's important to note that medical doctors (versus alternative medicine therapists), aren't so convinced of any of these benefits, as there's no research proving any of them.
In short, while the process-which involves emptying the colon of stool by way of a laxative or hydrotherapy (as in, a tube gently flushes water into the rectum)-likely isn't dangerous, it's also completely unnecessary, according to Rudolph Bedford, M.D., gastroenterologist at Providence Saint Johns Health Center in Santa Monica.
Bottom (sorry, had to) line: You know your body best, as Ashley knows and loves hers. If you're feeling bloated, constipated, or straight-up "sniffly" beyond your normal, consider seeing a doc for a full-body inspection rather than a iffy quick fix.
Still heart you though, Ash.