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At DecideToBeHealthy, our approach to health is simple:
The bodies' natural "default" state is that of overflowing,
vibrant health. If you have a health problem, identify the cause
(or causes), remove then, and the body will repair and restore itself.
Most doctors that follow this philosophy will usually start a diagnosis
by looking at the overall health of the patients' digestive
system. Why? Because digestive health is the foundation on
which overall health is built.
Eczema is a symptom... not a "medical condition".
If you have eczema, then you are more than likely suffering from
these symptoms as well:
- irritable bowel syndrome,
- bloating
- constipation
- diarrhea
- heartburn
- acid reflux
- excessive gas.
These are just a few symptoms of the underlying problem of poor
digestion.
Fixing your digestion is fundamental to optimal health...
Most of us don't know that digestive problems wreak havoc in the
entire body, leading to allergies, arthritis, autoimmune disease,
rashes, acne, chronic fatigue, mood disorders, autism, dementia,
cancer, and more.
So having a healthy gut means more than simply being free of annoyances
like bloating or heartburn! It is absolutely central to your health.
It is connected to EVERYTHING that happens in your body.
The health of your digestive tract determines what nutrients are
absorbed and what toxins, allergens, and microbes are filtered out.
It is directly linked to the health of your whole body. Digestion,
absorption, and assimilation of food all depend on a healthy gut.
Factors that effect digestive health...
First... the bacteria in your gut forms an interdependent ecosystem.
In fact, there are 500 species and 3 pounds of bacteria in your
gut which form a HUGE chemical factory that helps you digest your
food, regulate hormones, excrete toxins, and produce vitamins
and other healing compounds that keep your gut and your body healthy.
This ecosystem of friendly bacteria must be in balance for you
to be healthy.
Too many of the wrong bacteria, like parasites and yeasts, or
not enough of the good ones, like Lactobacillus or Bifidobacteria,
can seriously damage your health.
So keeping a healthy balance of bugs in your intestines is one
factor to good gut health.
Second... 80% of your immune system function occurs in your gut.
Your body is protected from the toxic environment in your gut
by a lining that is only ONE cell-thick layer. If spread out,
this lining would take up a surface area the size of a tennis
court, and the entire thing is covered by a sewer!
If that barrier is damaged, you can become allergic to foods
you may normally be able to digest perfectly well, you will get
sick, your immune system will become overactive, and it will begin
producing inflammation throughout your body.
Third... your digestive tract contains a "second brain"
Technically known as the enteric nervous system, the second brain
consists of sheaths of neurons embedded in the walls of the long
tube of our gut, or alimentary canal, which measures about nine
meters end to end from the esophagus to the anus. The second brain
contains some 100 million neurons, more than in either the spinal
cord or the peripheral nervous system.
Messages constantly travel back and forth between your gut-brain
and your head-brain, and when those messages are interfered with
in any way your health will suffer.
Fourth, your gut also has to get rid of all the toxins produced
as byproducts of your metabolism, which your liver dumps into
bile. If things get backed up when you are constipated, you will
become toxic and your health will suffer.
Fourth... your not what you eat... but rather what you absorb.
Your gut must break down all the food you eat into its individual
components and shuttle everything across the one-cell-thick layer
mentioned above... so it can get into your bloodstream and nourish
your body and brain.
Your gut has quite a lot to manage. Even in perfect world it
is hard to keep all of this in balance. But in our modern world
there are endless insults that can knock our digestive systems
off balance; it is that much more difficult to maintain excellent
digestive health.
How to know if your gut is out of balance
To fix your digestion, you first need to understand what is putting
your gut out of balance in the first place. Here's the list:
- Our low-fiber, high-sugar, processed, nutrient-poor, high-calorie
diet, causes all the wrong bacteria and yeast to grow in our gut
and damages the delicate ecosystem in your intestines
- Overuse of medications that damage the gut or block normal digestive
function -- things like acid blockers (Prilosec, Nexium, etc.),
anti-inflammatory medication (aspirin, Advil, and Aleve), and
overuse of antibiotics, steroids, and hormones
- Undetected gluten intolerance, celiac disease or low grade food
allergies to foods such as dairy, eggs, or corn.
- Chronic low-grade infections or gut imbalances with overgrowth
of bacteria in the small intestine, yeast overgrowth, parasites,
or even more serious gut infections
- Toxins like mercury and mold toxins, which damage the gut
- Lack of adequate digestive enzyme function, which can come
from acid-blocking medication use, or zinc deficiency
- Stress, which can alter the gut nervous system, cause a leaky
gut, and change the normal bacteria in the gut
It’s important to understand is that many diseases that seem
to be totally unrelated to the gut -- such as eczema
or psoriasis or arthritis -- are actually CAUSED by gut problems.
By focusing on the gut, you can get better.
Seven steps to fixing digestive problems...
1. Eat whole unprocessed foods. Make sure to include plenty
of fiber from foods like vegetables, beans, nuts, seeds, and whole
grains.
2. Eliminate food allergies. If you think you have food sensitivities,
try an elimination diet. Cut out gluten, dairy, yeast, corn, soy,
and eggs for a week or two and see how your gut feels and what
happens to your other symptoms.
3. Treat any infections or overgrowth of bugs -- Parasites, small
bowel bacteria, and yeasts can all inhibit proper gut function.
You must treat these infections if you want to heal.
4. Replenish your digestive enzymes. When you don’t have
enough digestive enzymes in your gut, you can’t properly
covert the foods you eat into the raw materials necessary to run
your body and brain. Take broad-spectrum digestive enzymes with
your food to solve the problem.
5. Rebuild your rain forest of friendly bacteria. Take probiotic
supplements. They will help you rebuild the healthy bacteria so
essential to good gut health.
6. Get good fat. Take extra omega-3 supplements, which help cool
inflammation in the gut.
7. Heal your gut lining. Use gut-healing nutrients such as glutamine
and zinc to repair the lining in your gut so it can resume its
normal function.
Fixing your digestion may take some time, but it can be done. And
it is absolutely essential if you want to achieve vibrant health.
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