Digestion Roadblocks
If you begin with a good diet and all goes well in your digestive process, food starts to become nutrition. Proteins, fats and carbohydrates, for example, are broken down into amino acids, fatty acids and simple sugar building blocks.
However, if anything goes wrong, and plenty can, you may end up with problems. The first symptoms are belching, bloating, bad breath, malabsorption, bacterial ulcers, gas, heartburn, constipation or diarrhea.
Around the age of 30 our bodies begin to produce less hydrochloric acid and enzymes. (Burp!) It can actually happen sooner than the big 3-0 and even get worse as we age if we aren’t paying attention. (Hiccup!) Overeating and/or eating too fast (Pfttttttt!), excessive alcohol consumption, habitual use of antacids, and poor food choices (r-r-rumble) will negatively affect the performance of our hydrochloric acid and enzymes, leading to improper digestion. (Belch!)
The point is, when your digestion is not working properly, you’re not the only one who notices. Plus, it can turn out to be quite serious. Persistent malfunctioning of the digestive system may lead to irritable bowel syndrome or even colon cancer.
The Real Way To Spell “Relief”
There’s a lot you can do to support good digestion before problems occur. The best way to spell “relief” is P-R-E-V-E-N-T-I-O-N and prevention starts with a good whole food diet. What’s a whole food? Foods naturally high in fiber like fresh fruits, vegetables, brown rice, whole grain breads and pastas are whole foods. Raw foods have naturally occurring plant enzymes that assist your body in digestion, so avoid overcooked or processed fruits and vegetables because enzymes are easily destroyed.
You can also eat good, low fat, complete sources of protein found in fish, poultry, lean meats, eggs and certain dairy products. Why? Because your body makes enzymes from the amino acids in protein. If you’re a vegetarian, make sure you’re combining your foods carefully to get the complete proteins you need.
Enzymes are important for many reasons besides digestion. You can’t walk, talk, breath or blink without them. A well functioning body produces hundreds and hundreds of different enzymes and missing just one can mean the difference between well being and illness, life and death.
Speaking of death, let me give you an idea of just how important enzymes are. If a 100-pound woman gets a yearning for a piece of chocolate cake, but her body does not have a very specific enzyme, she’s in big trouble. Eating the cake will cause her temperature to rise to over 120 degrees Fahrenheit and she’s a goner. Now, that’s what I call death by chocolate! Make sure you’re getting a complete protein source so you can have all of the enzymes you need when you need them. Avoid over eating, excessive alcohol and greasy foods. Drink plenty of water and, please, kick the over-the-counter antacid habit. These products only spell “relief” temporarily by addressing the symptoms, not the cause -this just makes matters worse. Remember the real way to spell relief is “Prevention”!
Go to Stage #3 - Absorption
Go back to Stage #2 Digestion – Part 1
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Note: The information contained on this website is not intended to be prescriptive. Any attempt to diagnose or treat an illness should come under the direction of a physician who is familiar with nutritional therapy.
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