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Physical health begins in the GUT - Part 2 |
Part 2: What causes digestive disorders and what steps are needed to restore gut function for sustainable health?
Poor or dysfunctional digestion is rarely caused by a single isolated source. The most common of causes are an accumulation of one or more of the following:
- Processed foods and soft drinks consumed over prolonged periods.
- Medical drugs and antibiotics.
- Excessive alcohol and / or recreational drug use.
- Physical, mental and emotional stress.
The body is a complex system of systems that rely on the optimal functioning of each of its systems for balance and harmony to be maintained through out the body.
It only takes one system to become out of balance for a prolonged period of time and all other systems will be affected.
An example of this is a dysfunctional thyroid, if left unaddressed will start to compromise the immune system which in turn will compromise the function of the digestive system and the regulation of the adrenals.
Restoring digestive health requires us to assess the health and function of the individual organs associated with digestion, namely the liver, gall bladder, kidneys, pancreas, stomach, small intestines and the colon (large intestines) They all have their individual jobs to perform but rely on each other equally for the digestive system to work as a whole.
I highly recommend that if you are someone who suffers from any of the symptoms mentioned in part one (link) that you source a good naturopath or immunologist to work with you.
In my experience the approach to restoring gut health is individual and taking a generic approach such as doing a liver detox or a fungal cleanse or simply taking a probiotic will rarely give you sustained results. It may relieve your symptoms for a short period of time whilst on the cleanse and for a period of time after but from personal experience it’s not long before all symptoms creep back. This is because particular organs require specific assistance to regenerate and rebuild a healthy constitution again so that they can do their individual job. It’s generally through the use of specific supplements often with varying dosages taken over a period of time until optimal function of that organ/s has been restored.
The organs that need addressing and the appropriate supplements will change according to the individual as will the approach as to which order the organs need to be worked with for optimal results.
The process may sound complicated but when you are working with somebody who knows how to work with the chemistry of the body then the approach is straight forward but very tailored to the individual.
I’ve learnt the hard way, only to find that the numerous detoxes and cleanses out there more often than not put the physical, mental and emotional body under more stress. Working to balance the chemistry within the body has proven a far more effective and less stress full way to restore Gut function to “normal” (always relative to an individuals etiology)
This is of course not to say that you can’t improve or restore gut function back to “normal” by addressing your food choices and the self mastery of the 6 wisdoms but depending on how long you have suffered from digestive disorders its most common to need the intervention of a good naturopath or immunologist to work with you to restore your body’s chemistry with the appropriate supplements.
In more extreme cases it’s not unusual for individuals to need the assistants of a course of colonics built into the healing approach but this is to be assessed case by case, as this too is an added stress to the body.
Once optimal health within the gut has been restored then the following guidelines are recommended for sustainable gut and digestive health:
- Eat right for your metabolic type www.healthexcell.com
- Avoid white flour, white sugar and milk processed by pasteurization and homogenization. If you must use a diary product and you can’t acquire raw then choose certified organic as your first choice. If you are lactose sensitive use full fat organic cream as it is low in lactose or alternatively raw goats or sheep’s milk.
- Avoid all soft drinks including sports drinks – they are nothing but water and sugar.
- Avoid packaged, processed foods, convenience and fast foods!
- Choose produce and meats in this order:
Certified organic
Organic
Free range
Locally farmed
Commercial - Eat in a relaxed environment away (avoid the TV and eating on the run)
- Chew, chew, chew your food, you know what indigested food particles can do!
- If you can’t pronounce a word on a label, don’t eat it, your liver wont like it!
- The longer the shelf life of a product the more likely it is to be harmful to the body!
- If irradiated don’t eat it!
- If its pasteurized it’s not good for you!
- Drink enough water .033 x your body weight in kg = litre per day before any stimulants such as coffee, alcohol, exercise etc
- Drink clean water preferably out of glass bottles and choose a brand that has a good amount of dissolved minerals in it e.g. Evian, Fijian, Volvic.
- Use only quality salt to season your food and water. Celtic sea salt or Himalayan sea salt is the best. Adding quality sea salt to your filtered water will replace essential electrolytes.
- If you require a digestive aid, take it after your meal so’s not to suppress the body’s efforts to produce its own, it should a supplement not a replacement.
- Continue to support the gut with a good probiotic if needed.
- Lastly give thanks for all you have in life….acknowledging you are life its self!
Please feel free to drop me an email if you would like to be put in touch with a recommended practitioner for further assistance.
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