Symptoms Of Poor Digestion:
- Gas
- Bloating
- Diarrhea or constipation
- Nasal congestion or recurrent sinus infections
- Indigestion – food repeats on you after you eat
- Excessive burping or belching
- Sensation that food sits in the stomach for a long time
- Bad breath or bad taste in the mouth
- Stomach pain, burning or aching
- Lower abdominal discomfort
- Stool odor is embarrassing
- Migraines
- Acne
- Fatigue
- Hormonal imbalance
Many people suffer with digestive disturbances such as bloating, gas and diarrhea or constipation. Furthermore, conditions such as fatigue, acne and migraines are frequently a result of poor digestion.
The foundation of good health lies in a healthy digestive tract. All other health factors can be undermined if you do not digest and absorb nutrients well, or if you are producing toxins in the bowels.
DIGESTION
Sufficient digestive enzymes and stomach acid is needed to break down the foods you eat so that they can be absorbed into the body. Low digestive enzymes and stomach acid are common due to our poor diets and high stress levels. Any foods that are not completely digested because of insufficient enzymes ferment and become toxic to your body.
All raw foods contain enzymes. These enzymes are very sensitive to heat and are destroyed during cooking. When you eat cooked foods you rely on your own digestive enzymes, and these can become depleted if you eat too many cooked or processed foods. Health sustaining enzymes are abundant in raw fruits and vegetables and these should compose a large part of your daily diet.
If you have already depleted your enzyme reserves through poor eating habits you can supplement with digestive enzymes can help you digest your food and rebuild your enzyme reserves.
FOOD ALLERGIES
Food sensitivities are a common cause of inflammation of the digestive tract. It may surprise you to learn that you are allergic to a food that you eat every day. In fact, we often crave the foods to which we are most allergic.
The most common allergens are wheat, dairy, soy and eggs. If you are allergic to any of these foods you should avoid them for a minimum of two months. The great news is that once you interrupt the cycle of allergic reaction, you will stop suffering. Later, it is often possible to reintroduce the food.
Foods to which we are allergic inflame the digestive tract. This means that if we are suffering from food allergies we cannot properly absorb the nutrients in our food and supplements, and this can lead to severe nutritional deficiencies. Food allergies also compromise the immune system and our ability to fight infections. Only by eliminating the offending foods can this vicious cycle be broken. After that your diet and supplement program will kick in and accelerate your healing.
The body has an amazing coping mechanism. This coping mechanism reduces the symptoms of discomfort you would otherwise experience if you ate a food you were allergic to, but it does not reverse the damage caused by the offending food.
Food allergies can be identified using specialized tests. These immune specific tests look for antibody reactions triggered by the offending foods. In contrast to “skin tests” performed by allergists, these tests are more sensitive, and are able to identify foods that cause delayed reactions as well as immediate reactions.
DYSBIOSIS and PARASITES
Lets move down to the colon and discuss its role in digestion. The colon is involved in the elimination of toxins. The colon is the home of billions of friendly bacteria that live in balance with us. They protect the colon wall and produce vitamins that our body needs.
Unfortunately, these bacteria are killed by conditions common in our modern lifestyle. Antibiotic use, stress, constipation and diarrhea change the environment in the colon, causing the good bacteria to die. Bad bacteria replace them, resulting in a condition known as dysbiosis.
Dysbiosis can have a serious, negative impact on our health. The bad bacteria produce toxins that cause damage to the colon. Also, the toxins can enter the blood stream and from here they can circulate throughout the body causing migraines, acne, hormonal imbalances and liver damage. Additionally, changes in the environment of the colon can make it more hospitable to infection from parasites and yeasts such as candida.
Special testing is available to identify dysbiosis, parasitic infections or candida. Taking supplements containing friendly bacteria such as Acidophilus is not enough to correct parasitic and yeast infections. It is important to establish the cause of the imbalance or infection, otherwise the benefits of a digestive health program will be short lived. You must ensure that your digestive tract is not going to continue to produce new toxins, otherwise even the best detoxification or cleansing program will be ineffective