Your Illness is Not in Your Head, It’s in Your Gut

The American dream seems to have evolved into eating whatever you want, whenever you want, at whatever quantity you want. Unfortunately, many Americans remain unaware of the fact that the most common and readily available foods are placing their health in jeopardy. In fact, many chronic conditions are now believed to originate in the gut. Maintaining a healthy gastrointestinal system is crucial for achieving optimal health.

Bacteria: The Good and the Bad

Three-quarters of your immune system resides in your GI tract. This is where good intestinal bacteria, often called probiotics, are present. A healthy person has trillions of probiotics in their large intestines, primarily in the form of acidophilus and bifidobacterium. Probiotics help the organs carry out immune function, such as influencing the thymus to produce T-cells. Without these probiotics, your body becomes vulnerable to food borne illness, deficiency in vitamins and nutrients may occur, and your immune system becomes weakened.

Many people are deficient in probiotics due to stress, diets high in sugar and processed foods, environmental toxins, alcohol consumption, and frequent use of antibiotics. When we deplete our beneficial bacteria, the unhealthy bacteria takes over.

When the bad bacteria takes over the gut, a condition called “Candida” develops. Candida is a yeast infection in your gut. The immune system attacks the yeast, and the toxins within the yeast are released. This can lead to extreme fatigue, Irritable Bowel Syndrome and other autoimmune conditions.

But Candida is only one problem that can occur in the gut.

When the Lining of the Gut Becomes Weakened

The majority of the body’s lymph and immune system cells reside within the mucous lining of the intestines. Inflammation affects this mucous lining, leading to poor nutrient and mineral absorption, and disruption of pH balance. A weakened intestinal wall can disrupt the normal transportation of foods from the gut into the body and can trigger autoimmune reactions. This condition is often referred to as Leaky Gut Syndrome. It means that the intestinal wall has become permeable and this is thought to be the cause of many acute and chronic diseases.

How does this happen? One of the ways this happens is through the depletion of probiotics in our bodies and the development of Candida. Other sources of intestinal permeability include intestinal parasites, food allergies, prescription drugs, alcohol abuse, stress, inadequate pancreatic enzymes, lactose intolerance, gluten intolerance, chemical exposure, heavy metal exposure, and chemotherapy.

Most people who have GI problems know that something isn’t right with their health. However, they may be unaware that the problem actually originates in the gut. The following is a list of conditions that can result from poor gut health: irritable bowel syndrome, allergic rhinitis, chronic infections, hypothyroidism, hormonal imbalance, heart disease, high or low blood pressure, fibromyalgia, lupus, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, depression and autism, and much more. If you have a chronic health condition, you may have a digestion problem.

Emotional Health and the Gut

Another interesting fact about the gut is that this is also where your body manufactures brain chemicals, called neurotransmitters. These include Noradrenaline, Serotonin, Acetyl-Choline, Dopamine and Gaba. These regulate sleep, and influence how we think and feel. Serotonin regulates mood, and 90-95% of it lies in the gut. Lack of Serotonin can increase anxiety, depression, and alter sleep patterns.

Over the next few weeks, I will be talking specifically about what you can do to improve your gut health, which in turn will improve your overall health. While you need to be prepared to make some sacrifices, you may find some of the suggestions pleasantly surprising. In the meantime, I have included some helpful links for further reading.

http://www.naturalnews.com/033066_Candida_diagnosis.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/leo-galland-md/do-you-have-leaky-gut-syn_b_688951.html

http://gapsdiet.com/INTRODUCTION_DIET.html

Juice Your Way to Health

In my previous post, I briefly mentioned juicing as a healthy way to get vitamin C. Today, I want to talk more about the benefits of juicing. Juicing is a healthy choice for everyone, but especially for those who have chronic fatigue and other health conditions.

What Exactly is Juicing and What are the Benefits?

Juicing is not to be confused with blending. Blending is what happens when you toss fruit or vegetable pieces into a blender and then process the fiber and the juice together. This is what happens when you make a smoothie. Juicing involves placing the entire fruit or vegetable into a juicer. The fiber is removed from the juice and the end result is liquid.

Although we need fiber in our diets, juicing is by far superior to blending. There are several reasons for this:

1. Many people have impaired digestive systems due to food allergies, stress, decline in digestive enzymes, or an imbalance in intestinal flora. In fact, many people are unaware that their impaired digestive systems are keeping them from absorbing significant amounts of nutrients from their food. This is where juicing is a great benefit. When your food is turned into a liquid form, there is nothing to inhibit digestion. Your body is thus able to absorb all of the nutrients that are in the juice.
2. When you drink your vegetables, your digestive system does not have to produce digestive enzymes to break down the food because they are present in the juice. This is helpful for those who are lacking the necessary digestive enzymes.
3. Juicing releases antioxidant benefits and detoxifies your body. Toxins, preservatives, and chemicals are flushed out.
4. There are vital nutrients locked inside the indigestible fiber of vegetables. Juicing unlocks those nutrients, providing a concentrated form of nutrition.
5. Most of us are not getting the 6-8 recommended servings of vegetables each day. However, juicing allows you to consume several servings of vegetables in one glass of juice.
6. Cooking destroys many of the nutrients available in vegetables, so it is best to consume them raw. Juicing is one way to consume raw vegetables.

Impaired digestion can cause irritable bowel syndrome, chronic fatigue syndrome and other health conditions. Those with poor health should seriously consider juicing.

How to Begin

You will need a juicer, not a blender. Beginners are encouraged to purchase a medium priced juicer before they decide if this is a habit they are going to keep up.

Please keep in mind that juicing is not a meal replacement. Juice does not offer proteins or fats that are needed by the body. However, regular glasses of juice throughout the day will make you feel more satisfied and less inclined to eat because your body is getting the nutrients it needs.

Juicing should involve mainly vegetables, not fruit. Most fruits are high in fructose, and high amounts of fructose can lead to hormonal imbalance and fatigue. The exceptions are lemons and limes, which have low amounts of fructose.

When you juice, you don’t want to drink pesticides. It is best to buy organic produce. However, not everyone can afford organic produce. The following is a list of vegetables that are the worst offenders in terms of pesticides, with the worst offenders listed first. Make sure you buy these organic. Other vegetables can be non-organic if cost is an issue.

1. Celery
2. Spinach
3. Kale
4. Collard Greens
5. Lettuce
6. Carrots
7. Cucumber (unless you peel the skin)

Juice needs to be consumed within 15-20 minutes of juicing since it is sensitive to oxidation. You can store it if you are careful. Here is a helpful link that will teach you how to store your juice (hint, a pitcher won’t work!): http://girlonraw.com/2011/05/how-to-save-your-juice-juicing-and-storing-fresh-made-juice/

It is also important to know that when you juice, your body may go through a period of detoxification. Symptoms of detox include fatigue, muscle pain, joint pain, and headaches. This can last from a few days to a few weeks. This is common so don’t give up as it will pass once your body finishes detoxifying itself. You may want to limit your physical activity and rest often during this time.  If the detox symptoms are too strong, cut back on your juice until your body tolerates it better.

Tips

Some of the healthiest vegetables are bitter, such as kale. A great way of removing the bitter taste is to use lemons and limes. They sweeten up the juice but have low fructose. You can also use an apple, but lemons and limes have the lowest amount of fructose.

The best way to drink your fresh juice is on an empty stomach, about 30 minutes prior to eating.

Clean your juicer right after use to prevent mold growth. A good juicer should take 5 minutes to clean. If it takes longer, it will probably take the joy out of juicing for you.

Remember that juice doesn’t have fiber. You still need to eat raw vegetables in order to get fiber.

Time to Adjust

For those who are used to a diet rich in sugar and processed food, the idea of drinking vegetables may not sound too appealing. However, once you make healthy changes to your diet, your cravings will change as well. I used to eat Peanut Butter Cups for lunch, and now they taste like chemicals to me! I love my juice and I don’t need to sweeten it with anything but lemon. So give yourself time, and think of all the great nutrients you are finally giving your body!