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Looking Back
Health Jewels |
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Digest your way to better health
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February 7, 2013 |
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By Julie
Smith |
Are you suffering from ailments such as feeling
nauseous, obesity, underweight, allergies,
anxiety, chest pains, heartburn, constipation,
diarrhea, parasites, frequent stomach discomfort
after eating, acne, passing gas, colitis,
Crohn’s, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Duodenal
ulcers, menstrual cramps, arthritis or a myriad
of other ailments?
If so, you may want to consider focusing on your
digestion. Improve it and see what happens!
Your digestive system is approximately 25 to 31
feet long and consists of your mouth, esophagus,
stomach, small intestine, large intestine,
liver, gall bladder, bile duct, pancreas, and
rectum. By looking at our bodies it doesn’t seem
possible that this area covers approximately 25
feet!
Amazing, but true! Since your digestive system
is so large, you shouldn’t discount its
importance in many health issues.
Without getting too scientific on you, I will
briefly explain part of the digestive process to
help you get an understanding of the role it
plays in your body and your overall health.
Digestion starts in our mouths when we chew our
food (so, when your mom told you to quit taking
such large bites of food and to slow down while
eating, she knew what she was talking about!).
Saliva contains enzymes which help break down
the food you eat. Your food then goes to the
stomach where it meets with hydrochloric acid
and begins to be broken down further. From the
stomach it goes to the duodenum (the first ten
inches of the small intestine) where bile that
is stored in the gall bladder drops onto the
acid. The combination of the hydrochloric acid
and bile are intended to create a “sizzle”
effect much like when you pour vinegar on baking
soda.
This “sizzle” breaks down your food further so
that the nutrients from the food can be utilized
by the body. If your digestion isn’t functioning
properly your body can’t use the nutrients from
your food.
If you don’t get the “sizzle” from the
hydrochloric acid and the bile, your cells
aren’t able to utilize the nutrients. This
“sizzle” exchange takes place in your duodenum.
This is the same site where many nutrients from
your food are absorbed by the body.
Are you starting to get the big picture?
The duodenum is where the “sizzle” is supposed
to happen so that nutrients from your food get
absorbed by the body. Without the “sizzle” your
cells don’t get needed nutrition.
If there isn’t enough stomach acid you won’t get
the “sizzle” and, on the other hand, if there
isn’t enough bile from the gall bladder you
won’t get the “sizzle” either.
If you are missing your gall bladder, your bile
doesn’t flow properly and the “sizzle” doesn’t
happen. If you were told your gall bladder
really isn’t necessary for a normal functioning
body you might want to rethink what you were
told.
There is a quiz on my website at
www.entirely-natural.com (click on Services
on the Home Page) from a book written by TC Hale
called Kick Your Fat in the Nuts that you can
take to score your digestive process. Please
take the time to answer the questions…it’s an
easy quiz and will give you some insight on your
digestion.
If you know your digestive function is not where
it should be schedule an appointment with me or
read the above mentioned book. It is available
on Amazon as a Kindle download or paperback
version. I have copies of the book in my office
as well.
So, to get back to basics, it all starts with
digestion.
Improving your digestion is a step in improving
your health. Nearly all health problems result
from improper digestion because the cells can’t
uptake the nutrients in your food.
To learn more about your health stay tuned for
the next Health Jewels as we discuss more about
digestion!
References:
Hale, T. (2012). Kick Your Fat in the Nuts.
Words to Spare, LLC.
Sareen S. Gropper. (2009). Advanced Nutrition
and Human Metabolism. Belmont: Wadsworth. |
© 2013 - Julie Smith |
Questions or comments?
Click here to e-mail! |
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