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A healthy digestive system is crucial to your overall health. Today more and more people have reported having problems like indigestion, acidity and poor waste elimination. The reason is the fast paced life style, and lack of adequate sleep or lack of nourishing diet. Our fast food diets contain refined sugar, preservatives, antibiotic, and hormones that interfere with digestion and health in general. So called “junk food” is contributing to a vast variety of ailments and obesity.

Natural digestive supplements, vitamins, herbs and probiotics are well known to provide people with fast relief from problems like indigestion, acidity and poor waste elimination. Since conventional synthetic drugs are often very difficult for the body to absorb and carry undesirable side effects, an effective alternative is the use of all natural enzymes, fiber, vitamins, supplements, herbs, and probiotics that are derived from natural sources. All natural digestive aids are fast acting and easily absorbed by the human body. Natural digestion chewable wafers or liquids help your body to better absorb food nutrients from the foods you eat and the supplements you take – plus you’re able to break down dairy products and other hard-to-digest foods. Natural digestion enzymes, fiber, supplements, vitamins, herbs, and probiotics help balance and ease digestive discomfort.

Enzymes are proteins that are a vital energy factor needed for every digestive action and reaction that our body needs for proper health. Enzymes combine with coenzymes forming almost 100,000 different substances in the body that make it possible to see, hear, feel, move, digest food and allow the brain to function efficiently. All organs, tissues and all the 100 trillion cells in our bodies depend on the interaction of metabolic enzymes and the energy they help produce. Enzymes break down food particles that are too large or have begun to putrefy. When food particles are too large or have begun to putrefy, our bodies are unable to absorb them and they become like invaders to our blood stream, cells and intestines. Then our immune system begins to attack them in order to protect us. The results may take the forms of nausea, runny eyes, headaches, acid reflux, heart burn, fatigue, allergies or respiratory difficulty, leaky gut, weight gain, candida, or constipation.

Conventional cooking, cooking with a microwave, processed foods and some freezing destroy the enzymes naturally contained in food. At times our own body’s enzyme producing capacity gets overwhelmed and our metabolic digestive ability is compromised. The use of antibotics also destroys beneficial micoflora in our intestines. Research indicates that as we age, the cells in our pancreas becomes less efficient causing an enzyme deficiency that weakens the trillions of cells in our bodies. This enzyme deficiency then, in turn, speeds the aging process creating an undesirable cycle. We can counteract the effects of food preparation, aging, and digestion overwhelm by using all natural enzyme supplements and formulas that increase the amount of enzymes in our body and create a healthy, properly functioning digestive system.

Probiotics derived from natural sources enhance the growth of beneficial microflora in our intestines. Mircoflora helps process vitamins, nutrients and enzymes that enhance digestive process. The microflora protects our bodies by removing harmful foreign materials that our bodies cannot remove and prevent harmful bacteria from growing in our intestines that causes illness. As we age, the health microflora in our intestines decreases. Our common complaint as we age, is that we cannot eat the way we used to eat or the foods we used to be able to eat. We may develop lactose intolerance, have difficulty with waste elimination, experience respiratory difficulty, acid relux,and feel less energetic or perhaps toxic. Regular replacement of beneficial microflora with the use of all natural probiotics helps us to continually breakdown dairy products or other food that are difficult to digest enabling us to avoid experiencing acid reflux, weight gain and other digestive difficulties that actually speed the aging process.

Of course, all natural fiber is extremely important for good digestion. Soluble fiber attracts water during digestion. This slows down the digestive process and allows you stomach and intestine to absorb more of the nutrition from the food you have eaten. All natural insoluble fiber allows food to move through the digestive tracts of your body and then enables waste and toxins to be eliminated through the bowel. Insoluble fiber removes any blockage in the intestines that may lead to constipation. Fiber is essential for your body to absorb vital vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients and to facilitate the removal of waste materials.

All natural enzymes, fiber, vitamin, supplements, herbs, and probotics help our body to better absorb and utilize the food we eat. They also help us experience proper waste elimination which is vital for removing toxins that could cause us harm and speed the aging process. A well functioning, healthy digestive system is vital to our well being. All natural digestive aid products are an enormous advantage over the use of conventional synthetic drugs. Together, all natural probiotics, digestive enzymes and fiber are a powerhouse for healthy digestion.

My first big Line Rider. Done for a project, this little ride was much harder to make than it seems! Song: Digestion Blues Artist: Joe Crone

Watch the Full Interview Here: www.naturalpartners.tv Dr. Carrie Daenell visits Natural Partners after her well attended presentation at the Hilton. She talks about many common digestive issues facing patients today. Contact Carrie Daenell ND www.drdaenell.com (303) 399-8050 doctorcld@aol.com

Warning – Today’s video contains explicit, but important poop talk.

Digestion is the process by which the food we eat is broken down into smaller substances that can be absorbed through our gastrointestinal tract. Proper digestion is extremely important for our health, and when digestion is impaired in any way, disease can develop.

The food we eat (besides vitamins and minerals) consists of three basic groups: carbohydrates, fats and proteins. Carbohydrates, fats and proteins need to be broken down into small enough chunks that can be absorbed by the body. Digestion is a combination of mechanical and chemical processes that allows food to be absorbed by our body.

Digestion of Carbohydrates

Human food contains only three sources of carbohydrates: sugar or sucrose, which is a disaccharide derived from cane, lactose which is a disaccharide in milk and complex carbohydrates (polysaccharides) which are found in most grains and potatoes. Cellulose is technically also a polysaccharide, but cannot be digested by the human GI tract. Digestion of carbohydrates starts in the mouth where food is mixed with saliva, which contains the enzyme alpha-amylase that breaks down carbohydrates into disaccharides such as maltose. The acid secretion of the stomach will inhibit further digestion of complex carbohydrates, so any polysaccharide that has not been digested at that time, will be digested when the pancreas secretes alpha-amylase enzyme. Maltose, lactose, sucrose and other small disaccharides are further broken down into monosaccharides by enzymes present in the intestinal lining. Monosaccharides are then quickly absorbed into the blood stream.

Digestion of fats

Fats are an important component of our diet since fats form the basis of many hormones and cell membrane building blocks. The most common fats in our diet are neutral fats (triglycerides), which are composed of glycerol linked to 3 fatty acid molecules. The amount of fat that is digested by the stomach is very low, and most of the fat is digested in the intestine. However, fat molecules form a so-called micelles (globular balls) in a water containing environment, so in order for digestive enzymes (which are water soluble) to gain access, fats need to be emulsified. Emulsification of fats occurs when the gall bladder secretes bile salts. Fats mixed with bile salts can be broken down by pancreatic lipase into fatty acids and mono-glycerides.

Digestion of proteins

Proteins in our diet are derived either from meat or vegetables. Proteins are long chains of amino acids held together by peptide bonds. Proteins are pre-digested in our stomach by gastric pepsin at a very acidic pH. When the pH is not low enough, protein digestion is impaired. The bulk of the protein digestion occurs in the small intestine, where proteolytic enzymes secreted by the pancreas further break down the proteins. The partially broken down proteins (peptones, polypeptides) are attacked by the pancreatic enzymes trypsin, chymotrypsin and carboxypolypeptidase and turned into (mostly) di-peptides. Di-peptides are turned into individual amino acids by enzymes present in the lining of the intestine. Amino acids are then absorbed into the blood.

As you can see, digestion is a complex process of many enzymatic reactions combined with the mechanics of chewing, stomach churning and movement of food particles through the intestinal tract. Many things can go wrong with digestion. Even when our food is completely digested, it still has to absorbed through the intestinal wall into the bloodstream.

Unfortunately, most people have never heard about pancreas or about pancreatic, digestive enzymes, and are unaware of their importance in digestion, and maintaining health.

Many people know about the role of the pancreas in developing diabetes, but don’t realize that the pancreas and pancreatic enzymes are very important for breaking down food into an absorbable, usable form for the body.

Without proper digestion, good health is impossible. Even the healthy organic diet will be of little value if the pancreas cannot produce the right amount of high-quality digestive enzymes. 

No matter what we eat, we consume mostly proteins, fats, and carbohydrates. Enzymes digest all of our food and break it into form of small particles to pass throughout the intestines’ wall into the blood. The consumption of vitamins and minerals also depends upon enzymes, and normal enzymes’ work often needs right amount of vitamins and minerals. Life could not exist without pancreatic enzymes, thus they are essential for life.

The digestive enzymes (such as amylase, lipase, and protease) are released from the pancreatic cells and flow into the pancreatic duct and then to the duodenum (beginning of the small intestine).

Amylase digests carbohydrates; lipase digests fats; and protease digests proteins. Pancreas secretes 1.2-1.5 liters of pancreatic juice daily with the large amounts of minerals such as sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium and bicarbonate, which protects the duodenum by neutralizing the acid that comes from the stomach.

Millions of Americans suffer from a variety of gastro-intestinal disorders including abdominal pain, stomach discomfort, cramps, gas, bloating, heartburn, cravings, malnutrition, alteration in bowel habits, foul-smelling stool, etc. Many of them have pancreatic insufficiency and don’t realize it.  Those suffering from this problem can eat a healthy diet, but the nutrients from the food will not be utilized by the body. Their organisms are literally starving. Without the proper amount of high quality digestive pancreatic enzymes people suffer from a deficiency of essential minerals, trace elements and vitamins. It is turn to serious disturbances in hormonal system too.

Millions of people are continually tired, develop chronic diseases, and age prematurely. In the worse case scenario, they develop pancreatic cancer. People suffer from a hidden pancreatic insufficiency and don’t know that a lack of the digestive enzymes can also increase inflammation, body’s pain and a lack of energy, hindering the body’s ability to heal the wounds and traumas.

The pancreas requires for its function three important things: proper regulation, normal structure and sufficient amount of building materials – nutrients.

1. The pancreas is regulated in two ways: by nervous system and digestive hormones.

Disorders of the nervous system, depression, stress and anxiety, some medications, bad diet and bad food combination,” eating on the go “and many other factors can cause spasms of the pancreatic duct, problems with manufacturing and releasing of digestive hormones (secretin and cholecystokinin).

Smoking, alcohol, drugs, Candida-yeast overgrowth and toxic, aggressive bile suppress the pancreatic cells and keep them from producing the needed amount of quality digestive enzymes.

2. The normal structure of pancreatic gland can be broken by many reasons including toxic substances, inflammation of the pancreas – pancreatitis, infection, parasites, fat deposits, trauma, surgery, cancer, etc.

Spasm or blockage of pancreatic duct by gallbladder’s stones may cause back-up of the pancreatic juices and an increase of pressure inside the pancreatic duct. Digestive enzymes trapped inside the pancreas begin to digest their own pancreatic cells causing congestion, inflammation, pain, cysts and finally the death of pancreatic tissue.

3. Sufficient amount of water, minerals, trace elements and bicarbonates has a crucial impact on quality and quantity of pancreatic digestive enzymes and alkalinity of pancreatic juice. The pancreatic enzymes work only when the pH of the duodenum is slightly on the alkaline side. The food coming from the stomach has been acidified, so the body must also provide enough alkalinity for the enzymes to work.

Many of these problems overlap with each other and can cause many things from hidden pancreatic insufficiency to a complete shut – down of the functions of this vital organ.

A lot of the books and articles about treatment of pancreatic insufficiency focus simply on taking digestive enzymes prepared from plants, funguses or animals as the nutritional supplementation.

There is, however, an additional treatment modality that promotes proper function of the peoples’ own pancreas, even in cases of severe pancreatic insufficiency.

European physicians send their patients with chronic pancreatic disorders to healing mineral spas or sanatoriums.

The most popular European mineral spa for pancreatic insufficiency is the Czech town of Karlovy Vary (Carlsbad). It has been a well-known international healing resort since the 1700s. Patients call the Karlovy Vary mineral water the “healing gift from the earth” or the “miracle mineral water.” People from all over the globe have traveled to Karlovy Vary and stay there for one to six months to drink the Karlovy Vary healing mineral water for various kinds of chronic gastro-intestinal, liver, and metabolic conditions.

From 1764 Karlovy Vary began to produce the salt from the evaporated thermal spring water which made it possible to distribute the Karlovy Vary thermal spring salt all over the world for treatment at home. Czech doctors believe that the water manufactured from the genuine Karlovy Vary thermal spring salt had the same healing actions as at the spring.

Karlovy Vary healing mineral water is the world’s best-studied remedies. Hundreds of clinical texts have been published that document the positive effects of the water on both animals and humans. Most of them were published in Czech, German, Russian, therefore they are unknown by American medical professionals and public.

Researchers have concluded that this water may reduce the symptoms of pancreatic insufficiency by improving the function of the pancreas itself.  Clinical and experimental results found that the water:

Normalizes the produce and release of digestive hormones in the duodenum and naturally regulates the digestive process in the whole gastro-intestinal tract Restores the deficiency of vital minerals and microelements such as magnesium, potassium, sodium, selenium, zinc, etc, and bicarbonates  Promotes secretion and elimination of pancreatic juices  Boosts the activity of pancreatic enzymes in the duodenum  Normalizes the body’s and the pancreas’ acid-alkaline balance for the alkalinity of pancreatic juices  Improves the digestion   Diminish inflammation and swelling of the pancreas

The mineral content of Karlovy Vary mineral water manufactured from the genuine Karlovy Vary thermal spring salt is approximately the same as the mineral content of human plasma. It’s very important that this mineral water, compared with other mineral waters, does not contain toxic heavy metals. Using Karlovy Vary mineral water for pancreatic insufficiency, one needs to follow particular instructions pertaining to temperature, amount of drinking water, frequency and time of consumption.

Despite its popularity among patients in Europe, this therapy is still mainly unknown in the United States. Healing action of Karlovy Vary mineral water manufactured from the genuine Karlovy Vary thermal spring salt makes it beneficial to many different health professionals: medical doctors, naturopathic physicians, chiropractors, acupuncturists, herbalists, nutritionists, colon hydro-therapists and millions of people with pancreatic insufficiency.

 

The information on this article is presented for educational, informational purposes only. It is not intended as a substitute for the diagnosis, treatment and advice of a qualified licensed professional.

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Most people suffer from some sort of digestive disorders during their lifetime. It might be the common and less serious digestive system disorders like constipation, diarrhea, heartburn and irritable bowel syndrome or something more serious like acid reflux (GERD), ulcerative colitis and Chron’s disease. Digestive disorders and diseases affected 60 to 70 million Americans in 1996 according to the National Center for Health Statistics. In 2002, 234,000 deaths were attributed to digestive system disorders and diseases. While more than 27,000 of these were due to liver disease or cirrhosis, there were 121 deaths that were caused by constipation, which is typically not one of the serious or life threatening digestive disorders.

Causes of the Digestive Disorders

Nutrition

Low-fiber diets and low fluid intake can lead to digestive disorders. It’s important to drink plenty of water and fluids, and to get a good amount of fiber regularly as part of your diet. Consuming a lot of dairy products can lead to future digestive disorders, as well, so cut back when you can.

Pregnancy

Simply being pregnant can lead to many very common digestive disorders, many of which thankfully end once the baby is delivered. Your doctor can help you with relief from symptoms of digestive disorders that are baby-friendly.

Exercise

Getting less exercise than your body needs can lead to digestive disorders, because foods are not being burned away and fat is not being burned off as much or as often as needed.

Stress

Too much stress can affect all your body’s systems, including your digestive tract. Many digestive disorders, such as ulcers, arise from too much stress. Practice relaxation techniques to avoid this consequence.

Ayurvedic Digestive Disorders treatments

Ayurveda believes that digestive disorders occur due to inappropriate food and lifestyle. It offers a rational and scientific approach for determining correct diet which is based upon an individual’s constitution. Vata, Pitta and Kapha ( tri-dosha – energy) This energetic constitution is the basis of determining which foods are best for maintaining physiological balance for a given individual.

Nutritional imbalances which leads to digestive disorders are :

Quantitative deficiency – under nutrition due to insufficient food, and even starvation.

Quantitative excess – excessive amounts of both health foods and even water.

Qualitative deficiency – wrong food combination which results in malnutrition, toxic condition and lack of essential nutrients.

Qualitative excess – emotional overeating of high fat foods which can result in obesity.

Ama-producing – certain food combinations lead to toxemia and to certain digestive disorders.

Prakriti – foods not appropriate for one’s constitution may reduce immunity and cause disease.

Nutritional supplementation and dietary adequacy are the key factors that are responsible in controlling the gastrointestinal or digestive health. Natural supplements provide the body with particular nutrients that the digestive system of a person is lacking and requires. In other words, they provide replenishment to the body, sometimes eliminating the symptoms.

If you shop online for natural remedies, look for products that enhance the healing process naturally, and eliminate deficiency potential. The natural drugs can (in many cases) solve all your nutritional needs. Remember: People who have any of their family members suffering from digestive disorder are more prone to suffer from the disorder themselves. For years, this was ascribed to “genetics” which is partially misleading; is the genetic deficiency making you has digestive disorders, or is the genetic deficiency interfering with your ability to absorb nutrients, thereby producing the digestive disorder?

www.iHealthTube.com Nena Dockery delves into intestinal health and how it’s not normal to have digestive issues. For more information, visit www.ihealthtube.com