Who would have predicted that in the 21st century, we, as natural beings, would have lost our natural intuition for knowing what we should eat. Who knew that we would dissect our food to such a degree that we would have a ton of pseudo-facts making claims about a variety of foods – none of which are accurate. And who knew that the main focus of the scientific community would be to discover the importance of our gastro-intestinal systems after they have already helped us screwed them up.
No one could have predicted any of this or maybe they could, if they had any respect for nature, but whatever the case, this is where we are today. We have tampered with our food and removed all kinds of nutrients. We have depleted our good bacteria levels, apparently the stars of the gastro-intestinal system, damaged our gut lining and caused numerous health issues. And instead of understanding that this is what we have done, we have self-appointed experts coming up with all kind of crazy food theories that are filling people with fear.
Today, people are eating gluten-free whether they need to or not, because a fad has deemed gluten as something bad (it’s not). Fads have done the same thing to grains, carbohydrates, dairy and fat. Now even fruits and vegetables are not safe. What will be left? Water? Oh wait, we can’t leave that alone either.
We have many individuals suffering from acid reflux, gas, bloating and other digestive problems that can all be linked to bad eating habits, stressful lifestyles and poor gut health, yet too many people start eliminating food, and good whole foods, not just junk foods.
So what is a digester to do? First we need to understand that if we have a problem digesting a particular food, that the food is the symptom, not the cause. We can remove the symptom – drugs do this on our behalf all the time – but we have not solved the problem. Second, we need to understand that lack of good bacteria is related to all issues we have with any specific food, this include allergies. When food allergies develop, the original imbalance in the body was lack of good bacteria.
Eating habits like chewing properly and eating slowly make a huge difference for solving digestive problems, especially gas, bloating and acid reflux.
And finally, the most recent research is not only focusing on the good bacteria and all their yet-to-be discovered roles in keeping us digesting well and being well, but science is learning all the roles of the neurotransmitters, found not just in our brain, but in our gastro-intestinal system as well. As a matter of fact, we have four times the number of neurotransmitters in our gut as we do in our brain and they are all being fried and damaged by the same things that fry your brains – stress, drugs, alcohol, nicotine, caffeine and lack of nutrients. This is causing all kinds of digestive problems. Put this all together and it seems pretty silly to blame a food.
Instead of focusing on fixing these issues, people are avoiding food. Is it the food, or is it the something else? – and this is the digester’s dilemma. We do not have all the answers but we certainly have the questions and the goal for all digesters is to ask them and find the answers they need. In the end it really does not matter why all people have digestive issues or what other people are eating. It only matters what works for you so you can enjoy the foods you love without fear and get the most from your food and enjoy your life. Join us in the discussion so we can solve all digesters’ dilemmas.
