Achieving Optimal Health through Efficient Digestion

Your health begins in your gut!

For your body to make energy you must first have strong digestion. "Acid indigestion is probably the most misdiagnosed and misunderstood condition in health care today. 90% or more of those diagnosed with too much stomach acid production actually produce too little. People who suffer from indigestion are usually stressed, eat in a rush, on the run or while upset. The result is depressed or weak digestion. Acid stopping medications are the #1 selling drug in the United States and are even available over the counter.

When this drug first came on the market it was strictly controlled and only permitted to be prescribed for a six week period for ulcers and acid reflux. Now they are used for months and even years at a time, and are routinely prescribed for any and all GI symptoms. I have patients coming into my office who have been taking this medication for 5+ years and are truly afraid to stop:(

We have been told that stress makes our stomach pump out too much acid, causing heartburn and ulcers. Yet any physiology textbook tells us that when the stress handling system in our body is engaged, digestion is suppressed. When dealing with stress, the body channels available energy away from regenerative functions like digestion. When we eat while in a stress handling mode, the food sits in the stomach - a nice, warm, moist environment - and begins to decay rather than digest. It is the decaying food in the stomach that produces organic acids of putrefaction and fermentation, and these are the acids of acid indigestion. Undigested, decaying food tends to come back up (acid reflux) rather than continue down the digestive tract. This is an incredibly intelligent act on our body's part, don't you think? Why would we want to keep this, now harmful, substance in our stomach? Acid stopping medications and antacids can make the resulting symptoms - heartburn and acid reflux - better, but they make the original problem worse. Over time a host of other problems follow. To name a few; malabsorption, malnutrition, toxicity, hypochlorhydria, parasite infections and ultimately degeneration of the stomach lining.

There is an easy and natural way to come off of the acid stopping medications and allow the healing of the stomach lining to begin. Using whole food and herbal supplementation, dietary and life style changes can make a world of difference to your health and ultimately your life.