A “Happy Burp”

People in the modern society have a high standard of living. Living life in the fast lane takes an expensive toll on our health. Stress comes along with modern and fast lifestyle, and it plays a large role in digestive problems, skin conditions and autoimmune problems. Almost all health problems are due to stress: physical, emotional and environmental. However, many physicians believe that a major cause of digestive illnesses is a combination of poor nutrition and exposure to toxic substances such as side-stream smoke, chlorine and fluoride from water, air pollution, cosmetics, toiletries, household cleaning supplies, medications, and workplace toxins.

Feeling of being bloated, lack of comfort after meals, a burning sensation in esophagus, and many other symptoms can be associated with digestive problems. Due to the fact that your digestion system may not be operating properly, you may not be getting the nutrients your body needs. The body needs amino acids, minerals and vitamins to support chemical reactions required for your health. Unfinished or defective digestion can cause acidic conditions which can cause many health ailments. Arthritis, diabetes, allergies, fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue and cancer can be a result of this digestive dysfunction. Many health problems can be cleared up with correction of digestion imbalances.

In Dr. Mercola’s article Healthy Fermented Foods vs. Commercially Processed Foods he said that a long time ago, food preservation was accomplished through lacto-fermentation - a process that adds a host of beneficial micro-organisms to food, making them easier to digest and increasing the healthy flora in our intestinal tracts. Fermentation is an inconsistent process and thus commercial food processors developed techniques like pasteurization - a method that literally destroys dozens of precious enzymes - to help standardize more consistent yields.

Our Recommendation

If you have digestive problems I would suggest the “Cleansing Diet”, which is in general terms the purging of toxins and residues that have accumulated by using too many building foods rich in animal fats and proteins. Excess of these building foods in a diet creates too much acidity in the body, which could proliferate diseases and infections, especially in the digestive tract.

In order to neutralize acidity effects on the digestion system, we have to add more alkaline-forming foods such as vegetables (especially dark-green leafy), fruits, sprouts, cereal grasses, sea vegetables, foods rich in live enzymes (miso, tempeh, yogurt, sauerkraut) and herbs. Foods to be avoided are processed and refined foods, saturated fats, sugar, alcohol, tobacco, coffee, drugs (NSAIDs- Tylenol, Motrin, Advil) and dozens other that are irritating to the intestinal lining such as antibiotics (they kill not only disease-causing bacteria, but friendly ones as well, allowing pathogenic microbes, viruses and fungi to take hold).