The objective in this series is to highlight certain current information on gut health, to provide an easy-to-glance reference. For those who want more in depth information, the referenced information is provided as a link.
Until recently the positive effects of the gut microbiome on our digestive system and health has been severely under rated. Wisdom of Chinese doctors from centuries ago, who somehow knew that the intestines were not merely a digestive organ, but the centre of health and well being. Hippocrates was recoded as saying that all illness begins in the gut. Throughout history from the Egyptians till around 80 years ago medicine and the bowels were frequently mentioned in the same sentence.
We now know that the gut is the cornerstone of health and inflammation in the body. This is a paragraph with a See drdingle.com for additional hisotry.
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Gut health plays a huge role in
- how we respond to foods and the environment
- how we absorb nutrients
- hormone health
- our energy and mood
- systemic inflammation
- and much more
Dr. Mercola interviewed Dr. Ahvie Herskowitz, former clinical professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco, and founder of Anatara Medicine, a multidisciplinary integrative center in San Francisco:
Herskowitz explains, “I think that everyone that’s doing poorly and failing to thrive has a biome issue and a leaky gut issue, almost 100% … And in the standard allopathic intensive care units, it’s not considered a foundational issue.” When Herskowitz treats cancer patients, he says, they’re often in a state of failure to thrive.
“They’ve gotten so burdened by so many different layers of toxicity, that their system cannot keep up anymore enough,” he says. “And … that’s eventually due to mitochondrial failure throughout the body.”
Chronic diseases often result due to a buildup of toxicities and a lack nutrition and healing in the body to compensate for them. “All these toxicities affect every cell of the body simultaneously,” Herskowitz says.
He goes on to note that it is due to ultraprocessed foods and other toxicities.
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Good news for guts that need help: the lining of the gut is replaced every three days and your gut microbiome can change within a single day based on what you eat.
Detail about the importance of and improving metabolic rate and energy production for gut health can be found in this post on on Mercola.com.
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Per Georgi Dinkov, the high prevalence of of antibiotics in our food supply has a detrimental effect on the microbiome by killing off both good and bad bacteria. Pathogenic bacteria tend to rebound faster, resulting in a predominance of endotoxin-producing bacteria that destroy the intestinal barrier. Read more here.
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Blood pressure: this post notes that the biggest culprit in high blood pressure isn’t eating too much salt and that one solution resides with healthy gut bacteria.
Dr. Bruce Rutkin, a cardiologist at North Shore University Hospital in Manhasset, New York, contends that after establishing a steady diet of probiotics your blood pressure levels may improve. One of probiotics most important mechanisms towards improvement is their ability to reduce insulin resistance, which is well-established as a key factor in diabetes.
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In another Mercola.com post with Georgi Dinkov we learn various additional insights. These include that:
- Starch is likely a superior source of carbohydrates versus fruit, provided you have a healthy gut microbiome.
- Collagen supports skin health, joint strength, and gut health due to its amino acid profile. The post suggests that collagen should ideally comprise about 5% of calorie intake and that above 10% can be problematic.
- Beneficial bacteria cannot survive in the presence of oxygen and are essential for health. Proper gut function requires energy to maintain an oxygen-free environment in the large intestine.
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Cheers to gut knowledge. These clips are all from Mercola.com posts. Just a start. Part 2 is in the works and will include what we can do to nuture the gut.
NOTE: As always consult with your Licensed Health Care Professionals. Our content is meant to inform or is the view of others. Research wisely and choose your highest and best.