Gluten is the protein found in wheat, rye, spelt, kamut and barley.
If you have any of the following symptoms, it could be a sign that you have gluten intolerance.
1. Digestive issues such as gas, bloating, diarrhoea, and constipation.
2. Keratosis Pilaris, ( also known as “chicken skin on the back of your arms.”
3. Fatigue, brain fog or feeling tired after eating a meal that contains gluten.
4. Diagnosis of an autoimmune disease such as Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, Rheumatoid arthritis, Ulcerative colitis, Lupus, Psoriasis, Scleroderma and Multiple Sclerosis.
5. Neurologic symptoms such as dizziness or feeling of being off balance.
6. Hormone imbalances such as PMS, PCOS or unexplained infertility.
7. Migraine headaches.
8. Diagnosis of chronic fatigue or fibromyalgia.
9. Inflammation, swelling or pain in your joints, such as fingers, knees, or hips.
10. Mood issues such as anxiety, depression, mood swings and ADD.
How to test for gluten intolerance?
The single best way to determine if you have an issue with gluten is to do an elimination diet for at least 2-3 weeks and then reintroduce it. Please note that gluten is a very large protein and it can take months and even years to clear from your system so the longer you can eliminate it from your diet before reintroducing it, the better.
In order to get accurate results from this testing method, you must eliminate 100% of the gluten from your diet. Even trace amount of gluten from cross contamination or medications or supplements can be enough to cause an immune reaction in your body.
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Do you feel bloated today…. just like you did yesterday?
The most common symptoms of clients who have visited us regarding digestive problems are a bloated tummy, feeling full, and distended. Do you wonder why?
Bloating is a health issue, adding centimetres to your body, especially around the waist and can be caused by many things. So let’s take a deeper look at common causes.
1. Irritable Bowel Syndrome
Irritable Bowel Syndrome is the most common digestive disorder, and twice as many women suffer from the condition as men. In IBS, the normal rhythmic muscular contraction of the digestive track become irregular and uncoordinated. This interferes with the normal movement of food and waste material and leads to the accumulation of mucus and toxins in the intestine. This accumulated material causes obstruction of the digestive track, trapping gas and stool, which in turn causes bloating, distension and constipation. Medical science has not yet identified the specific cause of IBS. Some theories suggest that people may be overly sensitive to certain things. Lifestyle factors such as stress, diet and accumulation of toxins, and the constant bombardment, in the colon, are probably common causes.
2. Indigestion
If your body is not producing sufficient amount of hydrochloric acid (HCl) and enzymes (the levels decrease as we age) then the food is not digested properly, it ferments in the stomach and upper intestines, producing gas. Keep in mind that the HCl triggers the release of pancreatic enzymes secreted in the stomach. Overeating, swallowing air by chewing with your mouth open, gulping down food, and drinking liquids with meals contribute to indigestion. Certain foods and beverages like grains and legumes, caffeine, greasy, spicy, refined foods, or vinegar can also cause indigestion. Other factors that can cause or contribute to indigestion include intestinal obstruction, lack of friendly bacteria, malabsorption, and food allergies.
3. Hormones
If you get bloating in the led-up to your period, it is usually caused by hormones and water retention. Excessive levels of oestrogen and inadequate levels of progesterone, as well as sensitivity to fluctuating hormones, can cause some digestive issues including excess gas or constipation. The liver may not be able to process the hormone as quickly or efficiently, and the liver’s capacity to cleanse the blood of oestrogen is compromised.
You can help your “bloated belly” by acting on these main factors: chewing, digestion and evacuation.
Tips to reduce bloating
1. Chewing
Proper chewing is the first step to helping reduce bloating. 20-30 times per mouthful until liquefied or lost all of its texture. Your body needs to liquefy the food for your intestines to absorb nutrients from the food particles as they pass through. Chewing properly allows your stomach to work more efficiently and break down your food faster, so you don’t end up with undigested foods in your colon. If undigested foods arrive, fermentative and, putrefactive bacteria become particularly active, and absorption of nutrients is reduced.
2. Digestion
Drinking water with apple cider vinegar and cayenne pepper before meals can help to increase stomach acid production, which further helps with proper digestion of food. To avoid diluting digestive enzymes and maximise the action of stomach acid drink water separately from eating.
By following the principles of proper food combining, you prevent fermentation in the digestive system and be less bloated. The first rule is to eat fruit on an empty stomach. Fruits pass through the digestive system very quickly. They usually leave the stomach within 30 min, but not if you eat them with other foods that take three to five hours to digest.
Always eat protein with non-starchy vegetables and do not mix with carbohydrates. When you eat animal protein and carbohydrates together, the acidic and alkaline conditions neutralise each other stopping digestion. Digestive enzymes can’t do their job, resulting in incomplete digestion and fermentation.
Supplementing with digestive enzymes has been shown to produce a multitude of benefits.
A healthy liver is critical for hormonal balance. When the liver has to work hard to eliminate toxins such as alcohol, drugs, or caffeine, the liver’s capacity to cleanse the blood of hormones is compromised. Eating lots of cruciferous vegetables such as cauliflower, cabbage, garden cress, bok choy, broccoli, brussels sprouts and eliminating caffeine and alcohol helps to remove excess hormones from your liver.
3. Evacuation
Your colon gets all the leftovers from your small intestine and when not all gets processed we fill bloated. For some people, the transit time (how long it takes for food to travel through the digestive tract) can be anything from days to weeks. The ideal bowel transit time is anywhere from 12 to 24 hours.
To measure your transit time: Eat a generous serving of beets or corn, wait to see how many days it takes for you to see the colour of the red beets or corn in your stool.
When waste cannot be properly eliminated, it accumulates in the colon and then backs up into the rest of the digestive track. The toxin from the colon is carried into the bloodstream and absorbed into the cells of your body. Cleansing the colon reduces digestive discomfort by flushing out waste material that your body is not removing efficiently.
The above are just some of the common reasons.
I hope the suggestions and tips I have mentioned will help you keep your digestion functioning optimally with minimum bloating and leave you feeling healthy!
To your health and vitality,
Inka Krupa, CCT
Constipation is clogging up of the large intestine and packed accumulated waste in the bowel makes evacuation difficult or infrequent. State of constipation can also exist regardless of daily movements when only part of the bowel contents is being emptied. One autopsy revealed a colon to be 9 inches in diameter with a passage through it no larger than a pencil!
Accumulated waste matter can stretch the bowel wall into enormous proportions called ballooned colon.
Intestinal constipation causes cellular constipation. The cellular metabolism becomes sluggish, repair and growth are delayed. It also increases the workload of the other excretory organs; kidney, skin, liver, and lymph. Constipation is a very common health issue where you may look to Colon Hydrotherapy for immediate relief. Because constipation involves the unnecessary retention of waste matter in the rectum and throughout the first half of the colon series of colonics is required.
Typical treatment of constipation is a use of Laxatives, which act as colon irritant to promote bowel movement. Laxatives contribute nothing to a restoration of the normal or natural process of defecation. Overuse of laxatives destroys the normal ability of the Bowel to eliminate on its own.
Diarrhea
Diarrhea is the opposite of constipation. If the colon is damaged, inflamed or impacted, absorption of water is inhibited and watery stool results. Chronic diarrhea is most often due to the presence of irritation in the colon. Harmful bacteria, parasites, and the accumulation of stagnant mucous are generally high and they irritate the bowel. Chronic diarrhea will often respond remarkably to the colon-cleansing program.
Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)
IBS it is also known as mucous colitis, spastic colon, and spastic constipation. IBS is commonly characterized by abdominal pain and altered constipation or/and diarrhea. Colon hydrotherapy combined with good nutrition and exercising can help to relieve these symptoms.
Bloating/Excessive gas
Bloating occurs, when pathogenic bacteria and yeast overgrowth, because of faecal compaction. Digestion always results in a certain amount of fermentation. The quality, quantity and combination of food determine the amount of gas released into the body. The cells absorb released gas and must enlarge to accommodate excessive gas pressure. This fermentative gas can damage cells. Colon Hydrotherapy helps to remove the compaction and gas.
Diverticulosis
Diverticulosis is the presence of multiple balloon-like sacs (diverticula) typically forms in individuals suffering from constipation and excessive gas. These little diverticula usually form in the weakest area of the bowel and become a source of powerful toxins. When an infection develops condition is know as diverticulitis and can be dangerous. For those who wish to eliminate diverticula, series of colonic treatments should be taken combined with dietary changes.
Parasites
Parasites are organisms that live inside us so that we become their hosts. Since these parasites are unable to produce food for themselves, they depend on us for their survival. Unfortunately, parasites harm human beings because they consume our food and nutrients, they can destroy our tissues and cells, and they produce toxic waste products that can make people very ill. Parasitic infections can cause digestive disorders (bloating, constipation, diarrhea, gas, and irritable bowel and can also lead to allergies, anemia, chronic fatigue syndrome, immune dysfunction, joint and muscle pain, organ damage, skin problems, sleep disturbances, and teeth grinding. Colon hydrotherapy and Triplex herbal parasite cleanse are very effective way to get rid of parasites.
Candida
Candida develops over time as a side effect from taking antibiotics and indulging on cooked starches and refined sugars. It is a type of fungus that begins in the colon. When levels of good intestinal bacteria (probiotics) are low candida proliferates and extracts toxic waste that can get into the bloodstream and cause symptoms of bloating, diarrhea, headaches, depression, thrush, fungal nail condition.
The colon cleanse, probiotics supplementation and dietary changes will help remove the overgrowth of yeast, the toxic waste that it produces, as well as keep your system running normally again.
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