Digestive Health with natural help

Fiber and Fermented Foods support Intestinal Health

The average western diet high in refined foods, sugar, and red meats has led to an increase in digestive problems, especially those to do with the lower intestinal tract - large intestine (colon) and rectum. Disease like Irritable Bowel Syndrome, colon cancer, constipation, diarrhea, flatulence and hemorrhoids are all linked to the food we eat.

Two factors greatly influence the health of the digestive tract - fibre and fermented foods.

Fibre - natures intestinal loofah

Fiber used to be considered a useless non-nutrient that should be removed from food mostly because it seemed it was not needed by the body - it isn't absorbed into the body like other food components. Fibre is frequently removed from food - either to make it taste better or to make it easier to eat - think of a fast food chain burger bun - there is negligible fibre in that form of bread. Much the same can be said for the average white bread loaf you buy in the supermarket.

Fibre is sourced exclusively from plant material - it is the skeleton of a plant - the bit that gives it structure whether it be the seeds, stems or leaves. In fruit, vegetables, seeds, grains or nuts the fibre is generally found on the outside surface of the food. Unlike other food components eg fats or protein which are absorbed in the small intestine, fibre travels through the large intestine largely unchanged providing bulk to waste matter. Fibre protects the colon wall from being harmed because it inhibits the formation of toxins and the proliferation of harmful bacteria. Nice bulky dense stools that move through quickly also decrease the chances of the colon wall getting twisted or forming pockets where waste accumulates. Fibre is a bit like a big intestinal loofah, it gently scrubs away the waste and keeps the muscles and walls of the colon in good shape.

Fermented Foods

The second step to intestinal health is keeping the friendly microbes or gut flora happy. The food we eat not only nourishes us (hopefully) but it also nourishes the huge population of microbes that live in our digestive tract. These friendly bacteria (eg Lactobacillus acidophilus) fight the nasty toxic bacteria in our systems to keep us healthy. Eating whole grains, vegetables and fermented foods like yoghurt, fermented vegetables - sauerkraut or kimchi, miso and kombucha tea keeps the good bacteria happy. Consuming fermented foods leads to the production of lactic acid within the colon which corrects the balance between the good and bad microbes and gently tones the colon. It is believed that fermentation can magnify the benefits of all food up to 500%- this includes vitamins, minerals, anti-oxidants and phyto-nutrients.

Two types of fermentation

Food can be fermented two ways - by the action of fungi or bacteria. Generally fermentation fungi like yeast are used to produce alcohol which is considered biologically dead. By contrast bacteria "lower pH and ultimately produce lactic acid, effectively preserving the food while producing otherwise unavailable flavours and nutritional compounds" giving us in the end a biologically active food. (see http://www.humanecologyreview.org/pastissues/her151/scottandsullivan.pdf)

Most modern westerners don't eat a great deal of fermented foods unless you include alcohol, yoghurt or the occasional pickle. Yoghurt is by far the most mainstream popular choice but of course not everybody can happily digest yoghurt due to dairy intolerance.

Increasing your intake of fiber and fermented foods is a healthy choice. If you aren't too keen on fermented veges or miso consider adding Digest-Ease to your diet. It's a powerful probiotic which provides a bounty of predigested, functional food. It involves the fermentation of wheat grass, barley grass and alfalfa grass. and contains an impressive amino acid profile whilst providing a huge number of beneficial organisms (both probiotic and prebiotic) in each serve.

Sources - Staying Healthy with Nutrition - Elson M Haas; The Macrobiotic Way by Michio Kushi; Readers Digest Guide to Drugs and Supplements