Some Natural Therapies for Your Bowel

April 1, 2010 - April Fool's Day - The earliest association between April 1 and foolishness is found in Chaucer's Canterbury Tales (1932). If you do a practical joke after 12 noon, then you are considered the
April Fool.

"You are in the profession as a calling, not as a business; as a calling which extracts from you at every turn self-sacrifice, devotion, love and tenderness to your fellow-men. Once you get down to a purely business level, your influence is gone and the true light of your life is dimmed. You must work in the missionary spirit, with a breadth of charity that raises you far above the petty jealousies of life" William Osler


William Osler is among the most esteemed and distinguished physicians in the history of medicine. He taught on 3 contries--Canada, United States and England. He was a forerunner in the establishment we know as Johns Hopkins. When he was England, he taught at Oxford. His body of work is beyond reproach. Throughout this blog, I will always refer to Sir William Osler as I believe in his insight of what medicine should be.



For the last two weeks, we have discussed the effects of carbohydrates and food sensitivities/allergies on your gut (your small intestines). The condition can be referred to by many names. Irritable Bowel is the broad category. Other names are colitis, Crohn's disease, diverticulitis and even Candidiasis. In addition to identifying your food sensitivities, which are usually wheat and cow's dairy, it is also important to eliminate gas-producing foods. These include certain beans, cabbage, brussel sprouts, broccoli and cauliflower. You do not want to eliminate all of these vegetables because they contain B12 and folic acid. These are important in maintaining an alkaline diet.

Now you will ask about coffee. This might be one of your addictions which we deal with in the third lifestyle change--after discussing the second lifestyle change, exercise. Caffeine has bowel-stimulating properties, acts like a diuretic and blocks serotonin (the happy hormone) for about 10-12 hours. If you have identified and accepted your carbohydrate/sugar addiction, then you may not want to try to rid yourself of all your addictions at once. You may get frustrated and fail.

You need to take 'baby steps' to increase the fiber in your diet. You need to consume more fresh fruits and vegetables. You could add psyllium husk fiber to your diet. Some start with one teaspoon in water once a day, and every 3 - 4 days increase this amount by another teaspoon in another glass of water. The goal is to have 4 teaspoons in 4 glasses of water.


Yesterday, we talked about some herbs. Peppermint oil, a natural substance from a plant in Europe has been shown to be helpful in relieving intestinal contractions. Buy it in enteric coated capsules or as a tincture. If you use a tincture, then you must remember that all tinctures have some degree of alcohol. I have used Herbal Vitality and HerbPharm products.



The needlepoint (or petit point) bookmark has a beautiful design. After this one, I started designing my own, which I will display in later blog days. I didn't give this to anyone. I sold it on our etsy store-Rick Frat's Big Apple Store. The web site is www.etsy.com/shop/RickFratCreativeDuo


Photo Credit: Rick Byrd


Until tomorrow

'AN APPLE A DAY KEEPS THE DOCTOR AWAY"

March 16, 2010

"Acting as if - fake it until you make it"

Hopefully you had your breakfast today with some of yesterday's choices. The concept is say no to refined carbohydrates. So the bagel and coffee is not an option. You need to have smaller meals throughout the day - Breakfast-Snack-Lunch-Snack-Dinner-Snack. This is to ensure proper sugar balance. There is no skipping meals either. If you need to have your coffee in the morning you need to have protein first. While we are sleeping our bodies become acidic. We all wake up acidic. If you have coffee first, then the body pH will become more acidic. You need to have protein first before the coffee. Coffee will also deplete serotonin (the happy hormone) for 12 hours. There is always a controversial issue - is coffee good or is it bad? We will save it for another blog date. Coffee does increase both your blood pressure and heart rate. I do know it is no longer the #1 consumed beverage today!

So lets talk about APPLES - this is a healthy snack. In addition to the above saying, it is also said, "To eat an apple going to bed, will make the doctor beg his bread." I won't beg for bread unless it is gluten free.

The apple is the member of the Rose family. Apples are rich in phytochemicals. Phytochemicals have been shown to decrease chronic disease, atherosclerosis and even cancer. Apples have a strong antioxidant potential, inhibit cancer cell production and lower cholesterol. The types and amounts of phytochemicals vary between species of plants. Apples detoxify the body, have antiviral properties, can prevent constipation, strengthen gums and reduce cholesterol. Never buy an apple that is not cold, or if it had a dent in it. The best source for apple history is Michael Pollan's first book, Botany of Desire, which I loved. I am no Johnny Appleseed but I learned a lot from the book. Did you ever wonder why a squirrel will not eat the seeds of an apple or why we also should not eat apple seeds? Find out tomorrow.

The above craft work was done in 2001. That is when I first started some form of a hobby. It is a latch hook rug of a basket of apples. I gave it to Aunt Mary and it hangs in her den in New Jersey. I did many latch hook rugs that year and in 2002 moved to needle crafting.

Until tomorrow