The Gray Zone… skin tone…

CLIENT: I had a consultation with a client, and one of the 1st things I noticed about him was how particularly “gray” his skin tone was. Of course that wasn’t the reason for his visit, as a matter of fact his main reason was, he just always felt “REALLY TIRED” all the time. Zero energy!

I go thru a client intake/history with each person, and the fatigue kept being his center of topic, although, I found out he’d struggled with chronic indigestion and heartburn. He pointed out that both symptoms had been keeping company with him for upwards of 20 yrs., he basically had “stock” in the Tums/Rolaids since his early 40’s. I detected a note of accomplishment in his voice and demeanor when he stated he was now taking Tagamet every day for the past 7 yrs. and his indigestion was no longer an issue.
I posed this to him, ” you know stomachs are naturally designed to secrete enough acid to turn even large meals into the equivalent of soupy mush?” “Yeah, I know that in general, but all the doctors told me that my indigestion & heartburn are due to too much acid,” was his reply.
I asked: did anyone ever actually measure your stomach-acid production?”
His answer: “No… but the symptoms sure have gone away since I blocked all that acid out.”
My response: “and a river will dry up if we stop all the rain,” “Maybe that’s an advantage for a little while if the river has been overflowing, but what happens if we stop the rain permanently?”
He thought for a brief second, “permanently?” “At least 7 yrs..” “Quite a drought. Nothing would grow.”
I chucked and stated: “Right, and if we shut off or neutralize our stomach’s natural acidity for more than brief intervals, there are similar consequences. First, we don’t break down foods as well, and many nutrients, especially essential amino acids, certain minerals, and at least two B vitamins, aren’t made as available by natural acid digestion as they usually are, and aren’t properly absorbed into our bloodstreams, So our cells don’t have the normal amounts of nutrients for nourishment. Second, when that acidified soup empties out of the stomach into the upper small intestine, it triggers the secretion of hormones that in turn stimulate the3 pancreas and gallbladder to make or release their own digestive secretions, such as enzymes, bicarbonate, and bile. Without the acid trigger, these hormones are under-produced, and the next stages in digestion doesn’t work as well as they should either. This makes another whole group of nutrients less available to your cells.”
“So it’s like a domino of events. If the acidity isn’t there, then other parts of digestion will fail to trigger too.” He asked ( My favorite part of my job is when I see evidence of the lightbulb getting brighter).
I said: “Exactly, and we don’t even know if we know absolutely all the domino’s in the digestive system, we are fearfully and wonderfully made.”
His response was: “No wonder I’m tired, I’ve literally dried up a lot of my digestion for years. Why didn’t anyone tell me about this?”
“I don’t know, it’s all right there in the basic textbooks for medical students. But that’s not all: The same basic textbooks list a 3rd consequence of low or no stomach-acid production. Let’s think about it like this: What happens if I put bacteria or parasites into an acid in a test tube?”
He says: “I’m not sure, but I would presume they’d die?”
RIGHT, they die & turn into a minor protein supplement. Textbooks of gastroenterology actually call stomach acid the acid barrier to intestinal-tract infection. Also, everyone knows that farther down the intestinal tract is home to a nice variety of micro-organisms called intestinal flora, that also help with digestion, secrete a few important vitamins, and generally behave themselves. But if the acid-alkaline balance, also called the pH; isn’t just right, then many of the friendly micro-organisms literally die out and are replaced by not-so- friendly germs. Some of them will excrete substances that are actually toxic to our cells, that are absorbed and then spread all thru the body.
So now my Gray skinned client, is shifting in his chair. “So not only have I been semi-starving myself but also maybe encouraging toxins from my gut to get around my whole system? I shook my head : Yup I’m afraid so!
Next best question: “So could blocking my normal stomach function be why I have all this extreme fatigue?” I answered: Very likely, so the 1st course of action is to work on restoring normal digestion as much as possible, make up for at least 7yrs. of unintended malnutrition, and, if necessary, work to restore normal gut flora. Then we’ll see.”
He was concerned about stopping the Tagamet, fearful he’d have indigestion and heartburn all over again. I stated there are natural ways to stop indigestion and heartburn without blocking stomach acid.
The truth is, you can eat all the right foods and still slowly starve to death, if the food processor cannot process the food rolling down the slide. Underproduction of stomach acid in the majority of cases is the issue! the official name is HYPROCHLORHYDRIA (meaning low or no stomach acid), it is one of the most common digestive malfunctions, and it is often accompanied by other, seemingly unrelated health issues. Inadequate digestion also becomes more frequent as we age. So remember, even if you are eating the best healthiest diet, or for a particular ailment, if the food you are eating is incompletely digested or assimilated, your body still isn’t getting the nutrients it needs and won’t be effective!
LESSON: our bodies are made up of 60 or so essential nutrients (essential being defined as nutrients without which we’d sooner or later drop dead); how healthy can you be if your body isn’t absorbing even one of those nutrients? And what if a dozen or more nutrients are in short supply? If our foods and supplements don’t encounter the proper acid and enzymes they won’t digest and absorb, which will cause malnutrition. In essence, you could be eating all you need but still starving.
Many peeps who have too little stomach acid are being treated as if they have TOO much, probably because the symptoms are similar. 10-15% of the population suffers from low stomach acid production and are being misdiagnosed and mistreated.
Why would you want to take antacids or acid blockers when your stomach is already weak and not digesting? It’s easy symptom relief that’s why. But it is symptom relief that is offering ZERO remedy /recovery! Let me emphasize that antacid sales are a booming business,,, that statistic alone should alert you to how many folks are living with incomplete digestion!
SIGNS OF LOW HCL:
*BLOATING
*BELCHING
*BURNING SENSATION AFTER EATING
*FEELING LIKE FOOD IS JUST SITTING THERE AND NOT DIGESTING
*INABILITY TO EAT MORE THAN A SMALL AMOUNT OF FOOD WITHOUT FEELING FULL
*CONSTIPATION (note you can still have a bowel movement each day and be struggling with incomplete digestion, check and see if your stool sinks to the bottom of the toilet, if so, that’s incomplete digestion)
*WEAK PEELING EASILY BROKEN FINGERNAILS.
*HAIR LOSS
*GASSINESS
*DILATION OF CAPILLARIES IN THE CHEEKS AND ON THE NOSE (in non-alcoholics)
There is a long list of disease frequently associated with low stomach acidity which includes:
*DIABETES
*UNDER/OVER ACTIVE THYROID
*CHILDHOOD ASTHMA
*ECZEMA
*GALLBLADDER DISEASE,
*OSTEOPOROSIS
*RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS,
*CHRONIC HIVES
*LUPUS
*WEAK ADRENALS
*CHRONIC HEPATITIS
*VITILIGO
*ROSACEA
If you struggle and suffer from some of these symptoms or diseases mentioned and you suspect that your problem is poor digestion, I’d be honored to work with you and your inner food processor.
Update on my Mr. GRAY man, his skin color slowly returned to the normal brown/pink skin tones. His fatigue also waned and was replaced by increased energy. His wife noted improvements in his MOOD and ATTITUDE, 6 months later, he declared himself “back to normal.” He was skeptical at first, but noticed remarkable improvements within the 1st 2 weeks and progress just kept improving from that point forward.
Hope this was helpful, especially as we are rocking into the holiday “gorging” season,,, many will be wanting to reach for the anti-acids, how bout you schedule an appointment before the holidays hit full throttle, you maybe able to enjoy the banquet table vs. resentment and misery! go to http://www.mkt.com/harvested-health-llc and book & pre-pay for your consultation and we can take that 1st step.
Healthfully yours,
Jodi Barnett N.D.
Harvested Health LLC
219-713-4789

#tired, #zeroenergy, #digestion, #heartburn, #GERD,