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Suffering From Heartburn or indigestion?
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CHRONIC INDIGESTION
Gas, bloating, heartburn, stomach ache, feeling full when beginning to eat, abdominal cramping, unsatisfied hunger - these are common symptoms of enzyme deficiency. But most doctors treat such problems as though they were signs of drug deficiency! Perfect examples are Tagamet and Prilosec - standard drugs given for indigestion and heartburn. Now the main reason there is pain is simple: blockage. All that pizza and fries and tacos and yoghurt is devitalized food: no enzymes. As a result, once in the stomach, it just sits there. The stomach produces more and more acids and digestive enzymes trying to break down this overcooked, chemical-laden sludge we mistakenly refer to as food. But it can't do it. All that digestive juice sitting there unable to do its work is uncomfortable. It burns the stomach. On swallowing, the acid splashes back into the esophagus causing a painful condition known as reflux esophagitis, or heartburn, or for the really clueless - hiatal hernia.
So first the geniuses try Tagamet, with the idea that all the excess acid needs to be absorbed. When that doesn't work, enter Prilosec. The shrewd rationale behind this brain-child is to stop all digestion by halting further production of digestive juices! Short-term, the discomfort is postponed, but what about the underlying cause - the sludge sitting there in the stomach? It now begins to rot (go rancid, putrefy, or ferment, depending on whether it is fat, protein or carbohydrate). Then we have intestinal blockage, which promotes diseases like peptic ulcer, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Crohn's Disease, chronic colitis, Leaky Gut Syndrome, and colon cancer. This is how anti-digestive drugs like Prilosec can set the stage for a condition doctors call auto-intoxication. (See: Journey to the Center of Your Colon.)
(The above excerpt taken from Dr. Tim O'Shea's website The Doctor Within)
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Heartburn
Heartburn is a signal of water shortage in the upper part of the gastrointestinal tract. It is a major thirst signal of the human body. The use of antacids or tablet medications in the treatment of this pain does not correct dehydration, and the body continues to suffer as a result of its water shortage.
All too often, doctors fail to recognize heartburn as a sign of dehydration - and treat it with antacids, acid blockers, and other potentially harmful medications. Over time, these drugs produce stomach inflammation, ulcers, hiatal hernia, and eventually cancers in the gastrointestinal tract, including the liver and pancreas.
The truth is, chronic heartburn is a sign of water shortage in the upper part of the gastrointestinal tract. It is a major thirst signal of the human body. Taking antacids to treat this pain does nothing to correct dehydration, and your body continues to suffer as a result of its water shortage.
Tragedy: Not recognizing heartburn as a sign of dehydration and treating it with antacids and pill medications will, in time, produce inflammation of the esophagus, stomach and duodenum, hiatal hernia, and localized ulcerations. It will ultimately cause cancer of the esophagus, as well as other cancers in the gastrointestinal tract, including the liver and pancreas.
(This excerpt taken from Dr. Batmanghelidjs' website Watercure.com)
For me, heartburn is debilitating. I cannot function when I have heartburn, I'd rather have a headache or menstrual cramps. When I first started taking enzymes and when I first started drinking plenty of water were only about 2 months apart.
I started drinking water first and I noticed within the first 3 weeks that I was not getting heart burn as often or as severely and if I drank a glass of water at the first inkling of heartburn, that could stop the onset. (Unless I had eaten something like 'my personal recipe for heartburn', a hotdog on a white bun or sausages and potatoes together).
When I started taking enzymes, I at first didn't notice any noteworthy changes, mind you, at the time I had been on a totally different eating pattern, mostly (80%) lightly steamed or raw vegetables, fresh fruit, salads, nuts and poached eggs (of course containing their own enzymes which I didn't know at the time. I read more on enzymes and found out that if you take them on an empty stomach and there is no food to digest, enzymes will make their way to the blood stream and break down particles of undigested food and generally clean things up. I also found out that if I eat a very heavy concentrated and/or cooked meal, taking an enzyme or even 2 is greatly helping the digestive system from getting overloaded.
I have also read (and proven by my own actions) that overeating is one of the most detrimental things we can do to our digestive systems. We are used to meals being supersized and everything tastes so darn good and we quite often sit in front of the T.V. to eat. Watching television while eating distracts us from the importance of our body's signal that we've eaten enough and from paying attention to whether we are chewing our food adequately. Stomach acid and enzymes are efficient digesters but can fall short when required to try and break down large chunks of food that have only been kind of bitten up a few times.
Please read 'Journey to the center of the colon' and please take care of your digestive system, your quality of life as you get older will be so much better!
