Tag Archives: bowel

Question: Why do I bloat after eating?

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Question: What do you think about fennel seeds to minimize bloating? More importantly, why do I bloat immediately after eating?

Perspective:

Bloating is an inflammatory reaction. Inflammation can occur for a number of reasons, but its main purpose is to protect the body by producing a thick barrier made of new and sacrificed cells, and thus encouraging the release of white blood cells as a greater immune defense.

Here are some possible situations…

Certain foods can cause an inflammatory reaction because they may be indigestible to irritate the intestinal lining (gluten, wheat, grains, starchy foods, fibrous vegetables), may yield man-made toxic or natural toxic defense materials to cause an immune reaction (phytic acid), or may be allergenic to cause puffiness (gluten, wheat, grains, soy, dairy, caregeenan, gums, and other additives).

There could be an imbalance of intestinal bacteria so there is a constant fight occurring within the digestive tract that will encourage a barrier-reaction to keep bacteria “at bay.” It is very possible for the intestinal tract to become permeable when the body’s defense reactions have become exhausted or over-come, thus allowing bacteria and food to be released into the bloodstream, which causes a greater immune reaction AND allows for bacteria to become systemic. (This is a drastic example, but it is very possible and real for a lot of people who are unaware… it’s called Leaky Gut Syndrome).

Dietary stressors that encourages the increased production of Estrogen, which, in excess, becomes a stress-reactive hormone. This reaction is more of an effect of to any sort of chronic irritant, imbalance, toxin, or foreign (indigestible) material, but it should be considered that this [chronic] hormone release can actually affect many other physiological functions such as thinking, moving, breathing, feeling, and understanding.

Do I think supplementing Fennel Seeds will help? Not entirely because it’s simply treating the symptoms and not necessarily the cause. That’s like taking aspirin for a headache when you haven’t eaten all day. I do think that diet is a very large factor in bodily reactions and should be the first thing taken into perspective and evaluated. I know that Saturated Fats, such as those found in coconut oil and dairy/eggs, are very protective to the intestinal tract as the fats help build stronger cell walls, increase cholesterol production which is a natural anti-oxidant and more cholesterol means more steroid hormones (since it’s a precursor) and the body will be able to handle “stressful” situations with greater ease, and, to keep the list short, the fats aid in metabolic and immune function (which I can go into great detail but we’ll leave it at that).

The best approach to bloating is to gain some perspective on why, when, and how bloating occurs. Take two weeks (a week should suffice but the longer the better) – take two weeks to record a diet and lifestyle journal. The journal will have you write down every single thing that you do and feel before/after throughout the day – from waking up, to bowel moving, to eating, to drinking, to working, to schooling, to exercising, to socializing, to sleeping. It’s much easier to take perspective on what choices help or hinder your health when you write them down on paper AND when you consider your physical and mental states previous, during, and post experience, rather than thinking back to “oh, well on Wednesday I think I ate some rice and I probably felt like shit after because I always feel like shit.” Take a (whole)istic approach to your health – don’t just single out the bloating.

 

If you’d like to discuss this perspective along with other health-related insights, please contact me for a FREE Conversation.

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jdperryhealth@gmail.com

How often do you poop?

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As the Hippo-crates, the greats, put it, “all diseases begin in the gut.” So, in terms that you may better understand… when you ain’t poopin’, you ain’t bein’ all healthy and shit. 

This is a (whole)istic blog. We are not about – and by “we are” I mean, “me are” – we’re not about telling you to run a few daily miles, drink 8 glasses of water, eat a lot of green vegetables, and cut back on sugar! Quite the complete opposite if you haven’t caught on yet AND we’re (me’re) going to continue to talk about how often and how well you poop, pee, fart, smell, taste, hear, feel, walk, talk, think, sleep, experience, love, hate, give, take, want, need, breathe, believe, and be!

Ranting aside, pooping is a necessary DAILY function to aid in the all-sought-after “total health & well-being.” Holy shit I cannot stress DAILY… DAILY… DAIL-EE function more than enough. WebMD (which is supposedly the go-to-mecca when the question begs “what’s wrong with me?!”) is out of their mother-freakin’ minds stating that “most people pass stools anywhere from 3 times a day to 3 times a week. If your stools are soft and pass easily, you are not constipated.” What kind of back-asswards logic is that? Telling people they’re not constipated when they have perhaps FOUR DAYS worth of rotting fecal matter constantly creating toxic gases, enabling a breeding ground for bad bacteria, and recirculating toxic water into the bloodstream!

I’m not trying to scare you – I’m trying to bring some bright awareness lighting into your foyer. If you’re not pooping on a daily basis – ideally 1-3 times depending on your body’s natural way doing things – then there should be a ring-a-ding-ding in your brain saying that there’s something wrong… not, “meh, I’ll deal with it later.” The poop isn’t really to blame in this situation – it’s just trying to be poop. The problem(s) lie within the digestive system (really every system is involved/affected but we’ll keep it simple), the amount of digestive enzymes and fluids produced, the ratio/type of bacteria present, the amount and frequency of hormones produced, the quality/amount of calories/nutrients/food/water that energizes said amounts, ratio/type, and systems, and… the power of choice.

Now, there could be a number of causes which prevent poop from getting the heck out…

  • Inflammation of the intestines – a swollen intestinal wall creates a smaller passage for poop to get out, thus creating a blockage
  • Increased production of estrogen, prolactin, parathyroid, serotonin, cortisol, and adrenaline hormones – when these are made in excess (due to a natural stress response) they become pro-stress, pro-inflammatory, pro-degradation of normal bodily functions and energies – it is wise to note that many situations can create these hormones in excess
  • Imbalance of intestinal flora which can create an overdose of bacterial toxins which are reabsorbed into the bloodstream – good bacteria create a better “living environment” for poop to pass while toxins can burden the body’s functions
  • Food intolerances and food allergies – the body can only do so much with food it literally cannot digest or handle – either the food burden’s the body from doing its job or it literally stays undigested
  • Dehydration via over-hydration, under-hydration, lack of dietary salt/potassium/magnesium, water-retention, over-activity, excess stress, nutrient-void food - when dehydrated the body will often pull water from from your poop through the intestinal wall, thus leaving it hard to pass
  • Not sleeping enough – You, betcha! The body rebuilds, recovers, and regenerates its energy reserves for the next day’s fun-a-palooza. If it doesn’t have enough rest to create said reserves to function as it’s supposed to then some corners will be cut.

These are just some of the possible causes, but, again, these “causes” are really just symptoms, too. Bring the body back into homeostasis – aka everything working in order with a holistic balance of the good and the not-so-good – and you’ll be smooth sailing. Keep that awareness up and take some time to put your poop (or the lack thereof) into perspective.

If you’d like to discuss this perspective along with other health-related insights, please contact me for a FREE Conversation.

jdperryhealth.com
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jdperryhealth@gmail.com

What is a lactose intolerance?

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A “Lactose intolerance” is a term full of hype with very little understanding as to what may be causing such an intolerance. Maybe it’s cool to say I’m lactose intolerant just like it’s cool to say I’m gluten intolerant because that’s what CNN decided to feature this week. What’s with all the not-asking-questions and just taking a diagnosis as fact? Why can’t we all enjoy a daily big-ass bowl of ice cream or even an occasional gallon challenge?

The body must produce the digestive enzyme Lactase in order to digest the milk sugar Lactose. This is an essential piece of the dairy sugar digestive process, BUT there are plenty of mishaps, obstacles, hurdles that can prevent the body from producing said enzyme. Ahem…

Heating/Pasteurization – Denatures the milk, which can cause issues when digesting “dead” nutrients (heat kills things, duh).

Additives – Carrageenan, lechitin, and gums can irritate the intestinal lining/mucosa layer, which can prevent the body from absorbing nutrients.

Allergens – A consumer can be allergic to the diet of the cow: grass for properly-raised cattle and grains, corn, soy, sawdust, or concrete for commercially-raised cattle. If a cow is eating sawdust I think there’s a bit more to worry about than an invidiual allergy to the stuff.

Gluten intolerance – Gluten can burn (create holes) through the mucosa layer, which lines the stomach and intestines. The protein can also flatten the Villi that line the small intestine due to irritation and inflammation, causing nutrient malabsorption (since the Villi literally grab and absorb food into the intestinal wall). The body can only do so much given the damage when digesting a digestive-enzyme specific food.

Intestinal bacteria imbalance (Dysbiosis) - A higher bad to good bacteria ratio can create bloating and inflammation (amongst other things). At this point, it’s tough to digest any food (not just dairy).

These are just a few perspectives. A Lactose Intolerance tends to be a symptom of a bigger cause. What’s that cause? That’s up to you to figure out.

jdperryhealth.com
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jdperryhealth@gmail.com