Mardell Hill

    Where does “it” go when you are acutely or chronically constipated? Anytime, you eat, and it doesn’t come out, it is called constipation. Either way, the normal functions of the digestive tract have been disrupted—most commonly in the colon, but potentially anywhere along your 30-foot-long digestive tract.

    Not only are normal functions of food breakdown and nutrient absorption possibly impaired, but toxic waste material may accumulate, and numerous health problems may occur. As this pattern is repeated (chronic constipation), diet and lifestyle changes are imperative in order to prevent serious health problems.

Think of it this way: We chew, we swallow, and it’s gone! Well, not exactly. It’s easy to get lulled into the belief that if we cannot see something, there is no need to concern ourselves with it anymore. But the reality is that if you eat something and it does not come out, it is still in there! Eventually, allowing food to stay inside the warm, wet environment that is your digestive tract may, well… make the nose wrinkle, that’s for sure!

    Our instinct is to ignore potential problems and hope they go away. But picture putting food inside a plastic bag and leaving it in a closet, for days—especially “indulgence” foods like alcohol, fried foods, processed foods, and sugary desserts. Yuck! Dis-Ease is undoubtedly brewing.

So, what are some solutions to avoiding or omitting this toxic buildup? Well, in fact, it’s simple, cleansing!

Our bodies are designed to detoxify daily by engaging the five elimination organs—skin, lungs, kidneys, liver, and colon—to neutralize and eliminate toxins. Toxic or excess foods, beverages, medications, emotions, and lifestyle choices may reduce your body’s ability to detoxify efficiently and effectively.

    As we discovered in the “Think of it this way” above, if metabolic wastes are not eliminated properly, they remain inside us—either stagnating along the digestive tract or being reabsorbed. When waste is reabsorbed through the intestinal walls, the body transports it via the bloodstream to various cavities, organs, and joints. These toxins may then be stored in fat cells and mucus, form crystals, or bind to proteins in your tissues. Cholesterol may develop into gallstones or bind to artery walls. The crystals or minerals may form stones in the kidneys, and the proteins may form deposits in the connective tissues. Needless to say, there are many compelling reasons to cleanse!

More information: Intestinal Health ~ A Practical Guide to Complete Abdominal Comfort http://amzn.to/2ckb2Mm

    What I’m trying to say is that every day, we may take in both natural and unnatural substances—including foods, liquids, air, heavy metals, chemicals, pollutants, bacteria, viruses, and more—simply by eating, drinking, breathing, or absorbing them through our skin. In addition, any “good” or “bad” organisms living inside our bodies—such as intestinal bacteria, parasites, or yeasts—produce metabolic waste.

    Even though our bodies are designed to “self-clean,” if this natural input-output mechanism becomes overwhelmed, sluggish, or interrupted, the toxic substances that should be excreted may stagnate or be reabsorbed into our bloodstream and body cavities. This process may result in internal toxicity, which may, in turn, lead to ill health, if not outright disease.

    Detoxifying or cleansing your body may be one strategy you choose to implement, as it may help keep your digestion on track and reduce or prevent stagnation and reabsorption. Each of the five major elimination organs—the kidneys, liver, lungs, colon, and skin—have their own specific means of cleansing and detoxing.

Learn how to detoxify each elimination organ on pages 167-71 in Intestinal Health ~ A Practical Guide to Complete Abdominal Comfort http://amzn.to/2ckb2Mm

    It’s simple, implement cleansing—purging your body of toxins, and you may experience increasingly abundant energy, mental clarity, and enhanced bodily function. Give it a try, what have you got to lose? Wink.

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Pumpkin, an orange food has so many great health benefits, especially the heart! Not just your heart, but your skin, sleep, weight, immune, and energy. Let’s look at the list of benefits from these tasty orange treats:

• Improves eyesight
• Lower blood pressure
• Heart health
• Improved sleep
• Increased energy
• Supports weight loss
• Reducing cancer risks
• Smoother, silkier skin
• And, boosting your immune system!

Powerful ingredients include:

• Vitamin A
• Beta Carotene (otherwise known as “orange” food)
• Antioxidants (especially in the seeds)
• Vitamin C
• Potassium
• Fiber
• And, the feeling of fullness, which keeps you from over eating!

More health information and recipes found in this best seller, Intestinal Health – A Practical Guide to Complete Abdominal Comforthttp://amzn.to/2bdaBX8

Easy to eat, just:

• Steam
• Bake
• Roast
• Toast the seeds

Once you have removed the seeds and flesh, toss the shell in your compost (or outside for the squirrels) and get busy adding the pumpkin to some of the following delicious foods and drinks:

• Smoothies
• Juicing
• Pie
• Bread
• Risotto
• Muffins
• Biscuits
• Soups or stews
• Cookies
• Breakfast cereal
• Add to hot chocolate or coffee
• Anything you like!

My favorite way to eat pumpkin is by steaming it, then scraping the flesh from the shell. Stir in coconut oil, agave, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cardamom. Served with roasted chicken and asparagus. Yummy!

Find health related videos and recipes on YouTube channel:  http://bit.ly/1RYWcvN

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Do you sit too much? Well… let me tell you what happens if you don’t get off your butt & beat cheeks around the block. You may be in store for numerous health conditions. While some may be immediate, such as constipation, other’s may be long term, such as increased morbidity (disease). Yup, sitting sedentary not only deconditions your arms and legs, but also your digestive tract! Let’s just sum it up here, you are at risk of:

• Sluggish bowels
• Peristalsis muscle deconditioning
• Slowing metabolism
• And, increased morbidity rate!

So… not only are your bowels going to decondition, you may experience a dramatic internal metabolic chemical reaction that will manifest these physical changes, the more you sit:

• Internal metabolic chemical reactions may decrease
• Glucose regulation (blood sugar) may decrease
• Decrease muscle mass and overall strength
• Potential weight gain
• And, ultimately, overall physical degeneration and potential disease.

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It’s simple, get up and move! Everyday, everywhere. Movement IS exercise. Change your routine with lifelong health in mind. Some ideas are:

• Change your transit route to allow for more walking to and from work.
• Arrange your office in a way that more movement is required to accomplish tasks.
• Sit or bounce on a ball instead of using a chair at your desk
• Utilize a standing workstation.
• Fidget!
• Pace the halls.
• Stretch, reach, lean, squat, pull, and push to keep moving all day long – squirm.
• Take a walk.
• … and so many more ideas on page 114 http://amzn.to/2ckb2Mm

OR, try these:

• Outdoor recreational activities
• Playing with your children or grandchildren
• Gardening
• Yard work
• … and so many more ideas on page 114 http://amzn.to/2ckb2Mm

Additionally, active exercise, such as aerobics, helps your stool move to the exit more quickly. But, WAIT. Wait only hour post exercise to eat to avoid bloating, gas, and constipation.

As a bonus, physical activity is healthy not just for the digestive tract, but for your whole body and mind.

So, go ahead… squirm, fidget, and wiggle throughout your day!

It’s all here in Intestinal Health ~ A Practical Guide to Complete Abdominal Comfort http://amzn.to/2ckb2Mm Page 114

For many, it’s out of sight, out of mind after you chew (hopefully) and swallow your food. Given the upcoming facts, you may want to pay closer attention to what happens after you swallow and how the food is transported to the opposite end of the digestive tract.

First, where is the peristalsis muscle, what does it do and how does it work? And, for simplicity sake, I’m going to refer to the one in the digestive tract, not the urinary tract.

• The digestive peristalsis muscle (tube) begins at the point where you swallow your food and travels all the way to the exit, known as the anus. This is roughly 30’ long.
• The first few inches of the peristalsis muscle are voluntary, and the remainder is involuntary. This is important because you cannot will it to move, you must take actions that encourage movement. This movement may be the difference between optimum health and gastrointestinal issues. It’s that simple.
• This muscle works by contracting, making a wave-like squeeze and twist, much like a snake’s movement, to move food and liquid from the top to the bottom (pun intended).

Here are a few examples of what may cause the peristalsis muscle to slow down:

• Sitting A LOT.
• Not chewing your food thoroughly (each chew stimulates the peristalsis action).
• Bed ridden.
• Reduced water intake (dehydration).
• Overuse of laxatives.
• Sedentary lifestyle.
• Chronic constipation.
• Some medications.
• Aging.
• Injury.
• Eating disorders such as anorexia and/or bulimia.
• Narcotics.
• Low fiber diet.
• And, more…

More easy-to-use information: Intestinal Health ~ A Practical Guide to Complete Abdominal Comfort http://amzn.to/2ckb2Mm

What can happen when the peristalsis slows down, called motility disorder?

• IBS (irritable bowel syndrome) – chronic constipation or diarrhea.
• Dysphagia – inability to swallow.
• Gastroparesis – food does not move beyond the stomach.
• Intestinal blockage, obstruction, or narrowing.
• GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease) – acid coming up from the stomach.
• Esophageal spasms – regurgitation of food with spasms.
• Ileus – abdominal or pelvic surgery resulting in stopped movement of the peristalsis.

What keeps your peristalsis muscle working?

• Adding fiber to your diet – vegetables, almonds, flax seeds, psyllium husks, fruit, and grains.
• Drink more water – ½ your body weight or more.
• Chew your food completely.
• Reduce dairy, overcooked, and processed foods.
• Reduce coffee intake and replace with water.
• Cod liver oil.
• Probiotic supplements and probiotic foods – kimchi, yogurt, kombucha, etc.
• Daily exercise and stretching.
• Squat position on the toilet using yoga blocks, box, squatty potty, or Wells step.

It’s in your best interest to ensure long-term health to keep your peristalsis muscle moving and moving strongly every day!

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The use of Activated Charcoal seems to be a “good idea” for many people these days. So, let’s look at the facts so we can all be better informed as to when it really is a “good idea” and when it is a “bad idea”.

First, What Is Activated, Food-Grade Charcoal?

• Heating of carbon-rich materials to very high temperatures, such as wood, peat, coconut shells & sawdust.
• This process reduces the pore size, making more holes in each molecule.
• Most frequently produced by heating coconut shells to extremely high temperatures until carbonized. The ash is processed with steam or hot air at high temperatures to produce a “microporous structure” or “sponge”.

Activated Charcoal is most frequently taken as capsules or powder in beverages or food.

More easy-to-use information: Intestinal Health ~ A Practical Guide to Complete Abdominal Comfort http://amzn.to/2ckb2Mm

It’s important to know that the medical community has only approved activated, food-grade charcoal for the emergency treatment of overdoses or poisonings. There isn’t enough research to establish the benefits.

Here are a few of the uses with some supporting evidence for activated charcoal use:

• Kidneys – may filter toxins and drugs from urea.
• Intestinal Gas – may neutralize intestinal gas.
• Diarrhea – may absorb gastrointestinal bacteria or drugs that cause diarrhea.
• Oral Health – may absorb toxins in the mouth.
• Water Filtration – removes toxins, drugs, viruses, fungus, bacteria, & chemicals.
• Skin Infection – may absorb harmful microbes from soft tissue wounds.
• Skin Care – May draw dust, dirt, toxins, chemicals, & bacteria to the surface.
• Deodorant – absorbs smells & gases in underarm, shoes, & refrigerators. Moisture control as well.
• Overdoses & Poisoning – absorbs drugs in the stomach but not all drugs or toxins (especially corrosive toxins or drugs– alcohols, lye, iron, lithium, & petroleum products). NOTE: must be given within 1-4 hours of toxic consumption, while toxin still in the stomach.

To sum it up, activated, food-grade charcoal may be taken in drinks or capsules if you need a “sponge” inside your stomach or intestines to absorb toxins. That’s it! Taking charcoal as a daily supplement or for weight loss is NOT the correct use. In fact, it may cause constipation (hence, why it’s good for diarrhea), nausea, vomiting, bowel blockage, loss of nutrients, malabsorption, and of course, black stools. Yes, if it is absorbing in your gut, it is absorbing the “good” minerals and nutrients too, rendering any food value void. If you are taking any medications, it will absorb those, rendering them ineffective.

Always take activated charcoal two-three hours prior to a meal to absorb toxins but not your food nutrients and two hours prior to medications.

          Final note: Only take charcoal in small amounts and use it as a tool, not a daily supplement.

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Do Digestive Enzymes assist in smooth digestion? Yes! And everyone needs them to properly breakdown and absorb their food. The real question is, what’s the best way to achieve the proper amount to maximize digestion…

As noted on Page 20 and Chapter 1 in Intestinal Health ~ A Practical Guide to Complete Abdominal Comfort http://amzn.to/2ckb2Mm , enzymes are released into your mouth when you start chewing. Chewing then initiates enzymes from the stomach, pancreas, and small intestines to prepare to contribute to the digestive process as food makes it way to the intestines. More than 25 enzymes are released during the digestive process to:

• Digest fats and carbohydrates
• Provide antiseptic functions such as destroying bacteria and viruses
• Support vitamin B-12 absorption
• Break down proteins, fats, and starch
• Protect the stomach lining
• Stimulate pancreatic activity
• Increase gallbladder contractions
• Regulate gastric flow
• Regulate peristalsis action
• Convert and digest sugars

More information on Digestive Enzymes: pages 49-50, Ch 3 in: Intestinal Health ~ A Practical Guide to Complete Abdominal Comfort http://amzn.to/2ckb2Mm

Digestive enzymes reduce:

• Gas
• Bloating
• And, Nausea

When digestive enzymes are delivered to the intestinal tract from various locations throughout the food breakdown and absorption process, they facilitate the breakdown of food into an absorbable state—something I refer to throughout this book as “food matter.” If the enzymes successfully break down the food into absorbable food matter by the time it reaches the jejunum portion of the small intestines, you will have successful absorption and feed your body the nutrients it needs.

Enzymes are absolutely essential for the proper breakdown of:

• Proteins
• Fats
• And, Carbohydrates.

Bonus!!! Enzymatic action is related to maintaining a healthy body weight.

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The REAL Question is: Can you afford NOT to eat healthy food? For the short-term, it sounds OK and carefree. However, looking at the long-term perspective, you may want to take a closer look…

    To best evaluate, try this:

1. Keep track of all your medical expenses—including co-pays, prescriptions, over-the-counter medications, office visits, outpatient procedures, hospital stays, dental work, insurance premiums, and out-of-pocket expenses due after insurance coverage—for one full year.

2. Add in the cost of alcoholic beverages, tobacco, coffee drinks, unhealthy snacks, and any other indulgences purchased and consumed throughout the year.

3. Do the same with your grocery and restaurant receipts for that same year.

4. Now estimate how much more it would have cost to purchase fresh, organic, pesticide- and hormone-free foods. 5 percent? 10 percent? 20 percent?

5. Does the amount from #4 exceed the amount from #1 plus #2 plus #3? (Maybe yes or maybe no.)

6. More importantly, will the amount from #4 exceed the amount from #1 five years from now? How about 10 or 20 years from now?

More tips for healthy foods: pages 137-153 Intestinal Health ~ A Practical Guide to Complete Abdominal Comfort http://amzn.to/2ckb2Mm

Therefore, purchasing healthier food may be a better choice in the long run. As we all know, cheap, preservative-ridden or chemically modified foods coupled with possible medical costs, could add up to far more down the road!

    The easiest way to make subtle changes to healthier foods is to change where you pick up meals. Instead of zipping in and out of a fast food restaurant for a burger, fries, and a soda, make a brief stop at your local grocery store or health food market and pick up some unsweetened yogurt and fruit, soup and salad, a healthy sandwich, or an all-natural granola bar and a bottle of water to satisfy both your appetite and your nutritional needs.

Traveling?  Pack healthy snacks to go… Easy travel snacks include beef or turkey jerky, apples, roasted nuts, pumpkin seeds, granola bars, cereal, crackers, etc. Dried fruit and fruit roll-ups are also excellent choices but be sure to drink extra water to account for their “re-hydration.” Also, remember to purchase a fresh bottle of clean water regularly when you are on the road or at an airport to ensure that you remain continuously hydrated.

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We all want to feel included in the party… so, whether you are the designated driver, sober for a reason, or just choose not to drink alcohol, here’s some options to keep you in the party atmosphere!

Bartenders are well equipped with options, just ask. Be sure they put your “mocktail” in a cocktail glass and no one will know the difference.

Let’s use our imaginations to see how many “mocktails” a bartender may be able to whip up for you using only the standard contents behind a typical bar, for example:

• Cranberry, orange, strawberry, pineapple, apple, grape, lime, lemon, or coconut juice
• Soda water, sparkling water, or Ginger Ale
• Lemon, lime, or orange wedges
• Ice cubes or crushed ice and a blender

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A fully stocked bar? Great! Here are a few mocktail mixes you can ask for:

APPLE CIDER DRINK

apple cider juice

ginger

lime juice

WATERMELON & STRAWBERRY DRINK

Watermelon

Strawberry juice

A few drops of lime juice

BERRY LEMON DRINK

Mixed berry juices

Lemon juice

VIRGIN COSMOPOLITAN

2 ounces cranberry juice

Splash Rose’s sweetened lime juice

Club soda to taste

Lime wedge or twist to garnish

Fill highball glass with ice. Pour in juices and top with club soda. Alternately, fill cocktail shaker with ice and shake juices until chilled, then pour into martini glass and top with club soda. Add lime garnish.

VIRGIN MARGARITA

Ice

1 ½ oz. sour mix

½ oz. lime juice

½ oz. orange juice

Lime wedges, for garnish

Pour ingredients (minus the lime wedges) into a cocktail shaker. Shake and pour into a rocks glass or a margarita glass. Add more ice if needed. Alternative is to blend in a blender with ice. Garnish with a wedge of lime.

To find additional mocktail ideas, go to: https://hubpages.com/holidays/mocktail-recipes-2    

THE BASIC

• Squeezed fresh limes
• Crushed or cubed ice
• Carbonated water
• Salt on the rim (optional)

Fruit juices, citrus, water & ice, the list is endless… see pages 140-41 Intestinal Health ~ A Practical Guide to Complete Abdominal Comfort http://amzn.to/2ckb2Mm

A good cup of coffee in the morning gets the day started right… but wait, what’s all the fuss about putting in into an enema?Why would anyone want to drink coffee from “that” end? Let’s take a closer look…

A coffee enema is:

• A method of delivering a coffee solution through the rectum.
• Therapeutic if taking rectally (toxic or irritant if ingested orally).

The benefits of coffee rectally are:

• Stimulation of hemorrhoidal and portal veins to the liver.
• Increasing of bile production.
• Opening of the bile ducts.
• Increasing bile flow.

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Important facts:

• The liver dumps toxins into the bile.
• The bile is excreted through the bowels, resulting in cleansing of the liver & colon.
• A clean liver may rebuild itself, reducing symptoms caused by toxins.

If you want to know how you are living, just ask your liver.

Claims:

• Increased mental clarity
• Improved digestion
• Increased energy

NOTE: Add broths and fresh pressed juices to replenish loss of mineral salts.

How to preform a Coffee Enema can be found on pages 176-77 Intestinal Health ~ A Practical Guide to Complete Abdominal Comfort http://amzn.to/2ckb2Mm

Richard Anderson, N.D., N.M.D. Cleanse & Purify Thyself. California, Christobe Publishing, 2000: 228-29

*A word of caution: Avoid coffee enemas if you are allergic to coffee or are suffering from appendicitis, a rectal prolapse, or have fissures or fistulas. If you are taking medications, please check with your medical provider or health care practitioner to determine whether a coffee enema might interfere with their effectiveness. Infants and children under 4 years of age should not be given coffee enemas.