“All Disease Begins in The Gut.” - Hippocrates - 2017

a quote attributed to the Ancient Greek physician Hippocrates nearly 2500 years ago.

Most people, including many physicians, do not realize that 80 percent of your immune system is located in your digestive system, making a healthy gut a major focal point if you want to maintain optimal health.  Jul 5, 2008

It's common to overlook the health of our gastrointestinal system, even though it contains 10 times more health-determining bacteria than the rest of our body.  Apr 21, 2017

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/all-disease-begins-in-the-gut-hippocrates_us_58f9ed4ee4b086ce58980fc3

"All Disease Begins in The Gut." - Hippocrates

04/21/2017  

Mike Sheridan, Contributor

Nutrition & Fitness Coach, Author

—- This is an excerpt from 'Go With Your Gut' —-

It's common to overlook the health of our gastrointestinal system, even though it contains 10 times more health-determining bacteria than the rest of our body. Protecting us from infection, supporting our metabolism, and promoting healthy digestion and elimination.

There are over 100 trillion organisms in the gut, that make up ¾ of our immune system.

Unfortunately, the majority of the population has inadequate beneficial (good) bacteria, excessive damaging (bad) bacteria, and a lack of bacterial diversity. Largely because of a poor diet, but also because of:

• Over-Medicating – with antibiotics, birth control, NSAID's, anti-depressants, antacids, etc
• Chronic Stress [incl Genetic] – which can alter digestive secretion, gut permeability, blood flow, sensitivity, and even change bacterial composition
• Exposure to Environmental Toxins – notably pesticides, PCBs, herbicides, arsenic, BPA
• Inadequate Bacterial Acquisition at Birth - C-section birth, parents gut health and mothers diet during pregnancy, infants transition from breast milk to adult food, etc
• Current Health & Body Composition – Poor overall disease status (1, 2)

And this is ultimately leading to unbalanced gut flora (dysbiosis), and an increased susceptibility to intestinal permeability (leaky gut). Since the same things that destroy our gut flora, can compromise our gut barrier; while the fungal infections and bad bacteria that prosper instead, can do the same.

The scary part being, that for some this presents itself as something that seems relatively harmless like bloating, heartburn, IBS, and excess gas, while for the not-so-lucky ones it can mean something more serious like a chronic inflammatory condition of the skin, joints, bowel, or brain and nervous system.

This is because, although the gut is inside our body, it's actually an external organ, it's main role is to prevent harmful substances from entering our body. So when that barrier (that's supposed to separate us from the external environment) is compromised, large foreign molecules are able to pass through to the bloodstream, and serious damage ensues. As the body launches an immune response to protect itself, but ends up damaging it's own organs and tissues. With the latest research clearly showing that a leaky gut is connected to 100's of untreatable (and often unexplainable) medical conditions.

• Fibromyalgia (or Chronic Pain)
• Rheumatoid Arthritis
• ADHD, Tourette's and Autism
• Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) - Chron's, Ulcerative Colitis
• Depression and Social Anxiety
• Multiple Sclerosis (1, 2)
• Lupus
• Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (1, 2)
• Type 1 Diabetes
• Asthma and Allergies (1, 2)
• Parkinson's
• Schizophrenia and Other Mental Health Disorders
• Dermatitis - Acne, Eczema, Psoriasis
• Chronic Kidney Disease