My diet & detox journal

Having taken much time off from my blog to focus on my family, I’ve decided that an ideal way to reestablish myself with my followers here at Ask Cassy would be to publish some of my current written material. In other words, I’ll post for your enjoyment the stuff I’ve been working on for the company. Someday, when I have the time I’ll archive it all to my article pages and portfolio, but for now you’ll get the good stuff without the advertising fluff. If you’re sensitive, please forgive the product call outs. Those of you who know me well will have no fear writing to me to banter on formulas…bring it on…I invite it!

[You’ll also note that the choice of images is mine, not my employers. When needed I’ve credited images in the ‘alt’ code. Thanks!]

I recently wrote this article for my employer, Enzymedica. It ran in our July/August 2009 newsletter. Enjoy!

The Cleansing Effects of Digestion and Detoxification

It has been said that our intestinal tract is the root of good health. Unfortunately, impaired digestion, poor food choices, and improper elimination can leave our bowels at risk for countless health concerns including a bacterial and yeast imbalance. Combining healthy microflora, however, along with a sensible cleansing diet and supplemental enzymes to promote optimal digestion will help bring our intestinal health into balance.

The Roots of Faulty Digestion and Impaired Intestinal Health Revealed!
It has been said that our intestinal tract is the root of good health. This system houses the important processes of digestion, nutrient absorption, and elimination, so there is little doubt that if it ceases to function properly, poor health will follow.

What we often think of as a long hollow tube is actually full of the byproducts of our digestive processes, including fiber, carbohydrates, fats, and proteins in various stages of digestion. These contents are activated by digestive fluid such as stomach acid, digestive enzymes from our pancreas and other organs, and bile acids from the liver. Broken down into smaller and smaller pieces, food is transformed into usable nutrients and waste is passed down the tube to the colon for elimination.

There’s a Fungus within Each of Us
These close quarters are also inhabited by countless microorganisms which feed on the contents of our intestines. Trillions of microorganisms, including yeasts and bacteria, make their home in our gastrointestinal tract. We offer these microflora a place to live and in return they provide a multitude of benefits; aiding digestion and elimination through fiber fermentation, producing vitamins such as B and K, and the manufacture of enzymes that will help us break down the foods we eat.

We take in healthy bacteria through our diet in foods such as yogurt, raw sauerkraut, and kefir. Other common sources of these organisms are dietary supplements such as capsules and powders. These beneficial microflora are commonly referred to as probiotics and their numbers are largely dependent on our own diet, the supplements we take, and our environmental burden. Unfortunately, many of these critters are easily damaged by chemicals such as chlorinated water from drinking and bathing, as well as the preservatives and antibiotics found in some foods and medications, making probiotic supplementation necessary.

Our internal ecosphere consists of both beneficial and pathogenic organisms. In proper numbers, the healthy probiotics we house will feed on the contents of our healthy diet and secrete byproducts that are antagonistic to pathogens, such as yeast and other pathogenic bacteria. This process helps keep our intestines healthy and our microbial balance in check.

However, if we consume large amounts of processed foods, such as sugar and refined carbohydrates, we provide fodder for fermentation by pathogenic organisms such as the yeast known as Candida Albicans. This pesky beast can be the cause of countless health challenges including food sensitivities, low energy, skin issues, indigestion, occasional gas and bloating, and can even compromise immunity.

While in balance, Candida is generally a harmless yeast organism. But when overgrown and imbalanced it can damage our intestinal lining. In fact, Candida can shift into a fungal form, growing long roots which can burrow into intestinal lining, affecting other organs and causing harm to our health.

Impaired digestion, irregularity and improper bowel elimination allow undigested food to sit in the intestines where it, too, becomes food for bacteria and yeast. The condition of such a colon inhibits proper assimilation of nutrients and encourages further overgrowth of pathogens. To maintain a healthy intestine and gain the full benefits of our diet we must avoid impaired digestion at all costs. Optimal digestion can best be achieved by the healthy production of digestive enzymes from our pancreas, stomach and intestine, and supported by the enzymes found in raw foods and dietary supplements.

Finding your Internal Balance
While few will argue that diet is a key component in maintaining a healthy intestinal tract, as we’ve seen, enzymes and probiotics can be important aids to help you avoid the chaos of intestinal imbalance. Enzymedica offers a novel approach for those concerned with intestinal imbalance and yeast overgrowth: the enzyme product Candidase and its companion supplement, Pro-Bio.

Combined with a healthy diet the cellulase enzymes in Candidase will help break down the tough outer shell of Candida, while protease (protein-digesting) enzymes digest the protein based nucleus of the organism. This will aid our body’s own immune system to remove the yeast and properly eliminate the fungus. Not only do protease and cellulase enzymes digest the Candida cell itself, but they also help clean up the intestine, aiding detoxification and elimination. This will help healthy probiotics flourish, aid nutrient absorption, and contribute to a healthy intestinal environment.

A probiotic supplement such as Enzymedica’s Pro-Bio will supply the colon with a flood of healthy organisms to impart healthy benefits. Probiotic organisms such as the lactobacillus acidophilus paracasei and other strains found in Pro-Bio have been shown in studies to balance and maintain levels of healthy intestinal microflora. This, in turn will help keep our yeast populations in check. Shelf stable and enteric coated to allow the organisms safe passage into the lower GI where they will flourish, Pro-Bio is a promising partner in digestive health.

After over a year long hiatus, I’ll be back to blogging soon and I am working on a face life for my website, AskCassyFirst.

This year has brought many changes for me, including the arrival of my son Will, perhaps the best thing I’ve ever experienced.

“A son,” you say?

YES!  Women with PCOS can conceive naturally and deliver full-term babies in great health! I’ll be back online soon with more details…

And for those of you that have called or written, my mum has recovered from her cancer treatment and had her first anniversary cancer-free!

And anywhere is where we’d rather be.” (some of you might catch that lyric reference..In my need for strength and hope I turn to the music in my heart and sing along to lyrics of one of my most favorite artists.)

But then, again, it is important that my nostagia does not cause me to be lost to reality, and being in the moment and loving is the one of best places to be if want to truly live and be present for those we love.

For the hundreds of you that visit my site, I’d like to ask a favor, as there is certain strength in numbers…Please keep my mum in your thoughts. She was just diagnosed with Stage 2 Mucinous Carcinoma of the breast. We are awaiting her appt. at Stanford for an MRI to determine more details.

I celebrate that she was unsatisfied with the ’status quo’ report following her mamography earlier this year, and pushed for additional tests. She poked and prodded and did self exams and found this lump on her own. Now, following her follow up tests and a biopsy the results are alarming, but we will conquer this.

I am sure you are aware of my own belief of what causes cells to become malignant, and my own feeling on how situations such as this should be approached. I love my mother, and although she does feel strongly that Integrative Medicine will be part of her options, she is clear that she will be following the direction of her oncologist. As her daughter I will stand by her and shine the light on the benefits of nutrition and natural wellness as adjunct therapy. I pray that I will be strong and supportive and be able to be helpful.

My summer plans have changed drastically, and I will be flying immediately to California to be with her and my sister in Santa Cruz. I will be there this week, and will likely travel again several times in the months to come.

I will keep everyone informed as to what is happening, and how the family is holding up. It is in times like this that we must all take good care of our own health so that we can be strong.

I did need to say that I am reworking my schedule for July, August and September, and I apologize this means my ebook launch will delayed till later in the year and my clients may have less of my time over the weeks to come.

Thank you for those who have already responded with caring emails and calls. I believe we have the tools to transcend disease, and I appreciate everyone who has sent thier love and hugs along. I may open up my comments to the public so we can share this in community.

In health and happiness,
Cassy