The Cause and Effect of Health and Disease

“Your immune system begins in your gut—and if you have enzyme and digestive issues, chances are your immune system is not functioning as well as it should be.”

We might have a limited or controlled understanding about how our health is affected, and about the bedding ground of disease, the gut, where the disease processes begin.

How our food is digested, is dependent on enzymes: if a proper amount is not present when food is consumed, the digestion process is compromised, and the food passes into the intestines unprocessed and not fully digested. This leads to inflammation and the buildup of undigested proteins plaquing the walls of the intestines. After time, the buildup blocks the digested food from entering the bloodstream, reducing the needed nutrients for remaining healthy. As we age, our digestive system changes, and if we fail to maintain the digestive process, disease of every nature begins to form. According to Lumen Learning, Age Related Changes to the Digestive System, the walls of the small intestines atrophy with age. This alters the shape of the villi and reduces the surface area across which absorption occurs. Along with the atrophy there is a decrease in the production of digestive enzymes.[1]

In addition, the environment of the human gut is dependent on balanced bacteria culture. If the bacterial environment is unbalanced, it resonates throughout the body known as bacterial overgrowth syndrome (BOS)—it “is a term that describes clinical manifestations that occur when the normally low number of necessary bacteria inhabit the stomach, duodenum, jejunum, and proximal ileum significantly increases or becomes overtaken by other pathogens. (…) These bacteria are thought to be present from the time of birth and through adulthood, living in symbiosis with the human host.”[2] This combined effect indigestive proteins and the overgrowth of bacterial culture is where all diseases have their origin.

A “large population-based nested case-control study found an 11% increase in the risk of AD [Alzheimer’s disease] associated with exposure to CAHPI [Helicobacter pylori infection] among subjects aged at least 50 years. The increase in the risk of AD reached a peak of 24% roughly a decade after the onset of CAHPI.”[3] The Helicobacter pylori infection is a type of bacteria that infects the stomach—it can damage its tissue and the first part of the small intestine, the duodenum.

Why is it that this knowledge is not dispensed rather than the drugs used to treat the disease process caused by a lack of proper maintenance during the aging process? Today doctors do not see the importance of diet to prevent disease, let alone advice the need of supplementation during the aging process. I recall speaking with an internist who specializes in internal medicine, in regards to diet in preventing diabetes; he said to me there is no need for anything else because the body is equipped with a pancreas, which functions to maintain healthy blood sugar levels, including insulin, glucagon and other hormones. I asked him if he did not believe that changes to the diet restricting sugars could help eliminate diabetes since diabetes occurs when the pancreas does not produce enough insulin. He said no, because our body was designed to be able to process any and all kinds of foods. I asked him what happened when this process stopped working. He said “then we give insulin and carry on.”

Today I received a post requesting prayers. The back story: this person was in the hospital with multiple health issues and due to infection in his leg, the doctors are planning to amputate the infected leg. I do believe in the power of prayer but I also believe in accountability; not so much applied to the individual following doctor’s care but the medical system that has allowed the condition to deteriorate to the point of amputation.

The reason why medical doctors are not trained on the importance of nutrition is that “[a]lthough nutrition education varies by school, a 2021 survey of medical schools in the U.S. and U.K., published in the Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics, found that most students receive an average of 11 hours of nutrition training throughout an entire medical program.”[4]

Why are they not trained on the importance of nutrition and the prevention of disease rather than the diseased state and what drugs to prescribe or what operation is needed? With this understanding is it any wonder that MDs have such a high rate of eating disorders? Data are limited on the prevalence of eating disorders among healthcare workers, but studies do exist. A 2019 global review and meta-analysis determined that the summary prevalence of eating disorder risk among medical students was 10.4%.[5] A 2022 update of that review increased the estimate to 17.35%.[6]

Eating disorders affect not only medical students but children too. Hospitalizations due to eating disorders increased in Canadian kids “by 139% in Ontario, Canada, from 2002 to 2019.” “Findings from the population-based, cross-sectional study, which included 11,654 pediatric eating disorder hospitalizations, showed a 416% increase among boys compared with a 123% increase in girls, a 196% increase among the 12- to 14-year-old age group, and a 255% increase in disorders other than anorexia or bulimia nervosa.”[7]

Today we know that the medical doctors know very little about remaining healthy for life and everything about treating the disease symptoms with chemical based synthetic drugs or surgery. Unfortunately, in a time when you can buy vitamins for $4.00 in The Dollar Store, maintaining health seems to be even more complicated. To be able to retail a bottle of probiotics for $4.00, the cost price must be at least $2.00 to cover overhead—what kind of quality could one hope to receive with such low costs? These synthetic products are not food supplements, they are not intended for prevention of the disease process nor treat declining health, at best they are produced as a placebo to make you feel that you are improving your health. These same product lines also appear in health food stores, some brands use one label for the pharmacy and one label for the health food stores to appear as being higher quality,  they are all the same and you get what you pay for. In comparison, Life Choice uses recycled packaging for the green initiative, organic cotton to prevent capsule breakage, vegetarian capsules and no harmful flow agents, methylated minerals in their predigested state; match the costs of these synthetic supplements and we are not yet talking about the principle raw materials.

Life Choice Full Spectrum Digestive Enzyme helps you break down food into smaller parts that can be absorbed, transported and utilized by every cell in your body. Digestion begins in your mouth, starting with saliva. As food passes into your stomach, proteins are worked on by various enzymes, mainly protease. From there, the food passes into your small intestine, (90% of digestion takes place in your small intestines) where lipase begins to break down fats, and amylase finishes off the carbohydrates. Besides breaking down food, enzymes (particularly the proteases) can help with gut healing, controlling pathogens, and immune support. Your immune system begins in your gut—and if you have enzyme and digestive issues, chances are your immune system is not functioning as well as it should be.

Those with poor functioning gallbladders or those who have had them removed will greatly benefit by using this enzyme because it contains ox bile. The gallbladder is responsible for storing bile, which is produced in the liver and released by the gallbladder. If the gallbladder has been removed, bile must be produced by the liver and sent to the small intestines for digestion. This severally marginalizes its effectiveness and when taking Full Spectrum Digestive Enzyme, the problem is quickly addressed. Remember, the key is bioavailability.

Laktokhan® probiotic contains 10 billion CFU (colony-forming units) of four human strains of friendly intestinal microflora. These friendly bacteria help keep harmful bacteria from multiplying in our intestines. Antibiotics can kill off healthy bacteria and lead to weakened immunity and intestinal disorders. Laktokhan® restores the balance of good bacteria, thus helping to normalize digestive function and boost immunity. Laktokhan® is completely vegan, the prebiotic is sourced completely naturally from chicory root.

As you see, the system is stacked against society but for those who are enlightened there are numerous preventative pathways for remaining healthy for life with the avoidance of disease.

Additional Reading:

References:

[1] https://courses.lumenlearning.com/atd-herkimer-biologyofaging/chapter/age-related-changes-to-the-digestive-system/

[2] Animalu, Chinelo N. 2023.

[3] Douros, Antonios et al. 2023.

[4] Millard, Elizabeth. 2023.

[5] Jahrami, Haitham et al. 2019.

[6] Fekih-Romdhane, Feten et al. 2022.

[7] Johnson, Kate. 2023.