Page 39 - Summer2010

people consumed far less fiber in favor of more foods swell and ferment in the intestinal tract,
nutrient dense, easy-to-digest foods such as high leading to gas, bloating and other uncomfortable
quality dairy from grass-fed animals—raw milk, digestive symptoms. This expanded mass may
cream, cheese and butter—high quality meats be too large to pass easily.
and fish, bone broth soups and cooked vegetables Traditional peoples did not drink large quan-
with butter. Your grandmothers and great- tities of water. Instead, they stayed hydrated with
grandmothers did not serve salads and fresh fruit raw milk, fermented beverages and bone broth
every day—it simply wasn’t available. Before soups, which have incredible nutrient qualities
refrigeration and motorized transportation, sal- and do not upset the body’s homeostasis. They
ads were a luxury, consumed only occasionally. also consumed plenty of traditional fats like but-
Fresh fruit was only eaten in season—and often ter, cream, lard and coconut oil. Fats render much
served stewed rather than raw. more water during metabolism than proteins or
In the stomach, your food cannot pass into carbohydrates. So as people succumb to drinking
the small intestine unless it is small enough to large quantities of water, not only will they lower
pass through the small valve called the pyloric the acid levels in the stomach, their digestion and
valve. If you already have compromised diges- nutrient absorption will be compromised. Over
tion and low stomach acid, eating lots of hard- time this also contributes to malnourishment.
to-digest fiber, whether from whole grains or
fresh fruits and vegetables, will churn around NOT ENOUGH SALT
and around fermenting, waiting to become small In addition to a lowfat, high-fiber diet, gov-
enough to enter the small intestine. During this ernment officials and health professionals tell us
time, gases are produced that will press against to avoid salt. Of course, salty junk foods should
your cardiac sphincter and over time, may lead be avoided—but not because they contain a lot
to a hiatal hernia. of salt. In spite of claims that salt raises blood
One other point: high-fiber foods tend to be pressure, there has never been clear evidence that
low-nutrient foods. So eating a high-fiber diet is, reducing salt intake helps prevent hypertension.
in effect, eating a low-nutrient, hard-to-digest Decades of research have produced conflict-
diet. When this dietary pattern is followed year ing, ambiguous results. And salt is important
after year, malnourishment is sure to follow. A for many functions in the body, including cell
raw salad, for instance, does not have the same metabolism.
nutrient density as raw milk—a glass of raw When it comes to good digestion, salt is criti- If you are
milk contains the nutrients of about fifty pounds cal to the production of hydrochloric acid—the
of fresh grass. Since we are not cows with four chloride portion of sodium chloride serves as drinking lots
stomachs especially made for breaking down chloride for hydrochloric acid. We have very few of water
cellulose, let’s let cows do most of the high-fiber other sources of chloride in our diets—celery and throughout
eating. coconut are some of the best, but certainly not the day, your
adequate to satisfy human needs. Without salt,
TOO MUCH WATER we cannot produce enough hydrochloric acid for stomach acid
If you are drinking lots of water throughout protein breakdown and good digestion overall. will become
the day, your stomach acid will become diluted,
leading to acid reflux and all the other problems THE PATH TO PERMANENT HEALING diluted,
herein described. In addition, too much water Treatment of acid reflux must move well leading to
may cause mineral depletion and imbalances, beyond the realm of symptom relief if true acid reflux
which can further contribute to digestive disor- healing is to occur. Focusing on nutrient-dense,
ders, as well as kidney disease, degenerative bone easy-to-digest foods over time will do the triple and all the
disease, muscular disorders and even cardiac duty of relieving symptoms, improving diges- other
arrest from electrical dysfunction. tion and correcting malnourishment. We must problems
Paradoxically, over-consumption of water also remove possible blocks to healing such as
may also cause constipation. When too much mercury overload. herein
water is added to a high-fiber diet, the fibrous To heal, it is important to focus on nutrient- described.

SUMMER 2010 Wise Traditions 39