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Colitis, Ulcers & IBS |
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Colitis & IBS |
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A NATURAL HEALING VIEWPOINT ON COLITIS, ULCER, AND OTHER GI PROBLEMS Your digestive tract is
well over twenty feet long. If you were to flatten out just your small
intestine, its total absorptive area would be half the size of a basketball
court. This is an important bit
of real estate. Naturopaths tend to annoy
medical specialists by looking at gastrointestinal (GI) problems such as
colitis, ulcers, spastic colon, irritable bowel syndrome and even Crohn's disease
as manifestations of the same two problems, just in different places. These
two fundamental causes of most GI disorders are systemic toxemia (a polluted
body) and malnutrition. This means one is taking in too much of the
wrong things and not enough of the right ones. Persons with GI troubles
simply must stop doing things that hurt their guts. Smoking, alcohol,
coffee, meat, food additives, and stress must be systematically eliminated.
If a person is not willing to stop doing things that hurt, there is a greatly
reduced chance of success with things that help. I need add nothing
about why drinking and smoking harm your digestive system. Coffee
drinking and meat eating, though, are often allowed by doctors unwilling to
stop those habits themselves. But one has to confront even the popular,
little vices if doing so can save big suffering. Persons who move
towards vegetarianism and away from coffee will not be disappointed. I may not make a lot of
friends with this article, but these are the facts, ma'am: a
near-vegetarian diet has important advantages. It is high in bulk, high
in vitamin C, and high in carotene vitamin A. A vegetarian diet is cheap
and low fat. And incidentally, there are fewer dishes to do. The lining of your entire
digestive tract is made up of epithelial tissue. Epithelial cells are
"skin" cells. Your skin covers both the outside and the inside
of your body. You might think of yourself as a sleeping bag: there is an
outer waterproof covering and an inner, softer lining. Since epithelial
tissue is very dependent on vitamins A and C for its health and integrity,
and since a diet high in fruits, sprouts and veggies is quite high in these
vitamins, you can see the vegetarian's advantage. The additional bulk of
a veggie diet makes stools softer and easier to pass. Pressure is
reduced inside the colon and straining to have a bowel movement is
eliminated. Persons with very sensitive intestines can temporarily juice
their vegetables and even put their salads through a blender if
necessary. This tastes a lot better than it sounds, and is an extremely
gentle and digestible way to instantly improve nutritional status. Fruits
and especially vegetables are so high in carotenes that supplemental vitamin
A is not needed if you are juicing. Carotene vitamin A is
non-toxic. Years ago, one of my
naturopathic textbooks was entitled Everybody's Guide to Nature Cure,
by Dr. Harry Benjamin. At the time, I resisted the way he began practically
every treatment the same way: with a fast. His advice has withstood the
test of time. Persons with GI troubles often get the most relief by
just shutting down the digestive system for a while. A few days fasting
gives the body a chance to rest and repair. Naturopaths believe, and
anatomical evidence confirms, that given this chance the body will take
advantage of it. Earlier I mentioned that
your intestinal tract is lined with epithelial cells. These cells,
called enterocytes, are replaced by your body every three to five days
(Williams, Nutrition and Diet Therapy, 7th ed, page 29). This
suggests that a fast of similar length would best enable the
reconstruction. If I were going to work on While it is possible for
some people to fast on water alone, I think this is unnecessary. Equally
good results will be obtained (with greater comfort) by vegetable juice
fasting. One might argue that juice fasts are ideal because they provide
the healing vitamins A and C. The minimal carbohydrate content of
vegetable juices promotes normal blood sugar levels, provides electrolyte
minerals, and prevents ketosis. And, vegetable juice fasting feels remarkably
GOOD and it WORKS remarkably well. (You may want to read my article
entitled "How To
Juice Fast" for some helpful pointers.) To give you an idea of
the therapeutic potential of vegetable juices, consider the work of Garnett
Cheney, M.D. He had 100 peptic ulcer patients drink a quart of raw
cabbage juice daily. The patients reported dramatically less pain, and
X-ray examination confirmed faster healing time. There was no other
change in their diet, and they did not have drug therapy. 81% of the
patients were symptom-free within one week; over twothirds were better
in just four days. Average healing time for patients given standard hospital
treatment was over a month. (Cheney, G: "Vitamin U Therapy of Peptic
Ulcer," California Medicine, vol. 77, number 4, October, 1952) Dr. Cheney used cabbage
juice to also treat gastric ulcers and duodenal ulcers. He clearly was
onto something, which he called "Vitamin U" (for ulcer) for lack of
a better name. Today, the cabbage family (cruciform) vegetables
including Brussels sprouts, cauliflower and broccoli, are finally being
recommended to help prevent diseases including cancer. Dr. Cheney was getting
therapeutic results in four days with cabbage juice OVER FORTY YEARS AGO! Do
we really have to wait for orthodox medical approval of vegetables? I know of people who have
utilized cabbage juice along with vegetarian diet and fasting to heal all
forms of gastrointestinal diseases without drugs and without surgery.
One person even cured her untreatable rectal bleeding with cabbage juice. The
attending physician confirmed her excellent but unexplained progress, asking
her what she was doing. She told the doctor of her diet and about cabbage
juice. His response was, "No, that couldn't be it." Supplemental vitamin C is
very valuable to help heal lesions and inflammation all along the GI
tract. Thousands of milligrams in divided doses are necessary for best
results. Enough "C" should be taken to improve the condition,
but not so much as might cause excessively loose bowels. A non-acidic or
buffered vitamin C is ideal, because it will not irritate the digestive
tract. Calcium ascorbate or an esterfied vitamin C (ascorbyl palmitate)
both work well. Some organized form of
stress reduction is essential for digestive system health and healing. Whether
it is prayer, meditation, yoga, music or another approach, what matters
most is if you will actually learn how to relax efficiently and take the time
to do it every day! That goes for juicing,
too. What is the best juicer to buy? The one you will USE! If
you don't want to begin juice fasting just yet, you can certainly begin by
adding some cabbage juice to your diet. Just a glass with each meal plus
one more equals a quart a day. Can you sweeten it? To quote Curly
the Stooge: "Why, soitenly!" Remember Mary Poppins'
advice about that spoonful of sugar, and do what it takes to be
healthy. REFERENCES AND ADDITIONAL
Cheney G. Prevention of
histamine-induced peptic ulcers by diet. Stanford Med Bull. 6:334, 1948 Cheney G. Rapid healing
of peptic ulcers in patients receiving fresh cabbage juice. Cheney G. The nature of
the antipepticulcer dietary factor. Stanford Med Bull. 1950 Aug;8(3):144-61. Cheney G. Antipeptic
ulcer dietary factor. American Dietetics Assoc. 26:9 September, 1950. Cheney G. Vitamin U
therapy of peptic ulcer. Cheney G. Vitamin U
concentrate therapy of peptic ulcer. Am J Gastroenterol. 1954
Mar;21(3):230-50. Cheney G. The medical
management of gastric ulcers with vitamin U therapy. Stanford Med Bull. 1955
May;13(2):204-14. Cheney G, Waxler SH,
Miller IJ. Vitamin U therapy of peptic ulcer; experience at San Quentin
Prison. Pauling, Linus: How To
Live Longer and Feel Better, Freeman, 1986, revised 1996, pages 112-113 Stone, Irwin: The Healing
Factor: Vitamin C Against Disease, Grosset and Dunlap, 1972, Chapter
21. A good librarian will
help you locate any hard-to-find article or book. Try an
Interlibrary Loan if necessary.
Copyright C 2004 and prior years Andrew W.
Saul. Andrew Saul is the author of the books FIRE
YOUR DOCTOR! How to be Independently Healthy (reader reviews at
http://www.doctoryourself.com/review.html
) and DOCTOR YOURSELF: Natural Healing that Works. (reviewed at http://www.doctoryourself.com/saulbooks.html
) For ordering information, Click Here .
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AN IMPORTANT NOTE: This page is not in any way offered as prescription, diagnosis nor treatment for any disease, illness, infirmity or physical condition. Any form of self-treatment or alternative health program necessarily must involve an individual's acceptance of some risk, and no one should assume otherwise. Persons needing medical care should obtain it from a physician. Consult your doctor before making any health decision. Neither the author nor the webmaster has authorized the use of their names or the use of any material contained within in connection with the sale, promotion or advertising of any product or apparatus. Single-copy reproduction for individual, non-commercial use is permitted providing no alterations of content are made, and credit is given. |
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