Nutrition and the "Average" Person
Nutrition is critical to everyone but belongs to no profession. In other words, multiple professions can lay claim to dispensing nutritional advice but not one profession owns it. My mentor, Dr. Howard Loomis, discusses this dilemma in his book, Enzymes: The Key to Health.
Various nutritional theories abound but who do you trust and listen to? How do consumers of food sort through the mess of so-called "studies," diet books, self-proclaimed experts in nutrition doling out their version of nutritional fact? How about the firefighter who wrote a book about his diet and was featured recently on CBS This Morning? What background in nutrition is enough to be considered an "expert" in the field of nutrition? Apparently, not much.
With the years of nutritional study and running a practice based in holistic health to back me, I can see that consumers (no pun intended) are stuck in the middle. Discerning information that appears credible and weighing evidence becomes a difficult task for anyone who just wants to eat without having pain or bodily consequences.
It comes down to this: all of the diets out there are designed for an average person. I, for one, have no average patients and do not consider myself average. Additionally, all diets written for the masses overlook the individual's ability to DIGEST and ABSORB the prescribed diet. Have you seen how many drug ads are on TV, hawking the latest in acid reduction or GI discomfort? How about the ads for yogurt claiming that they can help with "digestive health"? Or, how about the sheer number of people self-diagnosing themselves with gluten intolerance and the increase in the availability of gluten-free foods? Clearly, there is a problem with a lot of digestive tracts! Consequently, there are a lot of people out there not ABSORBING their nutrients well.
There is NO "average" person. I evaluate and examine patients, get them on a diet appropriate for them, and give them a customized program of herbal and enzyme formulas to help them digest and absorb their food and normalize bowel function. I re-evaluate and re-examine to monitor progress, change the formulas as the patient's body heals, and we go from there.
If you are having problems with your digestive system, consider making an appointment for a consultation today! I will be happy to help you!
