What is Digestive Health?

The phrase “digestive health” has been making the advertising and marketing rounds. Jamie Lee Curtis claims that if you eat her recommended brand of yogurt, you will have better “digestive health.” A new drug is now on the market that is purported to restore your digestive balance. There are many, many commercials for all kinds of indigestion, including heartburn, gas, bloating.

What is digestive health or digestive balance? Well, it is more than just yogurt. Digestive health is more than just a reduction of symptoms and most certainly digestion is NOT as automatic as people think. Consider all the diet crazes. The authors of these books assume that you, you the patient, you the individual with your unique biochemical and physical make-up, can digest everything that is in the diet books.

The digestive process is one of the most overlooked, poorly understood processes of the body but it is—even according to some school of Chinese Medicine—absolutely the most critical. Hippocrates is quoted as saying, “All disease starts in the center.” In other words, as your digestive system develops problems, your ability to absorb what you are eating is diminished.

Gut pain is the first sign that something is wrong. Don’t just cover it up by taking an acid reducer! Your body is trying to tell you NOT to eat the chili dog. Find the cause by seeing a digestive health practitioner like me so you will know why your tummy is rumbly!