Gas & Inflation or is it Heartburn?

Mark H. LaBeau,D.O.

Due to our fast paced lifestyle almost everyone deals with gas and indigestion more frequently than we would like.  Certainly fast food and good dietary health are incompatible.  This is one good reason that many other cultures do not consider fast food a reasonable dietary option.  After all, then when do we get the opportunity to relax and enjoy each other’s company?? A more leisurely 30-45 minute meal is ideal for proper digestion and is a good place to start. 

 The next area to consider is the food choices we make.  Often the foods we crave or “comfort foods” are ones that we are sensitive to.  Typically, we are not aware of food sensitivities since we often have experienced symptoms like indigestion, bloating, and sleepiness after meals for all of our lives.  Only when there are outward skin manifestations like eczema or psoriasis will one be prompted to seek out medical intervention. 

Over years of consuming foods that we are sensitive to, causes the digestive lining to get inflamed and irritated.  Due to the destruction of this protective lining, foods and microorganisms that typically would present no problem engage our immune system, which is the next level of defense.  Now the stage for gastritis, reflux, ulcer, and sometimes even cancer is set.

Two effective ways to evaluate for food sensitivities are a food IgG blood test or through a screening analysis known as a Biomeridian.  With the Biomeridian we can additionally screen for nutritional imbalances as well as any imbalances of microorganisms.  This often is caused by a chronic need for antibiotics or even an inability of our immature immune system to tolerate vaccines.  In fact, some organisms like measles have been identified in the gut lining of infants after vaccination. 

The best treatment, by far, is our 8 Day Cleansing Program.  It is both aggressive in killing off and starving undesirable microorganisms as well as being hypo-allergic by avoiding all common foods that one might be sensitive to.  This gives your gut that all-important time it needs to heal.  Similarly with a sore on our skin, if we keep on picking it then it will never heal.

 The next most important thing to do is to avoid any foods that you are sensitive to.  After a period of avoidance, such as with the 8 Day Cleanse, you will usually notice an obvious aggravation of symptoms if you again try to eat food that you are sensitive to.
Your doctor will usually prescribe specific supplements to aid in the healing of your digestive tract.  This can be accomplished by “muscle testing” a technique originated by Chiropractic physicians to evaluate whether a substance weakens an individuals body.     A good indicator for the need of “muscle testing” is if one is already known to be sensitive to various foods, medications, chemicals, and/or environmental allergens.
One of the advantages of an Integrative Medical Center like CAM is that our physicians are well versed in both traditional as well as nutritional medicine.  Therefore, good sound medical judgments can be made regarding whether prescriptive medicine, nutritional supplements, or a combination of both are needed to treat a condition.  In the case of gastritis and acid reflux conditions, we want to reduce prescriptive medications as soon as possible since they interfere with optimal food absorption.  Instead, our primary objective is to identify and remove any offending agents that degrade the digestive lining.  A healthy and intact digestive lining allows optimal absorption of foods as well as acting as a primary defense against any microorganisms that we might be exposed to.

 We might choose nutritional supplements containing Aloe Vera, Turmeric, or deglycyrrhizinized licorice (DGL) to reduce inflammation. A stool culture is another consideration especially for those with a chronic condition.  Here we often see a combination of bacterial, fungal, and often parasitic organisms.   We get our best diagnostic results using a lab that specializes in bacteriology.  In these cases it is not unusual to prescribe one or more antibiotics.  Chronic infections can be passed on to others that we live with especially with intimate contact.  In such cases we will recommend that these individuals be treated also.

For some people postural imbalances can be a primary problem.  This can be caused by chronically poor posture or a trauma such as an auto accident, which causes a shock and sudden loss of breath.  This then causes constriction of the diaphragm and postural muscles, which surround and support the esophagus and stomach.  In fact, just under our diaphragm are 60% of our digestive organs: stomach, duodenum, liver, gallbladder, pancreas, and the transverse colon.  I have come to look at the diaphragm as having as much effect on digestion as with our breathing. 

Fortunately, Osteopathic and/or Chiropractic therapy can significantly improve such postural imbalances including those caused decades earlier.  Of course, longer and more complex problems can take several treatments before you see and feel improvements in function. In a similar way, acupuncture has been shown to help various digestive symptoms by optimizing blood, nerve, and meridian flow to the digestive system.  I find that the best results are obtained when sensitive points are selected according to the patients condition.  Some patients have even noted a change and reduction of food cravings as they undergo acupuncture treatment.

In conclusion, many factors should be considered with upper digestive problems.  We might actually be sensitive to those very foods we crave, there could be an imbalance of microorganisms, and/or there may be long-term postural problems interfering with our digestive functioning.  Especially when your problem has gone on for 6 months or more, a team approach by two or more of our practioners is the most efficient and cost effective way to resolve your problem.
For what is life without good health?

6/18/7