FW Guide - Step 5
Transcript of FW Guide - Step 5
STEP 5: ABSORB WHAT YOU EAT
© Nutritional Therapy Association, Inc. Contents
How Digestion is Supposed to Work 1 .................................................
The Brain & Nervous System 1 .............................................................................
The Gastrointestinal Tract 3 ...................................................................................
How Digestion Can Be Derailed 13 .......................................................
The Brain & Nervous System 14 ...........................................................................
The Gastrointestinal Tract 15 .................................................................................
How to Optimize Gut Health & Absorb More Nutrients 23 ........
Avoid Dietary Toxins & Problematic Foods 23 ................................................
Source & Prepare Your Food for Optimal Digestion 29 ................................
Prepare Your Brain & Body for Optimal Digestion 37...................................
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© Nutritional Therapy Association, Inc. How Digestion is Supposed to Work
How Digestion is Supposed to Work
In this video, we are going to provide a brief overview of how
optimal digestion works, and how our body converts the food we
eat into fuel and the basic building blocks of our cells. You don’t
need to memorize every step, but we do believe that it’s important
to have a global understanding of the digestive process so you can
make any needed changes in how you eat and live.
THE BRAIN & NERVOUS SYSTEM
Where do you think digestion starts? It’s common to think that it
starts in the mouth with chewing, but it actually starts in the brain,
with the sight and smell of food. So let’s start off our north to
south journey through the digestive system where the
physiological magic begins: up in the head.
Digestion Starts in the Brain
Digestion—from the thought of what you will make for dinner, to
the first cut of a vegetable, to the first smell of a delicious soup
cooking, to the taste on your tongue—starts in the brain. We’ve
talked about the importance of cooking throughout this course,
but one of the most important reasons for preparing our own
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meals is that we get to sense our meals from start to finish. The
more touch points we have with our food before we start chewing,
the better able our bodies will be to digest and assimilate what we
eat. Smelling, tasting, feeling, and even just thinking about food
causes what’s called a cephalic response: we begin to salivate, gastric
juices begin to fill the stomach, and even the pancreas gets in on
the action, all to prepare for the digestion and absorption of the
meal we’re about to eat.
Digestion Requires Being in a Parasympathetic State
The brain controls digestion in two key ways:
‣ Balancing the autonomic nervous system.
‣ Sending signals through the vagus nerve.
For optimal digestion to occur, the autonomic nervous system, or
ANS, needs to be primarily in the parasympathetic, or “rest and
digest” mode. This branch of the ANS carefully regulates
mechanical grinding (or chewing), secretion of gastric juices,
absorption of certain nutrients, and finally defecation, of our the
wastes left behind after digesting our food. The vagus nerve,
mentioned above, is the main parasympathetic nerve that controls
these actions, its path beginning all the way up in the brainstem,
and running down through our stomach, small intestine, and
ending in the farthest parts of the colon.
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The sympathetic or “fight or flight” branch of the ANS, on the other
hand, has the opposite effect on digestion: it inhibits gastric
secretions, restricts blood flow to the GI tract, and prioritizes
immediate survival over long-term health.
Both branches of the ANS are essential for us to survive and
thrive, but as in all things, the key is balance, context, and timing.
Preparing, eating, and digesting our food in a calm, relaxed,
parasympathetic state helps increase our enjoyment of life, the
quantity of nutrients we absorb, and our ability to eliminate waste
in a timely fashion.
See the Sympathetic vs Parasympathetic Guide for more on the
difference between both states.
THE GASTROINTESTINAL TRACT
The gastrointestinal tract is essentially a long tube that begins at
the mouth and ends at the anus. Though this tube resides within
our bodies, in many important ways, the inside of the tube is
actually outside of us. Just like the skin on the outside of our
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bodies, the lining of the tube acts as an important barrier to the
outside world.
The Mouth
The mouth plays three important roles in digestion:
‣ The tongue sends signals to the brain about the type of
nutrients being eaten. Beyond simply detecting basic flavors
and moving food around the mouth, the tongue actually
sends important signals to the brain about the nutritive
content of the food coming in, which in turn leads the brain
to orchestrate nerve and hormone signals to other parts of
the digestive system.
‣ Chewing breaks down food for easier digestion. The better
you chew your food, the easier it will be for your body to
absorb the nutrients it contains. Sufficient chewing also
increases the production of saliva, which brings me to the
next point.
‣ Saliva helps begin the breakdown of carbohydrates and
lubricates food for easier swallowing. Saliva contains an
enzyme called salivary amylase, which helps begin the
breakdown of carbohydrates within in the mouth. This
process is later continued in the stomach and intestines, but
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gets an important jumpstart in the mouth when we eat
slowly enough.
The Stomach
When you swallow your food, it goes into the stomach, where your
stomach muscles contract and mash everything together. Imagine
that you’ve got a big Ziploc bag full of vegetable soup, and you use
your hands to massage the bag and mash up the contents. That’s
basically what your stomach is doing, in addition to adding some
digestive juices that are going to chemically break down the
contents. We call that gastric juice.
The contents of the stomach need to be very acidic—enough to
break down the food you’ve eaten. The stomach makes hydrochloric
acid to make the contents of the stomach very acidic, even more so
than lemon juice or vinegar. The hydrochloric acid also triggers an
enzyme called pepsin that breaks down proteins. Proteins are long
chains of amino acids folded into complex, twisted, spiral shapes,
sort of a like a Slinky toy that a three-year-old got a hold of.
Hydrochloric acid acts to denature, or unwind, the proteins. Then,
pepsin comes along and acts like a pair of scissors, cutting apart
the long protein chains into smaller bits called polypeptides, so that
they are small enough to be absorbed through the small intestine
further downstream. The acid also unbinds various nutrients from
our food so we can better absorb them. Lastly, the acid acts to kill
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any “bad guys” we may have consumed—pathogenic bugs we
definitely don’t want to make their way past the stomach.
The Liver & Gallbladder
After the mechanical and chemical breakdown of food is complete
in the stomach, our food is now in a paste-like form called chyme.
Chyme is released a little bit at a time into the duodenum, the first
part of the small intestine. Once chyme has entered the
duodenum, the fats present in the chyme signal the release of bile
from the gallbladder, which help begin the process of fat
digestion.
Thankfully, the liver and gallbladder are ready for digestion. Our
liver cells, called hepatocytes, continuously release bile into the
gallbladder for storage, and it is held there until needed. Bile is an
amazing, fat digesting substance made of water, bile salts,
cholesterol, amino acids, enzymes, and vitamins. Bile can also
contain heavy metals and other toxins processed out by the liver
that the body hopes to carry out through the digestive tract.
The Pancreas
The pancreas is a 4 to 7-inch long organ that sits deeply within the
left side of our body. One of two major functions of the pancreas
is to release enzymes that help further breakdown chyme once it
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is released into the small intestine. This is the exocrine, or external
excretion, function of the pancreas, and over 99% of the pancreas’
exocrine cells produce and release digestive juices. These juices
contain salt, sodium bicarbonate, and the digestive enzymes lipase
(which helps digest fat), protease (which helps digest protein), and
amylase (which helps digest carbohydrates).
The Small Intestine
The small intestine is segmented into 3 main parts:
‣ The duodenum: The duodenum is the first and shortest part
of the small intestine, measuring about 1 foot (xx) on
average. Sodium bicarbonate is released into this segment of
the small intestines to neutralize the acidity of the chyme, as
well as various digestive enzymes from the pancreas, and
bile from the gallbladder (which helps break down fats as
mentioned above).
‣ The jejunum: The next segment of the small intestine, known
as the jejunum, is where we absorb the majority of nutrients
from the food we eat. The cells lining the jejunum have
special finger-like projections called villi and microvilli, both
of which significantly increase the total surface area of our
intestines and increase our availability to absorb nutrients.
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On average, the jejunum measures about 8.2 feet (2.5 meters)
long.
‣ The ileum: The last segment of the small intestine is called
the ileum (from the Greek word eilein which means “to twist
up tightly”). There is no clear dividing line between the
jejunum and the ileum, but there are some key differences.
For example, the jejunum contains more fat, has a smaller
lumen (the open space inside the intestines), and the highest
percentage of Peyer’s patches within the gut, which are an
important part of the immune system. On average, the ileum
measures about 6.5 to 13 feet (2 to 4 meters) long.
The small intestine is an underappreciated powerhouse of our
body, contributing to a substantial amount of immune function
along with its main digestive function of nutrient absorption. At
the NTA, we consider the small intestine the Center of the
Digestive Universe!
As the chyme moves from the duodenum into the jejunum, and
finally into the ileum, it interacts with the beautiful and complex
structure of the small intestine in order for nutrients to be
absorbed. So, let’s go deep into the small intestine to understand
just a bit of the structures that actually absorb our nutrients:
As the chyme makes its way through the small intestine, propelled
by wave-like muscle contractions called peristalsis, nutrients are
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selectively absorbed into our bloodstream through special cells
that line our gut. From the walls of the small intestine protrude a
mucosal layer called the Folds of Kerckring. Off these folds are
finger-like projections called villi, and these villi are made of
hundreds of cells called enterocytes. From the enterocytes project
microvilli, microscopic extensions of the enterocytes’ plasma
membrane. But wait…there’s more! The microvilli of the
enterocytes are what make up the brush border, the border of the
enterocytes that face the inner, open tube of the small intestine,
called the lumen. Most of the enzymes produced by the small
intestine live in this brush border region; thus, they are called
brush border enzymes.
This structure and function is so important to the body that our
small intestine covers an immense surface area—approximately
300 meters squared!—in order to optimize nutrient absorption.
Imagine the area of a 3 foot wide sidewalk that is 3 football fields
in length!
You can think of a healthy gut lining like a row of hard-nosed but
super-smart bouncers that only allow in the nutrients, ions, and
water the body wants, turning away undigested food particles and
pathogens. This row of “bouncers” is commonly referred to as tight
junctions, protein structures that keep the lining of our small
intestine strong and healthy. If these tight junctions are negatively
affected by inflammation, stress, or pathogens, then the
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operations of the small intestine can go haywire and eventually
lead to pathologies such as inflammatory bowel diseases or other
forms of autoimmunity.
The Large Intestine
The large intestine receives what is left of the chyme from the
small intestine, and reabsorbs water, electrolytes, and some
nutrients. The large intestine is approximately 5 feet long and
includes:
‣ The ileocecal valve
‣ The cecum
‣ The appendix
‣ The ascending colon, the part that ascends up toward the liver
‣ The transverse colon, the part that transverses across your
upper abdomen
‣ The descending colon, the part that descends from your upper
left abdomen (near your pancreas and spleen) down toward
your low middle abdomen
‣ The rectum
‣ The anus, where elimination of feces occurs.
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Muscular contractions along the large intestine gently mix the
remaining chyme for optimal reabsorption, and move the mixture
through the colon and toward the rectum and anus.
The most amazing feature of the large intestine is its bacterial
content. Various bacterial strains make up an enormous
community of microorganisms in the colon, including 100 billion
to 100 trillion symbiotic organisms living right inside our guts!
Given this fact, some have asked the funny but profound question:
“Are we humans having a bacterial experience, or are we bacteria having
a human experience?”
These bacteria serve us in many ways:
‣ They ferment dietary fibers into a source of energy called
short chain fatty acids (which directly nourish the cells that
line the colon).
‣ They produce B vitamins and vitamin K.
‣ They metabolize bile acids.
‣ They produce important proteins.
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‣ And a host of other benefits that we have probably yet to
discover.
Elimination
The last step of digestion is elimination out of the body. Feces
contains sloughed off gastrointestinal cells, small amounts of
unabsorbed nutrients, water, inorganic matter, food residue,
remnants of digestive juices, bacteria, and metabolic byproducts
and toxins ready for removal from the body. Poop may not be the
sexiest topic, but it’s an important one. Healthy, regular
elimination is crucial for our health, but as we’ll discuss in the next
video, there are many common ways that elimination can become
too fast or too slow when there are imbalances in the north to
south process of digestion.
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How Digestion Can Be Derailed
As the ancient Greek physician Hippocrates famously said:
“All disease begins in the gut.”
Thousands of years later, modern science is starting to prove him
right!
In this section, we are going to provide a brief overview of some of
the ways the digestive system can get derailed from its optimal
function, and how this can negatively impact our health. We will
again work our way through the digestive system from north to
south, but this time we will go into more detail about how breaks
in the nutrient rail line can contribute to many commonly seen
health challenges in our modern culture.
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THE BRAIN & NERVOUS SYSTEM
Signaling Problems
In many people, digestive problems start with signaling issues
between the brain and the digestive organs. Normally, your brain
acts as the conductor of our digestive symphony, carefully
signaling each “instrument” to play at just the right time, at just
the right volume.
But when we eat too fast, experience constant stress, or suffer
from chronic inflammation, these signals can get lost in the noise
or happen at the wrong time.
Being in a Sympathetic State
As we said in the last video, we need to be in a parasympathetic, or
“rest and digest” mode, to properly digest our food. But given our
high-paced, high-stress modern world, many of us end up eating
in a sympathetic, “fight or flight” mode. This means we inhibit the
normal flow of gastric juices, leading us to absorb fewer nutrients
and creating the potential for vitamin and mineral imbalances.
Also, the inhibition of this early process of digestion can create all
sorts of potential digestive issues downstream, as we’ll soon
discuss.
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Now that we’ve seen how brain function can derail our digestion,
we’re going to follow that same north to south process through the
rest of the digestive system to see what can go awry at each stage
of digestion.
THE GASTROINTESTINAL TRACT
Eating Too Fast
Do you ever practically inhale your food? We all do sometimes. In
fact, eating too fast is one of the most common sources of
digestive problems. The first problem with eating too fast is that it
doesn’t give the brain enough time to signal to the rest of the
body, “Get ready! Food is coming!” so those digestive juices can
start flowing. Eating too fast also leads to swallowing whole chunks
of unchewed food. We are not snakes! This puts a greater burden
on our gastric juices to break down the food, not to mention the
increased burden on the mechanical action of the stomach to
“churn and burn” our food. Also, when we eat too fast, we aren’t
giving enough time for an enzyme in our saliva, called salivary
amylase, to get to work breaking down carbohydrates. If you think
about drinking a smoothie through a straw, those carbohydrates
from the fruit and veggies are getting hardly any time at all to
mingle with the salivary amylase.
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Insufficient Stomach Acid
Now, when you haven’t chewed well enough, those big chunks of
food make their way down into the stomach. But because the brain
hasn’t had enough time to signal to the stomach to start making
stomach acid, the stomach isn’t ready to start breaking down that
food. On top of that, the stomach has to deal with the workload of
doing all of the breakdown of the food chemically, because it wasn’t
done mechanically earlier from chewing. If you remember,
stomach acid also signals the enzyme pepsin to get to work, and if
the gastric juices aren’t acidic enough, pepsin won’t do its job, so
the proteins don’t get broken down. Lastly, we talked about how
stomach acid allows certain vitamins and minerals to be extracted
from the food, but this won’t happen if stomach acid is too low.
And importantly, the stomach won’t release its contents, called
chyme, until they are brought to a certain acidity. So now, we have
big chunks of undigested food sitting at body temperature for long
periods of time. This is a big problem, because the carbohydrates
in the food start to ferment, the fats start to go rancid, and the
proteins start to putrefy. Sounds pretty disgusting, right? As this
happens, the food expands and has nowhere to go but up,
resulting in burping and uncomfortable heartburn. So as you can
see, it’s not too much stomach acid that is causing the
heartburn―it’s actually too little!
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Excess Toxins & Stress
Normally the stomach waits until that chyme is sufficiently acidic
to release it all into the small intestine. But eventually, if more
food is coming, the stomach has to make room, and so the food
gets forced into the small intestine before it’s ready. Now, this
mixture being released from the stomach and into the small
intestine is somewhat toxic. It’s basically food that is actively
rotting because it hasn’t been properly broken down. Some bad
bacteria or other pathogens like parasites or viruses might be able
to sneak their way into the small intestine. On top of that, the
acidity of the stomach wasn’t high enough to signal to the
pancreas that it should release bicarbonate, which neutralizes the
acidity of the chyme, so the chyme can burn and damage the first
part of the small intestine, called the duodenum, which can result
in duodenal ulcers. Additionally, the chyme must be neutralized at
this stage in order for the digestive enzymes from the stomach to
actually work. Finally, the toxins and acidic byproducts from the
rotting food can cause deep damage to the small intestine, too.
Gallbladder Dysfunction
The gallbladder’s role is to break down our dietary fats. When
there are fats present in the stomach, the gallbladder knows to
squeeze its contents, called bile, into the small intestine, to break
up the fats into small little bits that the body can then absorb and
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use. Eating a low fat diet means the gallbladder won’t get the
correct signal to release its contents. In that case, the contents of
the gallbladder just compact over time and get thick and sludgy
rather than watery and free-flowing, as it should be. With enough
time, the sludge can compact further into stones. Eating a diet
with poor fats, such as vegetable oils, margarine, or Crisco, can
result in similar gallbladder problems. It’s important to eat plenty
of good fats and avoid the bad ones to make sure the gallbladder
keeps working well.
Insufficient Digestive Enzymes
As we learned in the last section, your pancreas contributes
digestive enzymes to help break down your food into smaller
molecules which will be even further broken down by additional
enzymes in the small intestine. Remember those brush border
enzymes? The long standing theory in digestive physiology is that
we are born with a finite capacity to produce and secrete these
digestive enzymes from the pancreas. A lifetime of eating
processed foods, which are devoid of enzymes themselves and
place a greater burden on the body to come up with additional
aids for digestion, simply burns up the limited supply needed to
do the work of digesting even the healthiest foods. This is what we
mean when we say there are insufficient enzymes, we can simply
run out of them. Also, the release of these enzymes from the
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pancreas relies on that highly acidic nature of the chyme entering
the small intestine. When there is not enough stomach acid to
create the acidity necessary to trigger the full release of pancreatic
enzymes, once again we will be left with an insufficient quantity of
enzymes to do the work of breaking down our food and freeing up
nutrients for assimilation into the body.
Excessive Sugar & Carbohydrates
An abundance of sugar and carbohydrates can cause a host of
digestive problems, especially an overgrowth of bacteria or yeast
in the gut. Undigested and fermenting sugars and carbs becomes a
snack for the little critters living in our guts, which can result in
bloating, gas, and even damage to the small intestine walls from
the toxins released by certain strains of bacteria and yeast.
Leaky Gut
Leaky gut has many potential causes, including chronic stress, gut
dysbiosis, infections, poor food choices, drugs, and toxins. Gluten
and gliadin (found in grains like wheat) can be especially
problematic, as many people have a sensitivity to these proteins,
which can inflame the gut. Gliadin can also increase the release of
zonulin, a protein that signals the loosening of the "tight junctions”
between cells in the gut lining.
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Excessive sugar and alcohol consumption can also loosen these
tight junctions, and also lead to gut dysbiosis and candida
overgrowth, both of which can further damage the gut lining.
Nonsteroidal Anti-inflammatory Drugs (or NSAIDs) such as
aspirin, ibuprofen, etc., can also damage the gut lining and
increase intestinal permeability.
It is important to note here that leaky gut is also a precursor to
autoimmune diseases. As we mentioned in the last section,
proteins are normally broken down in the stomach and intestines
into peptides and amino acids, and then selectively absorbed
through the intestinal lining. But when we have leaky gut, larger
proteins can enter the bloodstream intact. This immune system
then mounts an attack to destroy these invading proteins. The
problem is that some of these proteins are molecularly similar to
many body tissues. The immune system can get confused,
especially when leaky gut is long-term and we experience chronic
inflammation, and begin attack the body instead of the actual
offending proteins.
Constipation
Constipation is incredibly common in our culture, and it’s not
only highly uncomfortable it’s also highly toxic to the body. When
you do not eliminate waste on a regular basis, the stool that lingers
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in your intestines will eventually leak toxins, pathogens and other
inflammatory agents back into the bloodstream, these toxic
molecules can create great damage to other tissues. Our culture is
chronically dehydrated, and it takes about 10 liters of reabsorbed
water per day for the large intestine to effectively manage
digestive waste. When you are dehydrated, your digestive system
simply won’t have enough water to produce gastric juices, flush
toxins out, or properly package waste for elimination. Beyond
hydration, good bile release from the gallbladder is crucial to
ensuring the peristalsis action of the large intestine musculature.
The bile salts, those mineral components of bile we mentioned
previously, are the spark plugs that stimulate the intestinal
muscles to contract, pushing waste through the colon. If the
gallbladder didn’t get the signal to contract, or it can’t contract
because the bile is too viscous and sludgy, this too can can lead to
constipation. Remember the parasympathetic state we need to be
able to rest and digest? Normal peristalsis cannot happen if the
body is stuck in fight-or-flight mode.
See the Sympathetic vs Parasympathetic Guide for more on the
parasympathetic state.
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Diarrhea
Think of diarrhea as the overly rapid transit time of your nearly
fully digested food and the necessary waste products left behind.
Sometimes this rapid transit time is quite necessary to quickly
purge the body of something toxic and unhealthy. Remember too
that even your waste has a purpose, providing nutrients to the
bacterial colonies in the large intestine which provide their own
nutrients to the lining of the intestinal wall. Diarrhea can often be
a sign of the body recognizing a signal that something needs to go,
quickly, such as a poorly digested food you are sensitive to, or
perhaps a bacterial load that has the potential to make you very
sick. Underlying causes of diarrhea include being in a sympathetic
state which inhibits all normal digestive functions, coupled with
all those poorly digested nutrients from farther up the digestive
cascade wreaking havoc and potentially feeding an overgrowth of
a pathogenic microbe, or even a beneficial microbe.
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How to Optimize Gut Health & Absorb More Nutrients
Now that we know how digestion is supposed to work, and the many
ways in which things can go wrong in our modern world, what can
we do to bring our digestion back into balance? There are three
main areas to focus on:
‣ Avoiding dietary toxins and foods that are problematic for
your body.
‣ Preparing your food in such a way that it’s easier to digest.
‣ Preparing your brain and body for optimal digestion.
AVOID DIETARY TOXINS & PROBLEMATIC FOODS
One of the most important steps you can take to help improve
your overall health is avoiding dietary toxins and foods that are
problematic for your body. Which exact foods can help or harm is
largely bioindividual, but here are some foods that are
problematic for many people. We highly recommend keeping a
detailed Food & Mood Journal and working with a qualified
practitioner to identify relationships between what you eat and
how you feel.
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Grains & Legumes
Grains and legumes are neither good nor bad across the board.
Like all foods, they simply present certain consequences. If you
tolerate them well and prepare them properly, both can be a
potentially nutritious, delicious, and affordable food. But if your
body does not tolerate them (which is likely true of a large
percentage of people), or if they are not properly prepared (which
is true of the vast majority of grains and legumes consumed
today), grains and legumes can potentially cause damage to our
gut lining and overall health. This is because most grains and
legumes contain phytic acid and lectins, both of which are part of
the plant’s natural defense mechanisms. Because the plants cannot
run away, they evolved a form of chemical warfare to dissuade
animals from eating them, especially their seed (which is what
grains and legumes are). Fortunately, humans have figured out
preparation methods that can help nullify the ill effects of both
compounds, which we’ll talk about more below. But these
techniques require time, effort, and patience, and for most people,
it’s easier to just avoid grains and legumes altogether. The classes
of helpful nutrients found in grains and legumes can be easily
found (and often in greater quantities) in other delicious plant and
animal foods.
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Other compounds worth noting here are gluten, gliadin, and
phytoestrogens. Most people are familiar with gluten and know
that people with Celiac Disease have to avoid it at all costs. But
many people may have undiagnosed Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitivity,
or NCGS. This is a controversial topic, but trust your body and see
how you feel when you consume gluten containing foods. Also,
keep in mind that the effects of gluten are not only digestive;
gluten sensitivity can also manifest in the nervous system as
anxiety, depression, etc., or in the skin as eczema, skin rashes, etc.
It should also be pointed out that some people are also sensitive to
gliadin, a class of water-soluble proteins found within gluten.
Lastly, it’s important to avoid soy, as it contains phytoestrogens
that can negatively impact healthy hormonal balance in both men
and women.
Dairy
Dairy can be a very nutritious part of the diet for those who
tolerate it, but many people have a tough time digesting it. There
are two particularly troublesome constituents of dairy for sensitive
individuals: a protein called casein, and a sugar called lactose.
If your ancestors have been consuming dairy for many
generations, you will likely have an easier time digesting it, too.
Many people of European decent, for example, have a gene that
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codes for lactase persistence, a fancy way of saying that they
maintain the ability to digest lactose into adulthood (humans
without the gene lose the ability to digest lactose after early
childhood).
Another issue with dairy is that it can be highly insulinogenic,
meaning that it can cause the body to release extra insulin. This in
turn can lead the body to store more energy as body fat and hold
onto the body fat already accumulated.
If you do decide to consume dairy, do your best to find high-
quality, raw, organic, full-fat dairy products from 100% grass-fed
cows. Many people find that they struggle to digest pasteurized
milk, for example, but can digest raw or fermented dairy products
without issue. Kefir, a fermented dairy drink, can be especially
nutritious for those who tolerate it. It’s packed with beneficial
probiotics like Lactobacillus Kefiri, vitamins like biotin, folate, and
K2, and it even contains a special antimicrobial compound called
kefiran that’s been shown help control overgrowth of candida.
See the Dairy Products section in the Good, Better, Best
Shopping Guide PDF in the Step 3 Resources.
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FODMAPS
“FODMAPs” is an acronym that stands for “Fermentable Oligo-,
Di-, Monosaccharides And Polyols.” These short-chain
carbohydrates can cause a host of digestive symptoms for those
who are sensitive to them, including bloating, gas, stomach pain,
constipation, and diarrhea. FODMAPs can be particularly
troublesome for those with IBS.
Here are some of the most common types of FODMAPs:
‣ Fructose, found in fruit, vegetables, and industrial
sweeteners like high-fructose corn syrup.
‣ Lactose, found in dairy products as we just discussed above.
‣ Fructans, found in some vegetables and gluten containing
grains like wheat, spelt, rye, and barley.
‣ Galactans, found in large amounts in legumes, but also in
cabbage and Brussels sprouts.
‣ Polyols, including sugar alcohols such as xylitol, sorbitol,
maltitol, and mannitol. These are often used to sweeten low-
calorie foods, but are also naturally found in many fruits and
vegetables.
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See the List of FODMAPs PDF for a list of foods low,
moderate, and high in FODMAPs.
Fortunately, many of the undesirable symptoms caused by
FODMAPs in sensitive individuals clear up when the microbiome
is brought back into balance and the lining of the gut is healed.
This process takes time and patience, however, and we highly
recommend working with a qualified practitioner.
Nightshades
Nightshades are a family of plants that include bell peppers,
chiles, eggplant, hot peppers, tomatoes, and white potatoes. Sweet
potatoes, interestingly, are not nightshades. While many people
can enjoy nightshades without issue, some people are sensitive to
the alkaloids and lectins they contain. Such individuals can
experience symptoms like sore joints and digestive distress,
especially when consuming nightshades in large volumes. Those
with rheumatoid arthritis should be particularly vigilant about
avoiding them.
If you do decide to consume nightshades, you can reduce their
alkaloid content by peeling them (alkaloids are found mostly in
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the skin of nightshades), eating them ripe, and cooking them low
and slow.
See the List of Nightshades PDF for a complete list of
nightshades.
Foods High in Insoluble Fiber
Many otherwise healthy foods can be problematic for those with
gut inflammation, IBS, etc. Until gut issues are addressed, it can be
necessary to avoid vegetables that are high in insoluble fiber.
See the List of Foods High in Insoluble Fiber PDF for a
comprehensive list.
SOURCE & PREPARE YOUR FOOD FOR OPTIMAL DIGESTION
We’ve already talked about how to properly source and prepare
your food earlier in the course, but we’d like to touch on it again
here given how important this is for maximizing nutrient density.
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Store Vegetables, Fruits & Herbs Properly to Preserve
Nutrients
See the Fridge Storage Guide in the Step 3 Resources for
more food storage tips.
Proper storage of plant foods involves a balance between two
somewhat contradictory goals:
‣ Storing foods where they will be visible and easily accessible
so you are more likely to consume them. (Remember the
Strategy of Convenience from Step 2?)
‣ Storing foods in such a way that they retain more nutrients
and don’t spoil as quickly.
Here are some suggestions on how to strike a healthy compromise
between the two:
‣ Store all vegetables in a vegetable drawer in your fridge,
making sure to slide the lever to the “Vegetables” setting if
applicable.
‣ Store all whole fruit, with the exception of berries (which
should always be stored in the fridge), on the counter, but
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out of direct light if possible. This is especially true for
avocados, which are usually sold unripe and will need time at
room temperature to ripen. Once ripe, you can then store
them in the fridge to maintain their freshness until you’re
ready to eat them.
‣ Cut fruits should be stored in the fridge, but please note that
they will rapidly oxidize and should be eaten as soon as
possible. One trick is to add a squeeze of lemon to cut up
fruit; the Vitamin C it contains is an antioxidant that can
help slow decay.
‣ Herbs should be used right away to maintain their
phytonutrients. It’s easy to forget about them when they are
stored at the bottom of the vegetable drawer, so we
recommend storing them somewhere you can see them
more easily such as a silicon Stasher bag at eye level.
‣ If you have vegetables, fruits, or herbs that are about to go
bad but you don’t have time to consume, you can simply
freeze them for later use. Vegetables can be diced and placed
in a bag or glass container, fruits can be blended and poured
into ice cube trays, and herbs can be chopped up and frozen
in ice cube trays with a little water.
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Soak & Sprout Nuts, Seeds, Legumes & Grains
Soaking nuts, seeds, legumes, and grains is an effective way to
reduce the quantity of anti-nutrients found in these foods such as
phytic acid, which can otherwise block the absorption of crucial
minerals like calcium, iron, magnesium, and zinc.
See the Soaking & Sprouting Guide in the Step 3 Resources
for more food storage tips.
Cut Up Plants to Maximize Nutrients & Flavor
Plants defend themselves from insects and other natural predators
using strong plant cell walls and various chemical compounds.
Cutting up vegetables and fruits helps break down these rigid
structures and release nutrients with important health benefits for
humans. For example, tearing up lettuce significantly increases its
antioxidant activity, and cutting up onions and garlic releases a
chemical called alliinase, an enzyme that in turn forms allicin,
which has many potential health benefits, including disease
prevention, cholesterol regulation, and weight loss.
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Steam Vegetables to Maintain Nutrient-Density
Steaming vegetables is one of the best preparation techniques
because it maintains more nutrients than other higher-impact
cooking methods. Some of the key nutrients spared by light
steaming include antioxidants, carotenoids, folate,
phytochemicals, and sulforaphane.
Cook Certain Foods to Maximize Nutrients & Minimize Toxins
Cooking some foods can significantly increase the bioavailability
of the nutrients they contain. In fact, as renowned primatologist
Richard Wrangham argues in his book Catching Fire: How Cooking
Made Us Human, transitioning from raw to cooked foods was
arguably the most important factor in human evolution. When our
early ancestors learned how to use fire to cook food, it sparked
some important changes:
‣ The human brain significantly increased in size.
‣ The human digestive tract significantly shrank in size.
‣ The time available for activities other than finding and
chewing food shot up.
From changes in our physiology to advances in human culture and
technology, cooking quite literally made humans human.
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There are some foods best eaten raw (which we will talk about in a
moment), but many are best consumed cooked. Here are a but a
few:
‣ Cooking makes the proteins in meat, fish, eggs, etc. much
easier to digest. Just be careful not to overcook animal
products as this can create undesirable compounds.
‣ Cooking increases the bioavailability of iron and other key
minerals we need to survive and thrive.
‣ Sautéing or baking onions improves their flavonol content,
which are believed to have numerous potential health
benefits, including increasing antioxidant activity,
decreasing oxidative damage, and helping prevent damage to
DNA.
‣ Cooking decreases the antinutrients found in many plant
foods, including root vegetables, grains, legumes, and
nightshades like potatoes and tomatoes.
‣ Cooking tomatoes increases the bioavailability of lycopene, a
powerful antioxidant that helps stunt cancer growth and
support the health of the eyes, heart, brain, and bones.
Incidentally, lycopene is the pigment that makes tomatoes
red and stains your cookware orange. A small price to pay for
its amazing list of benefits!
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‣ Cooking increases the bioavailability of beta carotene, a
pigment with numerous health benefits found in most red,
orange, and yellow colored plant foods like tomatoes,
carrots, and sweet potatoes.
Eat Some Foods Raw
While cooking can increase the availability of some nutrients, it
can actually break down others. This is especially true of water-
soluble vitamins like B1, B5, C, and folate, all of which are broken
down when exposed to heat. You therefore want to eat at least
some foods raw to ensure you are getting these critical nutrients.
Here are some foods you should consider eating raw (at least
occasionally) to maximize their nutrient-density:
‣ Avocados
‣ Bell peppers
‣ Carrots
‣ Celery
‣ Citrus fruits (especially lemon and limes)
‣ Cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil
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‣ Fermented foods like kimchi, sauerkraut, etc. (more on
ferments further on)
‣ Leafy greens like lettuce, spinach, etc.
‣ Pumpkin, sesame, and sunflower seeds
‣ Tomatoes
Keep in mind, however, that some of the above foods contain
certain nutrients that become more bioavailable when cooked. It’s a
tradeoff, which is why it’s best to eat a variety of cooked and raw
foods each week.
Eat Fermented Foods
Fermented foods have numerous benefits:
‣ They help introduce beneficial bacteria into our digestive
tracts.
‣ They help keep harmful bacteria at bay.
‣ They provide helpful digestive enzymes.
‣ They are a low-cost, nutrient-dense food, that you can easily
make for pennies on the dollar at home.
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‣ They help naturally preserve foods, stretching one’s
investment even further. There is nothing worse than
throwing away spoiled food!
See the List of Fermented Foods PDF for a list of delicious,
nutrient-dense ferments to try.
PREPARE YOUR BRAIN & BODY FOR OPTIMAL DIGESTION
See the 6 Mindfulness Practices to Improve Digestion PDF for a
print-friendly summary of this section.
Rest to Digest
As we discussed in the first video of Step 5, we need to be in a
relaxed state to properly break down and absorb the nutrients we
consume. Here are a few ways to help shift your nervous system to
the parasympathetic state before, while, and after you eat:
‣ Smell your food.
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‣ Feel gratitude for what you are about to eat.
‣ Do a short meditation or say grace if that suits your beliefs.
‣ Lightly rub the area just behind and below your earlobes
(this can help stimulate the vagus nerve, which you may
recall sends signals throughout the digestive tract).
‣ Sit down at the table instead of standing.
‣ Avoid eating on the run or in the car.
Stretch & Maintain Proper Posture
Just before you eat, consider doing some light stretching to release
tension and help get your body into a more relaxed state. Also
check in with your body to see what your posture is like. Are you
slouching over? Are your shoulders tense?
Try to sit up as straight as you can, which gives your gut more
room to perform its magic, strengthens your core muscles, and
helps prevent bloating and indigestion.
Take Small Bites & Chew Thoroughly
When working to support digestion, we work north to south. If
you take just one thing away from this entire Foundational
Wellness course, make it this:
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Be in a relaxed state when you eat, and thoroughly chew your
food.
When you eat, make sure you sit down. Don’t have your phone
with you or the TV on. Don’t eat while working at your computer
or at your office desk. Go outside, or somewhere away from work,
and take a few deep breaths. Pay attention to the food before you
take your first bite. How does it look? How does it smell? What are
the colors like? Then, take your first bite. What are the textures
you sense? The tastes? What is the temperature like? As you eat
your meal, savor it, paying attention to flavors like you would
savor a fine wine. You can drink water as needed with the meal,
but try not to drink too much, as you don’t want to dilute your
stomach acid.
Chew each bite 25 to 30 times. Sing the alphabet song to yourself
while chewing for each letter, if you have to, to get an idea for how
many times you should be chewing. The food should be liquid in
your mouth before you swallow it. If it helps, put your fork down
in between bites. If you are having a smoothie, “chew” the
smoothie to get the saliva working to break down the
carbohydrates before you swallow.
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Boost Stomach Acid & Enzyme Levels
If you have insufficient levels of stomach acid (and many people
do today), it may be helpful to take a digestive aid to help boost
your digestive fire and better absorb the nutrients you eat.
You can also try drinking small amounts of raw organic apple
cider vinegar or lemon juice before a meal to naturally lower the
pH of your stomach and kick start digestion.
As Jonathan Wright puts it in Why Stomach Acid Is Good for You:
“If, because of inadequate stomach acid, our breakfasts, lunches, and
dinners aren’t being digested, then we can’t absorb the amount of
nutrients from that food that Nature intended. How can we expect to stay
healthy if we have chronically poor nutrient absorption due to incomplete
digestion?”
Move Your Body
A famous Chinese proverb states:
“If you take 100 steps after each meal, you can live to be 99 years old.”
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This may be an exaggeration, of course, but there is indeed
benefit to getting some light movement after a meal. The key
word here being “light.” A casual stroll with a friend or loved one is
ideal. Just make sure not to do any intense activity right after
eating as it can pull blood from the digestive tract to the muscles
and hamper digestion.
See our recommended movement practices in Step 7:
Optimize Your Energy.
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