Most doctors and chiropractors often overlook digestion when treating patients because they are not trained to look for it. In my clinical experience, compromised digestion is always a factor for my patients with chronic unresolved health issues. In my last article, I wrote about the important role played by nutrition and diet in helping your patients to heal, as well as some common symptoms to listen for when engaging your patients in conversation. In this article, I am going to focus on digestion and bowel elimination. Most people mistakenly believe that when they chew and swallow food, it is automatically 100% digested, absorbed, and assimilated by their cells and organs. That can be true for most healthy people, but is it the case for the average patient who walks through the door of your clinic? Let's take a closer look at the role digestion plays in the healing process. What would you say the stress level is of the patients who walk through your door? Is it high, average, or low? In my practice, it is usually average to high. When a patient's body is under stress, a few things occur. The body becomes nutritionally deficient, more waste is created, and it can become deficient in enzymes. Enzymes are the workers of the body; they simply get work done. Enzymes play a major role in proper digestion. Digestion is the process that breaks down the food we eat into small enough pieces to be absorbed easily through the small intestine so that our organs and cells can use that nutrition for fuel. Then, our body has to be able to efficiently eliminate the waste that is not absorbed through the intestines. If your patients have a problem with either digestion or elimination, more often than not, they will have a problem with the other as well. I consider proper digestion one of the top priorities in helping patients regain their health and keeping them there. When excessive or chronic stress challenges normal body functions, one of the first affected organ systems is the digestive system. When your digestive system is compromised, your cells and organs don't get the proper nutrients they need to perform their chosen tasks. When you are used to consuming three meals a day, your cells and organs are used to a certain expectation of nutrients consistently delivered for them to function normally. With a weak digestive system, this is like eating a meal once a week or even once a month. How do you think you would function with one meal a month? Another way of asking this question is: What are the possibilities of things that could go wrong in your body and health with this type of meal schedule? Poor digestion can set off a cascade of a leaky gut, poor absorption, dysbiosis (yeast overgrowth or bacterial imbalance in the small intestine), and bowel toxicity, which can lead to many other health problems. This is why it is paramount for you to help your patients have a strong digestive system. Why is proper bowel elimination an important aspect of our overall health? Imagine what the front of your house and driveway would look like if the city were six months behind in picking up your trash. The smell and germs from your trash eventually would make its way back to your house. Without proper bowel elimination, the large intestine becomes toxic. These toxins can be reabsorbed into the body, stimulating the immune system and possibly creating many other health conditions. If your patients have bowel elimination problems, it is usually the compensation. What I mean by this is that the cause of the elimination problem is usually "upstream" and can be the result of poor digestion, dysbiosis in the small intestine, or a combination of both. The large intestine doesn't have a choice; it has to respond (compensate) based on how well food was digested. So a patient's bowel elimination problem is most likely a result of what is occurring upstream. When your patients have digestion or bowel elimination problems, an underlying factor of enzyme deficiencies may be keeping them from getting nutrition their cells and organs need to heal. There is a simple and easy way that your doctor can screen patients for digestion problems. Advising patients to take digestive enzymes can help predigest food, which helps in the process of delivering the nutrition their cells and organs need to possibly speed up their recovery. Supporting their digestion in this way can then help improve the absorption of nutrients and proper bowel elimination. Some common symptoms of poor digestion are: Bloating Gas Cramping Indigestion Heartburn Intolerance to dairy, gluten, grains, or spicy foods Loss of appetite for meat Excessive appetite Some common symptoms for poor elimination are: Constipation or diarrhea Lower abdominal pain Always tired Restless sleep, grinding of teeth Loss of appetite or feeling better when they don't eat Painful bowel movements As a CA, keep your ears open if your patients may mention these symptoms so that you can engage them in conversation. Then you can ask them if they want to have a brief screening with the doctor to see if there is an underlying digestion or elimination problem. This is article two in a six-part series. In the next article, I will address the immune system. For more information on enzyme nutrition, chiropractors may call the Loomis Institute at 800-662-2630 to set up an account. See the Loomis Institute's ad to order the "REAL" Test Kit, which teaches chiropractors the screening exam mentioned in this article. Chiropractors have access to the Loomis Institute's director of clinical sciences, who is available to answer questions as they incorporate enzyme nutrition into practice. Dr. Keith Giaquinto has over 11 years of clinical experience as a Chiropractor and Internal Health Specialist. He frequently lectures to companies and groups in his community on topics of health and wellness. He has created a new patient lecture system for growing your practice through lecturing. You can contact him at www.YourDigestionDoctor.com
