More on Digestive Enzymes

          As we age we don't digest food the same way anymore. Studies have found that fifty percent of people older than sixty have low stomach acid.

          Hydrochloride acid (HCI) is a digestive acid, which is produced in the stomach by millions of parietal cells that line the stomach. HCI is so strong, that it will burn your skin. The lining of the stomach is protected from this acid by a layer of mucus. You need to make enough HCI to have a properly functioning digestive system and the more we age the more HCI we lose. Taking heartburn medication is fine temporarily, but in the long run, will get you into trouble by simply giving you more heartburn.

          If we ate more raw food, in their natural state, we wouldn't have all these stomach issues. Sauerkraut is a big healer for the stomach. It was used quite frequently in the past as a natural healer; lately people prefer to use medication, which can often do more harm than good. Aloe Vera is another great heeler.

          It is important to note that when HCI levels are low, B12 deficiency is common. Many seniors have this. B12 is critical for memory and if you are missing it you need to find a way to replenish it in order to avoid Alzheimer's and dementia in old age. An Imbalance of intestinal PH can result in digestive issues such as HCI and pancreatic insufficiency.

I take one to two Betaine Hydrochloride (HCI) capsules with every meal, and I can digest everything.

There are about twenty-two pancreatic enzymes, here are the main ones:

• Protease= digests proteins

• Lipase= for fat digestion

• Amylase= for carbohydrate digestion

          We can heal ourselves if we’re patient, monitor our bodies, take the right steps and only use medicine if there is really no other option. Many times you’ll avoid getting sick because of how well you treat your body.

How Digestive Enzymes Have Helped Me

            So far, I have been able to figure out my health issues with the help and guidance of my naturopath Mariola Livernoche and my chiropractor, Dr. Jean Luc Flipo. I have learned so much from them.

            Recently, I noticed that one of the problems I have been trying to solve was not going away. From time to time I get these terrible attacks. They consisted of severe gas and bloating, it feels like an outrageous pressure pushing down inside of me. I found this strange because I had been eliminating gluten, dairy and nuts (which also stopped my migraines) and that was supposed to stop my attacks, but it didn’t seem to be doing the trick. This then led me to the conclusion that I must not be digesting my food like a normal person, which is not a surprise since I’ve had stomach issues my entire life.

            I decided to try and solve this problem another way, by getting really strict on my enzymes. Doctors tell us that we loose enzymes as we age as well as the more stress we have, which is a problem for me since I’m caring for my mother that has Alzheimer’s. Therefore, I started taking my enzymes, to replace the ones that I had been losing, and with my first bite of food suddenly everything would calm down

            There are many kinds of enzymes on the market but I just tried to figure it out myself, I took more at first and then readjusted. Sometimes I open the capsule and spread it over my food, which works even better. I will go into further detail about enzymes in my next blog.

            We have to change the way we eat and take care of ourselves, more than before. The world will continue to have an increasing amount of toxins, but it’s up to us to eliminate the amount that goes into our bodies.

Other Tips & Tricks

•            Lemmon and hot water rectifies everything to make you more alkaline.
•            Apple cider vinegar before a big meal helps digest.

Listen to your body; it's talking to you

Lately I have been getting migraines quite frequently and I’ve been trying to pinpoint the cause, but it’s not easy. I decided I needed to go over my diet. I realized maybe it could be something as slight as the aged cheese that I have been eating because I am gluten and lactose intolerant. Sometimes a solution to one problem could cause a problem. It happens to be I was right, aged cheese had been the trigger to my migraines. I cut out all cheese and later found out that nuts were also the problem. I thought I could eat aged cheese because easier to digest but I was wrong.

Wow! I went from waking up with migraines every morning, to none. I realized my body is talking to me! You really need to listen to your body. You can help yourself before going to the doctor to get prescriptions. I never thought in the past that I would go this route, but it sure works for me and I want to share it to many others who suffer.

Dr. Oz offers a great and easy gluten diagnosis. Click on the following link to find out what foods may bother you: www.doctoroz.com/article/gluten-symptom-tracker He gives you a list of high FODMAP foods, which is the food you will give up for 10 days to see if you could be given the new gluten diagnosis. Chances are if you are gluten intolerant, you have other intolerances too.

All this to say, no matter what the problem is, you have to search for the answer yourself first, most of the time you can find it on your own. The only migraines I cannot stop are when I am very stressed out. So I try to find a way to meditate and keep calm. My father used to meditate a lot and now I know why.

Sleep Apnea

This summer was an experience for all my family. Let me start off by saying my mom was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease and has many other problems such as limited mobility. My mother had been making loud noises and snoring while she slept for many years, but it was only once I started sleeping next to her every night (because she has trouble getting out of bed on her own) that I noticed how bad it really was.

I decided to ask my chiropractor his thoughts on the matter (by the way he is the best chiro on the universe) he put a pulse oximeter on her finger and found her oxygen a bit low. My family and I noticed she began to be more and more confused and wanted to sleep all the time. I decided to have her tested for sleep apnea. I went private because I was able to schedule a test the same week. If she were to have it done through Medicare, in a hospital, the wait was a year, minimum. She had time to die before getting to the bottom of it. She was going down very rapidly. I love my mom and would do anything to keep her alive. Finally her score was so high, she stopped breathing 59 times an hour, grasping for air. My family and I were in shock. We quickly got her a sleep apnea machine and she started to improve. Imagine, your brain not getting enough oxygen and your heart was working so hard, that it was a matter of time before your body was to shutdown.

It was thanks to my Dr. Jean Luc Flipo, my chiropractor, Micheline, my naturopath’s secretary, and Mariola Livernoche, my naturopath that I was able to really help my mom. Mariola saved me when I was at my worst with all my food intolerances and way of life and Dr. Flipo helped me with my migraines from 15 years ago. If I hadn’t seen them, I would have been in terrible shape and on so many prescription drugs by now. (Pills are a life savior only in severe cases) I don't do anything before consulting my team, as I like to call them. They sure know their stuff.

Sleep apnea affects more people than I thought, anyone from a young adult to a body builder. It is my suggestion to keep a pulse oximeter in your house and use it on your family, just to see what your oxygen level is and make sure there are no problems. They are not expensive and can be easily purchased online, either on amazon or eBay.

Cheers to better living

Jacqueline

Fall/Winter Skincare Solutions

Now that summer is almost over you may want to change skincare for the fall/winter.  Two devices that cleanse your skin very well are the Clarasonic that you can use with your own cleanser every night and once a week or once a month you can use the crystal lift machine to do microdermabrasion in your own home.  These make your skin super soft and a perfect canvas to apply your make-up. What's great about this is, you decide what and when you want to do it and there is no going to pricy salons and paying their outrageous prices. We are in an era that we do what we want to look good. The clarasonic, you can buy it on the shopping channel or at Sephora. For the crystal lift machine, you can go to www.crystalift.com