Message from Bernadette Wulf

Greetings!
Happy New Year! 2007 sure flew by. It was a great year for me, and 2008 feels like it is full of potential for expansion, and discovery. As we start a new year, it's time to take a look at the best ways to improve and maintain our health. Improving digestion may be an important key.

Some health experts say that digestion is the root of all health, or lack thereof. I would say the mind plays a much bigger role, but leaving out the mind (if we could do such a thing) our digestion may be the biggest factor in health.

With that in mind, I have found what appears to be the best pro-biotic supplement available. See first article. And speaking of the mind, EFT and your inner child can play a big role in improving digestion. See second article.

In the last article, you'll find lots of practical advice for improving symptoms of indigestion, as well as background information about how and why it becomes a problem.

Wishing you all a very happy, healthy, and prosperous 2008!

To Your Health!

How to Find the Best Pro-biotic Supplement

If you have ever taken antibiotics, prescription drugs, or if you've been living on the typical Western diet of refined and processed foods, your intestinal flora are most likely way out of balance. A good pro-biotic can restore that balance and pave the way to good health.

Since I had to take an antibiotic for a dental abscess, I've been doing research on pro-biotics to find the very best product available. From what I've been reading, the pro-biotic supplement developed by Dr. S. K. Dash (available through UAS Labs) looks like the most thoroughly researched and potent pro-biotic formula out there.

Here's a brief excerpt from the UAS website, indicating all the factors they considered in developing their formula -

"All pro-biotic products are not the same. The name Acidophilus or pro-biotic does not mean anything unless the pro-biotic product:

1. Contains the right strain(s)
2. Is viable
3. Remains stable and viable for a long period
4. Has ability to survive in the intestine
5. Produces beneficial effects in the intestine

* Pro-biotics products sitting on the shelf (without refrigeration) lose potency first. For this reason, refrigerated, viable pro-biotic products are recommended
* Non-dairy pro-biotic products are recommended by health professionals for persons allergic to dairy products and for persons with yeast infection.
* Nitrogen-flushed packaging of pro-biotics enhances the keeping quality of the pro-biotics.
* Fortification of pro-biotics with pre-biotic Fructooligosaccharides (FOS) enhances the value of pro-biotics selectively and enhances their growth in the gut.
* Combinations of unknown and undesirable bacteria in pro-biotic products can even be harmful to the human body. Also, combinations of known and friendly bacteria in a disproportionate manner can alter flora balance in the gut."

Ultimately, they recommend that, "The consumer must read current scientific literature on pro-biotics products, which are refrigerated, viable and non-dairy, and contain superior strains of Lactobacillus acidophilus, Bifidobacterium longum and with pre-biotic Fructooligosaccharides (FOS)." Which of course will lead to the conclusion that their product is best.

Naturally, everyone wants us to think their product is best, but this one developed by Dr. S. K. Dash, really does look like a top quality product.

For a scientific look at how pro-biotics can help improve many health conditions, particularly leaky gut syndrome (which has been connected with heart disease), visit:

http://www.naturalproductsmarketplace.com/articles/550/550_5a1supplem.html

http://www.uaslabs.com/sections/products/health.php

Digestion and Your Inner Child

Of course the mind influences digestion, like everything else. Here's a great case study from the official EFT website, showing the link between digestion and the mind. The writer, Alan Morison, found that reconnecting with his inner child made all the difference!

"Over the years I have had an on-off relationship with my digestive tract, nothing any doctors could detect but always lurking there with periods of dyspepsia which would come and go. I would try to link it with the stresses of my teaching job but nothing would come to mind. Even when I started doing EFT some time ago nothing would present itself for tapping on. When I retired early, I thought that things would improve, but it was not to be the case, so it clearly was not linked to stress - or so I thought...

"Examining my feelings it came as a surprise to find I had a hint of reluctance to accept responsibility. Over the years I have gladly accepted whatever responsibilities came my way without any problems, so I found it somewhat strange that these feelings were coming up at an intensity level of 6. OK I thought, let's just tap on it anyway and just do it. I reframed as I went along, including the things I have put off or avoided doing immediately, finishing with some choices about being positive about accepting responsibility.

"The intensity level dropped to 1 but strangely I still felt a certain heaviness over me. I caught a glimpse of myself in a mirror and thought, 'You're not smiling yet, what's up?' With that an image flashed up of little me aged about 6 or 7, maybe 8, playing in a sandpit totally involved to the exclusion of everything else and happy as can be with not a care in the world. What a glorious feeling! It descended right through me and lifted me completely out of the heaviness I was feeling. It was so wonderful being that child again for a few moments, completely carefree without any responsibilities and it made me realise it was that feeling I was missing. And I grinned from ear to ear at myself in the mirror as it lifted...

"...And what about my dyspepsia? I felt a complete relaxation in my stomach area when I linked up again with my inner child and the tightness I had felt disappeared. Generally it has taken my system a couple of days to right itself again but the indigestion has gone and I now feel fine. Also the tiredness I had experienced has lifted as my energy has returned."

If you are not familiar with EFT, it is a method of tapping on specific points on the acupuncture meridians in order to release emotional energetic blocks. The http://www.emofree.com website offers instructions and many fascinating case studies.

Stop Digestive Discomfort

According to a recent article in Smart Health Publications - "...many health practitioners believe that poor digestion is the root cause of most disease. Although it can take years for the consequences of poor digestion to manifest in serious illness, individuals may complain in the interim of a variety of health complaints including joint pain, headache, fatigue, indigestion, heartburn, or stomach problems."

The question is - How do we improve digestion? We have already looked at pro-biotic supplements, which could be the most important factor. Other causes of digestive problems could be lack of stomach acid, lack of digestive enzymes, overeating, use of antacids, or poor food combining.

The Smart Health article (link below) gives a quite a few good tips to improve digestion, including artichoke extract, ginger, and mastic gum. Be sure to check it out if you ever suffer from any of the following symptoms:

* Pain, which may be in the upper part of the abdomen or the chest (this may not always be related to eating)

* Heartburn, a burning pain caused by reflux (regurgitation) of the stomach's contents back up the esophagus

* Nausea and vomiting

* Flatulence, burping or belching

* Early feeling of satiation, loss of appetite

* Intolerance of eating fat

* Irregular bowel movements

* Bad breath