It All Starts in the Gut!

Hatch Into Health -
Patrice McArthy, RN, BSN

It All Starts in the Gut!

Hello peeps!

As you may know, Amy (The Hatched Egg) and I are on a journey together. I loved her quote yesterday:

"If you want to live a happy life, tie it to a goal, not to people or things." -Albert Einstein

Our goal is to achieve our highest state of health and wellness naturally. She has tackled and slayed the panic and anxiety issue - she tells you how at The Hatched Egg and she shares with you the tools to do it yourself.

We have been busy together. Last weekend we took a girls mini-vacay and went to a health seminar on detoxification and gastrointestinal (gut) issues. We learned a lot! The host of the seminar provides free education for health care professionals. They are an amazing company and design pharmaceutical grade health supplements. We are working on getting these available to you soon.Our toxic environment affects our health. We are continuously being bombarded by chemicals and the burden is increasing. Exposure to these chemicals have been implicated in almost every disease. Although much of this assault is out of our control there are many things we can do to minimize the damage. Amy shared some detoxification tips with you in her recent blog on March 8th, you can find that here. Stay tuned for more tips on easy ways to increase your body's ability to detoxify and ways to decrease your risk.

It may surprise many people that healing begins in the gut. In fact our GI tract has it's own nervous system called the enteric nervous system. This is different from the brain's central nervous system. I won't bore you with details but it really is quite fascinating. Here are a few gut facts:

· There are over 400 species of microbes in the human GI tract totaling over 15 lbs. that exceeds all other organs in the body other than skeletal muscle.

· There are more microbes (microscopic life forms like bacteria, viruses, algae and protozoa) in the human intestinal tract than there are STARS IN THE GALAXY, exceeding all other cells in the body combined!

· The surface area of the gut, if all spread apart is approximately equal to that of a regulation singles tennis court!

· It's mind-blowing actually ... And 75% of the body's immune cells (those cells that fight infection and disease) are located in the gut. No wonder it's easy to be out of balance and ill.The good news is that it's possible to heal ourselves by healing and maintaining gut health. How?

Lifestyle recommendations include:

· Controlling stress and avoiding extra obligations.

· Engage in exercise and stress reducing activities such as deep breathing, yoga, tai chi, walking.

· Practice good sleep habits and get 8-9 hours of uninterrupted sleep a night.

· Fill up with fiber - consume high fiber foods and increase your water intake.

· Consume a healthy, balanced diet that include 5-10 servings of vegetables and fruits daily.

· Take a good quality multi vitamin. More on supplements to come!

· Avoiding or minimizing possibly allergic foods like grains and dairy.

· Drinking enough pure, filtered water (1/2 your weight in ounces) - the less plastic bottles the better!

· Minimize alcohol, caffeine, acidic things like soda and overly spiced foods.

· Stay informed and be proactive - make a choice to take care of yourself!

· Take advantages of coaching tools and supportive places like The Hatched Egg.

These changes may seem overwhelming but take heart. I think it's clear we are trying to strike a balance in our lives. Even small changes can make a big difference! Start small, take babysteps on this journey, don't overwhelm! We are not sprinting to the finish but keeping steady for the long haul. You are worth it! We are hatching together and it is eggciting!

Signing off now ... and wishing you wellness!!
Patrice
Hatch into Health
my blog here

Don't miss Amy's radio show tomorrow!

tune in here

Quote of the Day

To keep the body in good health is a duty... otherwise we shall not be able to keep our mind strong and clear. " ~Buddha