So you might have all noticed that I left class early today. I’ve had nausea and other unhappy GI symptoms for about a month now, and, while the doc’s aren’t sure what’s causing my symptoms, it all boils down to biochemistry!
GI system is really interesting to me because it’s so inclusive: it’s composed of little foreign bacteria (your microbiome), which can affect the nutrients you up-take, your immune system functioning, your organs, your muscles, and your mind — it’s crazy how much these unrelated bacteria can do (and can literally make you crazy)! When we get sick, sometimes we lose all the healthy bacteria we need, allowing bad bacteria to take over. An overpopulation of bacteria H. pylori often causes GI problems, so I’m having a blood test for antibodies against that pesky beast. Prebiotics, taken as supplements or as RAW garlic, onions, and chicory root (with >60% prebiotic content), help feed and repopulate good bacteria, as do probiotics, like unpasteurized yogurt, which has good bacteria growing in it. Interestingly, however, we cannot digest prebiotics (only our microbes can), so taken in large quantities, they can actually make us sick!
In addition to our gut flora, our hormones (e.g., from the thyroid and pancreas) and our livers, which break down sugars and remove toxins, can play a huge role in GI health and well-being. To test for all these things, I’ve had blood work and samples taken, but so far nothing’s come back positive.
As I’m waiting to figure out what’s wrong, I’m on a restricted diet of essentially plain toast, plain meat (no sauces) and plain lettuce. Oddly, I’m not allowed to have dairy because my sickness seems to have removed all the lactase (lactose-digesting enzyme) from my system. Bad bacteria seem to be metabolizing the lactose I’m consuming to cause even more nausea, cramping, etc.
As miserable as I feel now, I am all the more appreciative for the flawlessness in our guts when we’re healthy. It’s truly spectacular how effectively our bodies communicate between organs and bacteria to keep everything in line and in proper concentrations. With a little push from allopathic medicine, hopefully my gut and I can get back on balance again!
It’s interesting how much this class has changed our perspectives in our daily lives. Even sickness or medication we take, we take a biochemical approach in trying to understand how they function in our bodies.
It’s pretty amazing how intricate our guts are. My father eats two cloves a garlic everyday as a general supplement for the reason you mentioned above, but I find it too eye-watering to eat.