As you prepare your menus, your invitations, your shopping lists and your home for Thanksgiving this Thursday, you should add another extremely important item to your list – preparing your own belly. Now you might be thinking, “What the hell does she mean by that?”
Well let me ask you..
…how did you feel the last time you ate a holiday meal that included appetizers, wine, bread filling, meat, potatoes, cruciferous vegetables, and cake with whipped cream or ice cream?
It’s not uncommon for people to complain about overeating, but the complaints are often accompanied by whines about gas and grunts about pain. This discomfort can be something serious! I know I was there! — and I want to do the best I can to avoid it — other than withhold all food from me. Even if it’s organic and whole, the combination of these foods can wreak havoc on our gastrointestinal system.
So what can we do to prepare our own stomachs for these treats?
Two things – and you’re good to go.
I. – Acidophilus
II. – Digestive enzymes (excerpt from blog 20 November)
Additional information:
I. Take acidophilus or probiotics daily to repopulate the gut with some good bacteria—the kind that help even out the eco-terrain of your internal environment. It’s important to take these on an empty stomach, even if you read some labels saying they’re to be taken with food.
In fact, I’ve found the cheaper acidophilus (the kind they sell at pharmacies or places like CVS) that supposedly can be taken with food. My take on this is that they don’t have many or any live cultures in them – if they did they wouldn’t tell you to take it with food! Taking a good quality acidophilus on an empty stomach will help ensure the bacteria are absorbed and not diluted with food.
Besides taking acidophilus/probiotics capsules, there are other ways to get those good live cultures in your belly – yogurt (preferably unsweetened), kefir, and cultured foods like cultured vegetables (culturedvegetables.com).
Thanks to Marilee Tolen
