
In my previous post I mentioned that my six-week Anti-inflammatory Diet was done and the follow-up Blood Work revealed some clues regarding my chronic health issues. In that post I mentioned that I discovered that in spite of eating Paleo, I am suffering from hyperglycemia. But there was more and some of that will be discussed in this post.
For those of you who may remember Timothy Leary, you may be interested to know that I have begun a daily protocol of dropping acid. Oh, not LSD, but Hydrochloric Acid. My body is not producing adequate acid to facilitate proper digestion. I may be eating well, but I am not assimilating many of the nutrients into my body. I guess you could say my grocery bill is going down the drain. I will be taking another supplement to deal with this issue, Betaine HCL.
Betaine HCL facilitates the proper absorption of protein, calcium, vitamin B-12, and iron. These nutrients help your body with a variety of functions, such as bone and blood formation. This formulation also contains the enzyme, pepsin, which is used in the digestion of proteins that are used for the growth and repair of body tissues. Gee, this could be one of the reasons I struggle to put on muscle. The protein I consume isn’t getting into my system.
As I look back on my digestive problems historically, I have always had acid issues. Unfortunately, the conventional wisdom is upside down. Most people think heartburn and GERD are a result of too much acid, and in reality, they are more likely from too little acid in the system. So frequent treatments will be to take antacids to neutralize the acid in the system, or to prescribe Prilosec or Nexium. For people like me, who had listened to their doctors, this was the direct opposite of what I should have done and it only exacerbated the problem. And you wonder why I’m Defiant?
By adding acid to the system, or by facilitating the production of acid in the body, these digestive problems can be resolved without the use of drugs. In addition to supplements such as Betaine HCL, a viable folk remedy is to drink cider vinegar diluted in water prior to eating. In fact, we discovered this accidentally. I had purchased an 8 ounce bottle of Caleb Treeze, Proven Old Amish Formula for $10 at a local “Health Food Store”. Suzanne said it worked wonders. I read the ingredients and noticed it contains Organic Apple Cider and Ginger juice. We now make it ourselves.
Another homegrown recipe is to shred ginger, steep it in hot water and drink the solution like tea. Another tip is to not drink a lot of water with your meal, to minimize diluting the acid you are producing.
[…] Part 2 of this series I will discuss how dropping acid might be good for what ails […]