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Three easy steps to improve intestinal health to drastically improve overall wellness when following a years-long, strict gut healing diet is not an option.
For a number of reasons, the majority of people don’t seem to have very good intestinal health anymore.
Most of the food we eat is not only lacking in nutrients, it’s filled with additives, preservatives, and other chemicals.
From the air we breathe and the water we drink, to the thousands of chemicals we come into contact with each day…it all takes its toll on the colon and, ultimately, on our overall health.
The digestive process begins as soon as food enters the mouth. As we chew our food we increase the surface area of food particles making the food more susceptible to digestive enzymes.
Smaller food particles also travel more easily (and quickly) throughout the small and large intestines.
In the stomach, food is mixed with gastric juices containing digestive enzymes and hydrochloric acid. This mixture is known as chyme.
From the stomach, the chyme moves into the small intestine. There, more enzymes and bile are mixed with the chyme, and the breakdown of dietary proteins, fats, and carbs is complete.
Some carbs are not digested by human enzymes and they pass undigested into the colon.
Most nutrients are absorbed in the small intestine.
However, Vitamin K, niacin, and B vitamins are formed by beneficial bacteria in and absorbed by the colon. Vitamin K is necessary for blood clotting and niacin and the B vitamins affect energy levels, metabolism, feelings of fatigue, and the function of nerves.
Evidence suggests that serotonin is created in the colon as well.
The colon is also designed to eliminate toxins. When the colon is not working well, it begins to absorb toxins into the bloodstream rather than expelling them. You can see why having a healthy colon is important.
So how do you know if you have an unhealthy colon? First of all, if you’ve ever taken antibiotics there’s a pretty good chance that you colon health isn’t optimal.
Why? Because one of the determining factors of colon health is the composition of the microbes in your gut. Is it mostly friendly or is the majority unfriendly?
Antibiotics are designed to kill bacteria, and they don’t care whether they’re friendly or unfriendly.
Birth control pills, not enough dietary fiber, poor eating habits, alcoholic beverages, chlorine, sodium fluoride, and stress all contribute to intestinal flora imbalance too.
Our digestive system is home to more than 500 different bacterial species, and if 85% of the bacteria in our colon are friendly then the colon can handle the 15% of unfriendly bacteria.
The problem is most of us have this reversed. The result?
Diarrhea, constipation, excessive gas, bloating, allergies, eczema, irritable bowel, inflammatory bowel, kidney stones, ear infections, colds, vaginal yeast infections, Crohn’s disease, lactose intolerance, thrush, athlete’s foot, cancer, and on and on.
The big problem with these conditions is that more meds are used in most cases even when they were the cause of the intestinal problems in the first place. A common example is considering whether strep can go away on its own.
“Of course not” is the answer if you ask most people. The accepted conventional strep throat treatment is an immediate trip to the doctor for yet another prescription, which further destroys intestinal health!
And the rollercoaster to ever-increasing gut imbalance continues…
How Friendly Microbes Facilitate Health
Friendly bacteria (called probiotics – there are literally thousands of strains) prevent the overgrowth of yeast and fungus.
They help keep our intestines healthy in numerous ways including:
- Competition with candida in the intestine
- Suppression of the growth of potentially harmful bacteria
- Production of substances that optimize and balance cholesterol
- Enhancement of the protective barrier of the digestive tract
- Production of vitamin K1
- Stimulation of immune function
- Lowering of blood pressure in some people
- Aiding in the digestion of lactose
- Prevention of cavities and gum disease
- Decreasing the passage of bacteria or antigens from the intestines to the bloodstream
- Fighting pre-carcinogenic or mutagenic compounds
- Breakdown of oxalates (contributes to kidney stones)
- Detoxification of ingested carcinogens
- Production of compounds that inhibit the growth of tumor cells, and more!
So where do you get these probiotics?
Believe it or not, store-bought yogurt probably sometimes isn’t your best source. Neither is the probiotic pill that you buy at the health food store.
Why? Because the yogurt has been pasteurized which kills all the naturally occurring good bacteria in the raw milk!
Then, manufacturers only add back in a few strains of probiotics. On top of that, commercial yogurt isn’t fermented properly either!
With regard to probiotic supplements, they are dried into a powder which requires rehydration in the body before they can be effective.
In addition, probiotic manufacturers are increasingly using lab strains instead of wild ones, as Mother Nature intended.
What to do?
Well, probiotics can be found in homemade yogurt and kefir as well as naturally fermented sauerkraut and other naturally fermented foods.
When you ingest these foods, you’re actually putting friendly bacteria back into your gut!
So what does this have to do with the “perfect trifecta for intestinal health”? Well, probiotics is one part of it.
Let me tell you what we do in our family that works extremely well and is easy to do!
Fresh Garlic
First, every night before bed we take fresh garlic and chop it up fine – about a teaspoon full will do.
Then we let it sit for 14 minutes and swallow it like a pill.
The garlic kills the unfriendly bacteria in my gut and feeds the friendly bacteria; this is known as a prebiotic.
Amazingly, I don’t have garlic breath and I don’t smell like garlic when I sweat.
If you are one of those people who do stink from eating raw garlic, try fermented garlic instead.
It’s incredibly easy to make and pickled garlic cloves retain all the therapeutic value with the heat and odor potential significantly reduced or eliminated.
Clay
Second, every day we take a teaspoon of clay and mix it in a cup of water, let it sit for a few minutes, stir it again, and drink it.
Among other things, the clay is primarily negatively charged. By comparison, unfriendly bacteria, toxins, parasites, heavy metals, and radiation, are all positively charged.
As the clay travels through the digestive system, the unfriendly bacteria (and other things) are attracted to the clay and eliminated by the body.
Traditional peoples practiced the use of clay as well. For example, the Australian Aboriginal tribes would dip their food in water mixed with clay as they ate, presumably to protect them from whatever pathogens might be lurking.
Note that it is not a good idea to regularly use activated charcoal as a detox for these toxins instead.
Most people do not realize that AC takes nutrients out of the body too! Activated charcoal is for food poisoning and similar acute digestive issues only…it is not a substitute for clay.
Kefir
Third, throughout the day we drink kefir. Kefir is a better choice than yogurt as yogurt only contains a few strains of beneficial bacteria whereas kefir has 50 or even more!
Also, unlike yogurt, some of these are aggressive strains that recolonize the gut.
One word of caution.
Homemade kefir is better and more therapeutic than commercial brands, which have fewer strains and are likely fermented for shorter periods of time.
So, we’ve got the garlic killing the unfriendly and feeding the friendly; the clay pulling the unfriendly out of the system; and the kefir putting the friendly back into the system which the garlic then feeds.
See how that works?!
So, what have I noticed since I’ve been implementing the “perfect trifecta” for intestinal health in my life? Well, I’m more regular in my bowel movements (overshare, but it’s the truth).
Remember that your body is like a donut – round with a hole through the center. The top of the hole is your mouth and the bottom of the hole is your anus. Whenever the top hole opens it shouldn’t be too long before the bottom hole opens and if it isn’t, things need some improvement.
The other thing I noticed is that my sugar cravings stopped. I didn’t think too much of it until a friend of mine commented that she was having the same result! But it makes sense.
What do the unfriendly bacteria feed off of? Refined sugar, refined flour… So, when I have more friendly bacteria than unfriendly bacteria, my body isn’t going to crave the things that feed the unfriendly bacteria!
Third, I have an overall feeling of health and well-being and no “brain fog”!
Not too shabby for a few “home remedies”, huh?!
So, have you had any experiences using the Perfect Trifecta of garlic, clay, and kefir to improve intestinal health? If so, I’d like to hear about your experiences.
More Information
Food Poisoning Remedies that Work and Prevent Dehydration
Why Fermented Foods are Not Enough to Heal the Gut (and the Probiotic Boost they Need)
Are You a Tummy Bug Magnet? Fat Phobia May Be the Cause
Slippery Elm for Tummy Aches
Hi the Redmond Clay is no longer available do you have a substitute? Thanks so much!
I can’t quite see the link for the redmond clay (may be because I live in the UK and the product may not be available here). Is it a bentonite clay that I am after? What do you think about activated charcoal, could it be a good replacement of teh clay?
Activated charcoal is not a good replacement for clay. Activated charcoal will prevent your body from absorbing nutrients, so cannot be taken on a daily basis. Activated charcoal is only for emergency use such as when you might have food poisoning.
The Redmond Clay link is for a horse treatment. Is this the one you ingest?
I just clicked the link and it is correct …. Redmond Clay that is supplement quality for humans … I see from your email address that you are in Canada, so you were switched to the Canadian storefront which obviously did not match up the product correctly! The brand is “Mineral Support” from Redmond Trading Company. Hope that helps!
Definitely eat the chopped garlic with food on yours stomach otherwise you’ll feel like puking. You can feel the garlic working quickly, just an overall feeling of wellness… I stink when I eat it though so not sure what to do about that???
You can also do probiotic emena where you break open the caps and let them sit overnight in small amount of distilled water then add warm water to it, thick and small amount of liquid makes it easier to keep in longer, your not flushing the intestines but trying to repopulate the good bacteria. You can do the same thing and drink it to get it in the small intestines but do it immediately after eating so your stomach acid is deluded, this brings the dried probiotics back to life by soaking them. And yes garlic feeds good bacteria and kills the fungus caused by bad bacteria that bad bacteria can feed off of so very important to get that garlic in there.
I’m wondering do you take the Redmond clay at night at the same time as the garlic or some other time.
I’ve been taking raw garlic on and off for most of this year and I feel the healthiest I’ve felt in years. I also take clay and diatomaceous earth.
Thankyou
Any time that suits you is fine 🙂 However, with meals is usually the best.
Do you do this plan all of the time or is there a limited period where it can be helpful? 2 weeks? One month?
As long as it helps you and keeps your digestion working well. Some people may need to do it indefinitely.
I drink Kefir for breakfast, chop a garlic clove or mince one when I serve dinner and swallow it like a pill after my last bite (about 10-15 minutes after chopping) and I swallow a tablespoon of coconut oil at bed. I have no more irritable bowel symptoms and the most beautiful bowel movements. I forgot what normal ones looked and felt like. Years of agony and bloating and unhelpful Dr visits and tests.
I take a daily probiotic and have stumbled upon Redmond clay when I had a stomach virus that I couldn’t shake… can I take both my probiotic and the Redmond clay or just the Redmond clay? Thanks in advance
Here’s how to deal with a stomach virus. https://www.thehealthyhomeeconomist.com/food-poisoning-remedies-that-work-fast-prevent-dehydration/
Im sorry, but Im not sure this is truth. No matter how long do you eat garlic, you will continue farting (personal observation ;)). Some references to the whole article would be nice. For example, garlic killing only the bad microbiota?
What brands are good of redmond clay?
Thank you!
A link to a quality vetted brand is in the post.