Gut Rules

CLIFF NOTES:
A) Coffee on empty stomach + breakfast an hour later = Gas problems.
B) Doing the opposite solves the problem.
C) One should eat following the stomach`s secretion cycles.
D) Got some good Gut Rules?

Gas. Too much. Painfully so.

Ever been there? Until recently, I had a major gas problem. At first, I thought it is a side effect of getting older, and use some actived coal powder (don`t have the exact translation, sorry), the same black powder used in poison detoxification solutions because it binds to almost anything, and it helped … for a while.

Then I got tired and started reading a book that talked about the importance of the gut. In short, the author thinks the whole intestinal tract is like the second brain, and that many illnesses can be prevented by taking care of the gut.

Among the Gut Rules, 1) Never drink coffee on an empty stomach - do it at the end of the meal, 2) Eat food on a regular basis, so that intake is matched with the natural cycles of the gut, i.e. the stomach fills with acid periodically indepently of whether there`s food or not.

There were many other rules, but simply applying the first one stopped my gas problem completely.

I also remember Don Lemmon`s theories about drinking a glass of water as soon as one gets up, and that one should eat on a periodic basis so that the new food pushes the old one, thus preventing it from staying too long in the gut, rotting, and causing all sorts of problems.

Any other good Gut Rules or references to good books / hints? Thanks in advance!

[quote]MrChill wrote:
Any other good Gut Rules or references to good books / hints? Thanks in advance![/quote]

…dont put twinkies on your pizza.

[quote]MrChill wrote:

  1. Never drink coffee on an empty stomach - do it at the end of the meal[/quote]

Why drink coffee at all? It’s not a necessity by any means. Take Spike instead… :slight_smile:

Is this new? That’s the basis for almost every diet or nutrition plan on this site.

I seriously doubt anything stays in your stomach long enough to rot. Your body is way too efficient for that. Plus the second you ingest something it is already starting to break down.

I second the twinkie thing. Other than that I really doubt the timing of your coffee has anything to do with gas and the fix was just a coincidence.

[quote]eengrms76 wrote:

I seriously doubt anything stays in your stomach long enough to rot. Your body is way too efficient for that. Plus the second you ingest something it is already starting to break down.
[/quote]

Before then. Carbohydrates begin breaking down the moment they touch saliva in your mouth. Food doesn’t just sit in your stomach waiting for more food to push it out. Hydrochloric acid does a pretty job of breaking down substances.

I fully agree with the general principles detailed in the replies. (As for coffee, I`m cutting it slowly. Currently on half-caffeine.)

It`s the details that bug me. For example:

  1. If the digestion process is rather constant, why am I burping some foods 6 hours after eating them (ex: salmon, V-8)?
  2. Why do some food go straight thru me and others take almost two days to get processed? For example, a meal of vegetables is generally out in 12 hours. Hi-protein stuff takes longer. Peanut butter gives me the runs. A little bit too much activated coal gets me constipated. Too much a.c. gets out in 6 hours.

I`m starting to think that maybe those food combination/separation rules do make sense, or at least explain part of all this variation.

[quote]MrChill wrote:
I fully agree with the general principles detailed in the replies. (As for coffee, I`m cutting it slowly. Currently on half-caffeine.)

It`s the details that bug me. For example:

  1. If the digestion process is rather constant, why am I burping some foods 6 hours after eating them (ex: salmon, V-8)?
  2. Why do some food go straight thru me and others take almost two days to get processed? For example, a meal of vegetables is generally out in 12 hours. Hi-protein stuff takes longer. Peanut butter gives me the runs. A little bit too much activated coal gets me constipated. Too much a.c. gets out in 6 hours.

I`m starting to think that maybe those food combination/separation rules do make sense, or at least explain part of all this variation.[/quote]

You’re neglecting a pretty important detail here- everyone is different. My wife can eat really spicy foods with no problems at all. I use the “hot” sauce at Taco Bell and I need Tums. So as far as gas goes, everyone reacts differently. Hell peanut butter doesn’t bother me.

For digestion timing, I would say I agree that there is probably more to it than most of us realize. I don’t think it’s much of a concern for most people though. I don’t agree that if it takes longer to digest that it changes anything from a nutrition or hunger standpoint, to a certain extent. We all are aware of the chinese food effect, i.e. high-carb and hungry 30 min. later. Most foods, to me, are very similar in digesting times. But heh I’m young.

Blessed with a cast iron stomach, but there is one rule.

Don’t eat a huge meal right before going to bed… or suffer heartburn until morning!

[quote]rrjc5488 wrote:
MrChill wrote:
Any other good Gut Rules or references to good books / hints? Thanks in advance!

…dont put twinkies on your pizza.[/quote]

Heavyweights is a classic movie…i’m glad i’m not the only person who lives by those words :smiley: