Bowel Transit Time: Key to Colon HealthBowel transit time is a key to colon health. It is the amount of time that elapses between the time you ingest a meal and the time when the remains of it are eliminated. It can easily be measured. Ideally, the time required for food to pass through the digestive tract should be 48 hours or less. If the food you eat passes through the digestive tract too slowly, the stagnation can result. This can lead to unhealthy chemical reactions such as fermentation, creating a toxic state. Irritants released from such activity can harm the gut lining. When the movement of food through the digestive tract is too slow, constipation results.
One VERY important determinant of bowel transit time is bile flow! The most FABULOUS way to improve liver/gallbladder health and bile flow is the renowned coffee enema! Bowel Transit Time TestYou can test bowel transit time in the comfort of your own home on a regular basis. This gives you information to guide you in your detoxification program.You will gain valuable insight into how well your detox diet and other body cleansing protocols are working for you. Create a 'Bowel Transit Time Food Marker': This means eating something that will easily show up in your stool. NOTE: To prepare for the test, do not eat the food designated as a marker for a week before you do the test. Here are a few suggestions on suitable foods to use as a marker: Red beets: The pigment of this healthful vegetable was used as a red dye in days past. Juicing two cubic inches of beet along with some carrot or other vegetable juice, then eating a salad with a few ounces of raw beets grated into it will do the trick. Or how about a half cup of beets julienne cut into matchstick sized pieces and sauteed with carrots, onions and/or other vegetables? Black Sesame Seeds: If you frequently eat sesame seeds, you may have noticed that even when you think you have chewed them well, some of them come out looking about the same as they did when you ate them. Black sesame seeds can often be obtained in a health store that sells Macrobiotic foods. They are a little stronger tasting than the regular tan sesame seeds. A couple of rounded teaspoons full sprinkled on some food will give you a good marker. Dried corn kernels: Commonly recommended, since whole corn is quite visible. The corn can be swallowed with other foods. To protect your teeth, be careful not to chew hard on the whole kernels. NOTE: Be sure to record the time you eat the beets or other marker food, then be on the lookout to see when it leaves your body.
|
