Gastrointestinal Health: A Self-Help Program to Prevent, Cure or Alleviate Irritable Bowel Syndrome

If you could purchase one book on GI issues, this should be it. My copy is filled with notes and highights and I have recommended it to many of my friends. I found the technical jargon to be quite easy to comprehend (yes, I know I am also a Dr., but trust me -- we appreciate the simplified lanauge as well). The author also integrates a nutritional aspect, although some of the info can be quite contradictory (check out the cooking section...). Overall, I LOVE this book and I have brought it on many a Dr's visit. Its quite impressive.

This book is very useful for a wide constituency of physiciansand patients . It is helpful for gastrointestinal, neurologicand rhematological problems. The author treats the nutritionaldimension of our health. For instance, milk may harm ulcersand exacerbate other problems in the GI tract. Spicy foods mayaggravate inflammations. The author explains that the smallintestine digests proteins and splits amino acids and enzymes.The digestive system interacts with the circulatory system.Nutrients travel to the liver which secretes bile and removestoxins from injested foods. With the exception of fats, all nutrients enter the bloodstream via the liver. Undigestedfiber evacuates. White bread, chocolate and pastas clog thedigestive system. Spasms aggravate existing digestive disorders.These spasms may take the form of abdomenal discomfort,IBS, Crohns Disease and diverticulosis. Pancreatitis is asteady increase in abdomenal discomfort aggravated by alcohol.Sandostatin treats pancreatitis. Certain foods contain gluten.The gluten can aggravate existing gastrointestinal conditions.Eliminating wheat, rye and sweets helps to alleviate symptoms.Stress is an aggravating factor with regard to the GI tract.An increase in fiber helps the tract operate better. In addition,the GI tract needs micronutrients and vitamins to aid inthe digestive process. This book is excellent as a healthmaintenance tool.

I suffered for a year before this book came to my rescue. Once I started having stabbing pains after I ate, a friend let me borrow her copy to seek some relief. After an endoscopy and a trip to the emergency room with excrutiating pain, I finally consulted the book and learned that my problem may go further than acid reflux. At my second trip to the ER I insisted on having my gallbladder tested. The ER doctor was not interested in going that direction, but he placated me and let me have an ultrasound. That revealed that I had an enlarged gallbladder and gallstones. I had surgery the next day to remove the gallbladder. Had I not read the book and become informed, there is no telling how much longer I would have had to suffer (the ER docs were content with medicating me and sending me home and not trying to figure out what was wrong). It helps to educate yourself when you know something is not right with your body, because doctors do not know everything. I had seen two doctors previously, and neither had an inkling that my gallbladder might have been my problem. I highly recommend this book to anyone that has digestive problems.

I read the earlier edition of this book and have the new edition. I thought it was good enough to buy the second edition. If you ever watch the commercials on TV during the evening news you would think pretty much everyone in the United States has something wrong with their stomach. That is not too far off. I've seen tv commercials encouraging teenagers to start taking laxatives. This book is good because it gives real life examples and doesn't try to tell anyone to always eat pefectly which is basically impossible and even if it is possible the person would die of monotony probably. For example I used to eat 3 or 4 pork chops at one meal but the book says meat should not be as significant a part of the diet. This causes you to lose weight also in a safe way. The biggest thing I think is the part about exercise. The book says go for a long walk every night. If you do this and also identify things you may not be able to digest such as milk you shouldn't have too many stomach problems. There's milk out now called 'Lactaid' which has the lactose enzyme added in. Those who don't do these things will ultimately try to treat their problems with over the counter or prescription drugs rather than attack the problems at the source. Updated 12/23/07 ----------------- Since I read this book and wrote the original review I have learned more about diet. The hell that I went through with my stomach was mainly caused by flooding my system with white sugar and other refined sweeteners such as high fructose corn syrup. White sugar is basically a poison for the body. The soft drink and candy companies are poisoning America and the the entire world really with this crap. White sugar attacks and weakens the immune system. When I removed it from my diet I lost my allergies for trees, grasses, molds, and ragweed. But you have to beware of so called 'sugar free' candy and other things also. These contain the sugar alcohols which are even worse than white sugar. What you should look for is raw (not necessarily organic) sugar. An emerging discovery in the area of natural health is maintaing the proper Ph level in the body's chemistry. Jeff Marzano Sugar in the Raw Raw Sugar, 24-Ounce Bags (Pack of 12) Alkalize or Die The Acid-Alkaline Diet for Optimum Health: Restore Your Health by Creating Balance in Your Diet McCann's Steel Cut Oatmeal, Traditional, 28-Ounce Tins (Pack of 4)

I have been under a doctor's care for an ulcer for over 6 months. Perscription drugs to control acid production were helpful but I developed a sensitivity to the medicine. I have been following the diet in this book for a month and am pain-free! The best part about the author's recommendations is that he includes recipes that provide specific guidelines for what to eat. AND, the food actually tastes good!