swelling symptoms subside when taking digestive enzymes

[edenfield]

they go down miracilously (KNOCK ON WOOD!) but what is this a sign of? weak digestion? is there way i could make myself not reliant on the enzymes/

[shelley]

Supplements designed to reduce inflammation usually contain enzymes for just that reason. I took Garden of Life's "FYI (For Your Inflammation) for just that reason.

It's a good idea to go ahead and supplement with enzymse for at least a month if you have inflammatory issues.

Concurrently, so you can go OFF the enzymes and not rely on them, you have to figure out which foods are stressing you out. Usually it's an over-reliance on simple sugars, processed/refined foods, food additives, wheat, corn, gluten grains, sometimes nightshade veggies.

It can also be due to adrenal exhaustion and liver congestion, which makes the pancreas work doubly hard and so, exhausted, it stops producing a lot of enzymes.

For both these reasons, fasting or at least a reduced calorie, pure diet of Kichadi and Cleansing Drinks and herbs/digestive teas and lots of fresh-squeezed veggie juices, which have their own enzymes, and tons of cultured foods like kefir and sauerkraut - which ADD to your pool of enzymse so you're no longer dependent on the pills - is highly recommended.

It's a good idea to take the stomach acid test.

It also means you have "sticky red blood cell" syndrome, which means the cells tend to aggragate, and will until you thoroughly cleanse your bowels and liver and start eating more good fats like cod liver oil, coconut oil, fish oils, etc. Adaptogenic herbs and blood thinners help with this: ginger, garlic, onion, ginseng, astralagus. Astralagus is highly recommended as an adrenal supporter. Mixed with Gotu Kola and Licorice it's very powerful.

[edenfield]

shelley i was also on accutane. what kind of damage does that do?

[edenfield]

as well do the pills add to the enzyme pool?

[shelley]

Pills definitely add to the enzyme pool and help us with diets that are mostly cooked and uncultured. Ideally, tho, we need to move towards including more cultured foods because there are more benefits to them besides just additional enzymes. They are quite easy to digest and the fermentation process increases nutrients like B vitamins.

I should write up a post on Accutane and put it in the FAQ, as many members come here with that issue. Accutane is basically a synthetic form of Vitamin A, much like Retin-A, that's been twisted about. This makes it very hard on the liver and if taken for long periods of time can lead to a toxicity much like Vitamin A toxicity.

People who have taken Accutane need to cleanse their liver thoroughly and then go after the originating causes of the acne, which is usually a complex combo of weak digestion, poor elimination, bad diet and bad food choices. It also helps for them to start getting natural vitamin A from cod liver oil - if they did not overdose on the accutane - and to take vitamin A boosters (things that make it more available such as Zinc so it can leave the liver finally) and antagonizers (things that make us shed or not absorb a nutrient) if they did indeed overdose. www.acu-cell.com is the best resource for what vitamins help or hinder other vitamins.

[edenfield]

eating berries and home made kefir as i type this

yes, i really need to do a COMPREHENSIVE liver cleanse. i've done the flush, but no actual cleaning and rebuilding of the liver.