Yoga for Glaucoma

Glaucoma is the result of intraocular pressure or abnormally high pressure within the eye. The pressure can cause damage to the optical nerve and lead to vision loss. During a Bikram Yoga session, glaucoma sufferers should avoid or exercise caution while doing inverted postures, which can further increase eye pressure, thus worsening the condition.
Bikram Yoga
Bikram Yoga was developed by Yoga Guru Bikram Choudhury. He created a series of 26 yoga postures to be practiced in a particular sequence to work every area of the body during a yoga session. Students practice the sequence in a heated studio with temperatures at 104 degrees Fahrenheit for optimal performance. He believed that heated rooms would make the body sweat more, thus flushing out toxins and waste products through the skin, while also keeping the body warm and flexible for the postures.
Yoga Poses to Avoid
As with any other style of yoga, the most important poses to avoid for someone with glaucoma, are inversions. According to glaucoma specialist Dr. Rick Wilson, poses with the "head down and body up" should be avoided for extended periods of time. Inversions elevate blood pressure and cause added pressure to build up inside the eyes, thus worsening glaucoma. Three of the 26 postures of Bikram Yoga should be avoided or practiced with caution: dandayamana-bibhaktapada-paschimotthanasana, dandayamana-bibhaktapada-janushirasana and sasangasana.
Beneficial Yoga Poses
Yoga poses that aid in relaxation and lowering blood pressure would be beneficial for glaucoma sufferers. The savasana and ardha-kurmasana are two Bikram postures that relax the body. Postures such as pavanamuktasana, ardha-matsyendrasana, janushirasana and paschimotthanasana can help to lower blood pressure.
Consult with Doctor
Always consult with a doctor before attempting any new exercise program. Ask for a referral to a reputable yoga teacher with experience instructing those with glaucoma. A good teacher will offer alternatives and modifications during a yoga session.

What to do when you suffer digestion problems?

Many people have long term digestion problems. Digestion problems are inconvenient and can be painful. Long-term digestion problems begin with common physical symptoms like bloating and heartburn. If these symptoms persist without treatment, it may lead to more serious long term digestion difficulties.

Poor Digestion Equals Serious Illness

Typical symptoms of poor digestion are gas, fullness and nausea. Sluggish digestive function reduces the number of enzymes in the stomach available to break food down.  Since the number of enzymes is lower than needed to metabolize food, the body sends enzymes from the immune system to the stomach, leaving the immune system more vulnerable to germs. Over time, without treatment, symptoms of poor digestion can turn into diseases like arthritis and cancer.

Unknown food allergens can affect digestion. One particular illness that is caused by food allergens is called leaky gut syndrome. Leaky gut syndrome occurs when the lining of the intestine loses its ability to block out large molecules. This causes fluid from the intestines to spread throughout the body. Once the fluid is in the blood, it becomes toxic to the body, causing the immune system to attack. Luckily, leaky gut syndrome is a long-term digestion problem that can be avoided.

There are many possible causes to poor digestion. Sleeping below the recommended number of hours each night is a potential reason for a slow metabolism. Adequate rest and relaxation is required for the body to heal itself. Without the time to heal itself, the body's immune system becomes weak and vulnerable.

Eating habits contribute to digestive health as well. Eating healthy is one of the main habits that help people with sluggish digestion. Healthy eating includes consuming mostly water-rich vegetables, fruits and protein from lean meat or vegetarian sources. Replacing processed, sugar-filled foods with whole grain complex carbohydrates promotes good digestive health as well.

Food combining is a concept based on the type of digestive enzymes that digest each food item. These enzymes are acidic or alkaline and they affect the pH balance of the stomach. Eating foods that are acidic with those that are alkaline neutralizes the digestive enzymes in the stomach. This stops digestive function. Food combining has basic rules. The main rule is that food which requires an alkaline environment to be digested should not be combined with food that requires an acidic environment to be digested. In general, acidic foods are animal proteins and alkaline foods are starches, sugars, and fats. Neutral foods are most water-rich vegetables and vegetarian proteins. After learning which foods are acidic, alkaline, or neutral, the process of food combining is pretty simple.  Acidic foods and neutral foods can be eaten together.  Alkaline foods and neutral foods can be eaten together. Fruit is considered a different type of food and should not be combined with any other foods.

Long term digestive problems are prevalent throughout the United States. Even though advertisements of high fat, processed foods propagate society, keeping simple and healthy eating habits can be the deciding factor between temporary bloating and heartburn and a long term digestive disorder.

Avoid Acidic Foods and Improve Your Digestive Health

Giving up the pleasures of a good cup of steaming hot coffee altogether may not be necessary but cutting down on your coffee consumption should be a real consideration.  The effects of acidic foods on digestion can greatly compromise overall health.  The fact is that coffee contains a high concentration of acid.
Moderation Will Improve Your Digestive Health
Actually, coffee and tea acids can do damage to the pH balance of your body and are classified as acidic drinks. Foods and drinks that have high acidic content are hard for your body to digest properly.  Because the acid content causes problems with digestion, it is best to drink coffee by itself and not along with any kind of foods.  This will help your body to properly digest the coffee you do drink.
The main problem with ingesting drinks and foods that have a high acidic content is that when your body cannot properly digest your drinks and foods, then absorbing the nutrients, vitamins and minerals in the foods you eat or even the supplements you take is compromised.
You can eat healthy foods with good fiber content and plenty of necessary nutrients all day long but if your body cannot break them down so they are absorbed into your system they will do you no good. In fact, foods that are not properly digested have to go somewhere and the body will most likely store the unprocessed foods as fat.  Even worse, if the body cannot absorb the nutrients necessary for proper function it will steal what it needs from vital organs and the bones.  This is what causes a situation where the body is susceptible to disease.
Acidic Foods to Avoid for Digestive Health
The list of acidic foods is extensive and can be classified in three categories; slightly acidic, acidic, and highly acidic.  Obviously the most important group of foods you need to avoid is the ones that are full of acid.  The following is a complete list of these foods:
Very Acidic Foods to Avoid

• Artificial sweeteners
• Aspartame
• Bagels
• Baked goods
• Biscuits
• Bread, white
• Cakes
• Candy
• Brownies
• Chips
• Chocolate
• Cookies
• Corn chips
• Couscous
• Crackers, white-saltines
• Custard
• Donuts
• Equal/aspartame
• Flour-white, soy, white rice
• Gravy
• Hazelnuts
• Ice cream
• Macadamia nuts
• Matzoh
• Noodles, egg
• Pasta, white flour
• Pie
• Potato chips
• Processed foods
• Pudding
• Saccharin
• Salt, idolized table
• Splenda
• Tortillas, white (flour)
• Cranberries
• Cranberry sauce
• Fruit juice - sweetened
• High fructose corn syrup
• Cheese, hard
• Corn syrup
• Cottonseed oil
• Macaroni and Cheese
• Bacon
• Beef
• Beer
• Bologna
• Carp
• Cold cuts
• Corned beef
• Crab
• Deli meats
• Ham
• Hot dogs/frankfurter, coneys
• Lobster
• Lunch meat
• Pastrami
• Pork
• Salami
• Sausage
• Shrimp
• Swordfish
• Coffee-espresso
• Liquor
• Milk, homogenized
• Soda

Eliminating these foods is not necessary but you need to be aware of the foods that contain high quantities of acid.  Limiting the consumption of the highest rated acidic drinks and foods and being aware of the effects of acidic foods on digestion should help to improve your overall health.  The body needs to have a pH neutral range in order to function properly. Constant consumption of high acidic drinks like coffee will in time damage your health.  An occasional cup of coffee now and then should be no problem but drinking a pot of coffee every day is just a really bad idea.

3 Tips to increase your digestion

In the human body, digestion is a complex process with many players taking part. All of these actions take place without our knowing—like a cast of actors whose performances we admire but can't see. Act 1 begins with the tongue, mouth, teeth and oral cavity breaking down foods which then travel to the stomach where acidic digestive juices are added for Act 2. A key player in the entire process is the pancreas which serves three functions—producing, storing and secreting enzymes for digestion. Act 3 happens when the pancreas senses that there is food in the small intestine and shoots out a mixture containing the enzymes amylase, protease and lipase along with other substances into the duodenum. Amylases (also part of saliva) break down carbohydrates. Proteases break down protein. Lipases break down fats. Over the counter enzyme supplents can play a role in aiding digestion.

Why Do We Need Digestive Enzymes?

We need enzymes because life would not exist without them. Digestive enzymes perform a multitude of functions, especially turning food into nutrients which makes it small enough to pass through pores into the bloodstream. Our bodies produce digestive enzymes naturally, and we also get them from plant and animal foods. Without sufficient digestive enzymes, the body calls upon metabolic enzymes (designed for cell tissue regeneration) for digestion purposes. Redirecting metabolic enzymes for digestive purposes causes stress on the body and can contribute to ill health.

Enzymes and the Bloodstream

In the lining of the small intestine, enzymes (lactase, DPP IV, disaccharides and others) help move nutrients through the bloodstream and several organs. If this seems complicated already, it's only Act 4 of a dramatic process with about 22 different digestive enzymes that control a whole host of functions. The liver produces bile which is stored in the gallbladder. Bile allows fats to mix with water so they can be acted upon by—you guessed it—enzymes. The final acts are played by the nervous system and circulatory systems which have important roles in the elegant but complex process of the human body's enzyme digestive system.

As we get older, we lose our ability to produce digestive enzymes within our own organs. Enzyme supplements can help boost the body's natural supply. Symptoms that may indicate poor digestion are bloating, belching, gas, bowel disorders, abdominal cramping, acid reflux, heartburn and food allergies. Unless you know you have a particular problem, drug companies recommend buying supplements that contain several different types of enzymes (but not if you are diabetic or taking blood thinners). No brands are listed here because, to date, studies assessing the efficacy of over the counter enzymes are inconclusive. When buying a supplement, check that it is plant-based with a broad ph so that it will work with both an acidic stomach and alkaline intestines.

Foods that Optimize Enzyme Digestion

Before purchasing over the counter enzymes to optimize your digestion, try using enzyme rich foods that help the process. The following is a sample: avocados, bananas, beets, broccoli, cabbage, coconuts, figs, flaxseeds, ginger root, honey, kiwi, mushrooms, oats, papaya, pineapple, raw red meats, romaine lettuce, spinach and wheat. As high-temperature cooking (118 degrees F or above) kills enzymes, it's best to eat foods raw whenever possible or steam them gently to optimize enzyme benefits.

What to do when you suffer digestion problems?

Many people have long term digestion problems. Digestion problems are inconvenient and can be painful. Long-term digestion problems begin with common physical symptoms like bloating and heartburn. If these symptoms persist without treatment, it may lead to more serious long term digestion difficulties.

Poor Digestion Equals Serious Illness

Typical symptoms of poor digestion are gas, fullness and nausea. Sluggish digestive function reduces the number of enzymes in the stomach available to break food down.  Since the number of enzymes is lower than needed to metabolize food, the body sends enzymes from the immune system to the stomach, leaving the immune system more vulnerable to germs. Over time, without treatment, symptoms of poor digestion can turn into diseases like arthritis and cancer.

Unknown food allergens can affect digestion. One particular illness that is caused by food allergens is called leaky gut syndrome. Leaky gut syndrome occurs when the lining of the intestine loses its ability to block out large molecules. This causes fluid from the intestines to spread throughout the body. Once the fluid is in the blood, it becomes toxic to the body, causing the immune system to attack. Luckily, leaky gut syndrome is a long-term digestion problem that can be avoided.

There are many possible causes to poor digestion. Sleeping below the recommended number of hours each night is a potential reason for a slow metabolism. Adequate rest and relaxation is required for the body to heal itself. Without the time to heal itself, the body's immune system becomes weak and vulnerable.

Eating habits contribute to digestive health as well. Eating healthy is one of the main habits that help people with sluggish digestion. Healthy eating includes consuming mostly water-rich vegetables, fruits and protein from lean meat or vegetarian sources. Replacing processed, sugar-filled foods with whole grain complex carbohydrates promotes good digestive health as well.

Food combining is a concept based on the type of digestive enzymes that digest each food item. These enzymes are acidic or alkaline and they affect the pH balance of the stomach. Eating foods that are acidic with those that are alkaline neutralizes the digestive enzymes in the stomach. This stops digestive function. Food combining has basic rules. The main rule is that food which requires an alkaline environment to be digested should not be combined with food that requires an acidic environment to be digested. In general, acidic foods are animal proteins and alkaline foods are starches, sugars, and fats. Neutral foods are most water-rich vegetables and vegetarian proteins. After learning which foods are acidic, alkaline, or neutral, the process of food combining is pretty simple.  Acidic foods and neutral foods can be eaten together.  Alkaline foods and neutral foods can be eaten together. Fruit is considered a different type of food and should not be combined with any other foods.

Long term digestive problems are prevalent throughout the United States. Even though advertisements of high fat, processed foods propagate society, keeping simple and healthy eating habits can be the deciding factor between temporary bloating and heartburn and a long term digestive disorder.