IBS, Crohns, Colitis and Your Immune System--Is Your Lifestyle Ruining Your Bowel?

Did you know that your lifestyle choices can be hazardous to your bowel health? Ordinary products you use every day could be ruining your digestive system. If you want to reduce and relieve your bowel symptoms, you need to know what they are.

You also need to know that your digestive system and your immune system are closely linked. Various sources, including Dr J Mercola, report anywhere from 60% to 80% of the immune system is in the digestive system.

So why does it matter?

Because anything that stresses your immune system also stresses your digestive system and is going to cause problems for your bowel.

What are those stresses?

The list is below but, before you read it, keep in mind that for every product or situation that harms your health or your digestion, there is a healthier, safer version, or a way to reduce your exposure.

Here’s what stresses the immune and digestive systems:

• Foods that cause a sensitive or allergic reaction
• Sugar
• Eating plastic by microwaving food under plastic wrap
• Chemically-based, scented household products and air fresheners
• Chemically-based, scented personal care products
• Chemically-scented laundry products and fabric softeners
• Perfumes and scents not from organic sources
• Oil paints, glues, thinners, solvents
• Dry cleaning fluid, mothballs, fire-proofing on fabrics
• Unfiltered water
• Water in plastic bottles that have warmed up so the water tastes like plastic
• Pesticides and weed-killers
• Internal bacteria or yeasts that are out of balance
• Anxiety and stress
• Unresolved trauma
• Lack of exercise
• Never spending time outdoors

Take action now to relieve your digestive symptoms and protect your immune system by going through this list and seeing which items apply to you. Then pick one item to work with.

For example, if you love sweets, instead of eating sugar, switch to honey, stevia, or OmniBalance® with stevia. Find fruit-juice sweetened products instead of products that are sweetened with sugar or high-fructose corn syrup. Eat fruit or dates instead of cookies and pastries. Make sure you’re eating enough protein and magnesium. Lack of these nutrients sometimes causes sweet-craving.

Then pick something else on the list to work with. In a few weeks, you’ll have made changes that will significantly impact your health and digestion for the better.

Personally, I would start with improving the quality of my drinking water and changing my personal care products to natural and unscented, since these two things can have a huge impact on digestion.

Not sure what to do about something on this list? Send us your questions with the Comment Form, or email us with the form on the Contact page.