About Digestion

Food, like germs, is recognized by the body as a foreign presence. The process of breaking down this foreign entity is the process of digestion XE "digestion". This is normally completed without ill consequences when the individual is able to break down the chemical components of the food.

Digestion XE "Digestion"  occurs in a part of the body that is not, topologically, inside the body. The body can be seen as a thick, misshapen cylinder, the outer surface being what we see, the inner surface being the alimentary canal. This digestive system consists of a single convoluted tube, some thirty feet long, open at its beginning -- the mouth, and its end -- the anus. Various sites in the tube, such as the stomach, are enlarged enough to accommodate the task of holding food and mixing it with glandular secretions. Some components of food, such as the cellulose in bread and vegetables, enter and leave the digestive tract never having entered the body itself. It is only when food components are broken down into small particles, simple enough to be absorbed, that the surface of the cylinder is finally breached, and nutrients enter the blood and lymphatic systems which, in turn, will carry them to every cell in the body. Toxins, as well as nutrients, enter the body systemically through digestion XE "digestion" , and then through the fluid mediums, the blood and lymphatic.

Digestion XE "Digestion"  begins in the mouth with the release of the first digestive enzyme, pytalin XE "pytalin" , which changes (digests) starches to sugars. When the food has been chewed, muscles in the cheeks, tongue and roof of the mouth all cooperate together to form a kind of chute so that food can be pushed down into the pharynx, then, through involuntary movements, into the esophagus. From here the food passes into the stomach where the effect of hydrochloric acid XE "hydrochloric acid"  will break down the food particles into still smaller units. Large quantities of digestive enzymes are secreted so that the food gets converted into a semi-fluid state called chyme. This chyme now passes into the beginning of the bowel XE "bowel" , the duodenum, the first portion of the small intestine, where the enzymes combine to further digest the food substances. It is here in the small intestine that 90% of the absorption of all food constituents into the bloodstream takes place.

By the time the chyme has reached the end of the small intestine, all that remains of what started out as food in the mouth is water XE "water"  and waste. This solid waste passes to the large intestine, the colon XE "colon" , for the final stage of digestion XE "digestion"  and elimination XE "elimination" . The large intestine swarms with billions of friendly bacteria whose function is to accomplish the final synthesizing of nutrients. Rhythmic motions of the muscles of the five foot long organ, called peristalsis, push the solid waste toward the rectum and anus where it is eliminated from the body. The walls of the colon absorb most of the water which will be evacuated as urine.

As we improve our diets, waste elimination XE "elimination" becomes more important than ever. Nutritional factors become available to cells which they may not have had for years. As a result of this more concentrated nourishment XE "nourishment" , cellular metabolism will speed up and more metabolic waste will be dumped into the bloodstream. Usually the organs of elimination are not used to handling this larger amount of waste, and they will prove to be not up to the task. Uneliminated waste will then collect in the bloodstream, and we will experience the same kind of autointoxication that Carrel XE "Carrel" ’s chicken heart cells suffered from (though usually not with lethal results, or at least not without 20 to 30 years of waste accumulation). Ultimately, we will even defeat the purpose of the original dietary improvement because the cells will no longer be able to utilize the fresh nutrients being provided by the nutritional program.

Digestion XE "Digestion"  and elimination XE "elimination" of undigested food is only one of the means that the body has of ridding itself of waste. There are five eliminative channels of the body: skin XE "skin" , liver XE "liver" , lungs XE "lungs" kidneys XE "kidneys"  and, of course, the bowel XE "bowel" . Each of these organs will carry away waste adequately so long as the demands on the organ do not exceed its capability. Together all five comprise a multilayered structure, consisting of a series of back-up systems. Exquisite checks and balances insure that should one eliminative channel fail, another is waiting to step in. Material that should normally be discharged through one organ will find its way to another eliminative organ. For instance, toxins that have not been eliminated through the colon XE "colon"  may find themselves attempting to be released through the skin, causing rashes or other skin disorders. The body will attempt, always to find its way back to homeostatic balance.

When the body has exhausted even its emergency back-up systems of elimination XE "elimination"  through its ordinary eliminative organs, it seeks even more drastic solutions. For instance, in cancer XE "cancer" , toxins have been unable to find proper elimination, and they settle in the connective tissue XE "connective tissue"  of the body. Every cancerous tumor is surrounded by this connective tissue; wherever cancer has established itself in the body, connective tissue is found. When even this method of storing toxins fails, when the connective tissue can no longer receive any more material, then toxins will pass into the bloodstream and other tissues, thus creating systemic autointoxication.

Heart disease, like cancer XE "cancer" , begins as a healing response to an abnormal condition. The arterial system of the body is like an extraordinarily complex map. Tunnel-like vessels carry blood to every part of the body. In order to accommodate to the body, the vessels turn and twist incessantly, and in doing so, tiny wounds or tears are created. These internal wounds are quickly healed normally through the growth of new cells. In effect, internal scabs are formed. Cholesterol and fats form around the scab as it heals. This is a completely natural process, and one that is handled easily when blood flow is strong and when the amount of scarring is not too great. However, when there is more scarring than the body can handle, or when more cholesterol XE "cholesterol"  deposits around the scab than the body can tolerate, then the natural healing cannot continue. Further growth is promoted; the cholesterol actually begins to act as a carcinogen within the artery by promoting wild, new growth. The arterial wall becomes so coated with abnormal growth, called plaque, that blood flow is diminished. The coronary arteries are no longer able to transport an adequate amount of blood to the heart.

It is clear that to stay healthy, we need to keep all of the eliminative channels of the body in good working order. Given how little attention we pay to our own bodily waste removal, it is actually rather amazing that we live as long as we do. But think about how long we could live if our bodies, on the inside as well as the outside, were clean.

In fact, we are unique in our neglect of this facet of our health. Most cultures and traditions of medicines have practices designed specifically to eliminate bodily toxins. Among the most advanced are the techniques of the yogis. Sivinanda yoga teaches various kriyas XE "kriyas"  -- purification XE "purification"  practices which cleanse parts of the body that have a tendency to collect unwanted debris.

La Casa has taken as its point of departure these various yogic XE "yogic"  traditions of cleansing. Some, we have taken precisely as they have been practiced for thousands of years. For others, we have up-dated techniques for modern convenience.  Now all of us can gain control over functions of our bodies without the steely discipline of a seasoned yogi.

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