Vitamin Retailer interviewed Dr. Mark Drucker, advisor for Torrance, CA-based Sun Chlorella (sunchlorellausa.com), and we asked him:

With reportedly 60 million Americans with heartburn and another 4 million with frequent constipation, very briefly what are the main drivers of digestive un-health today — poor diet, medications, stress, ingredients in food, or other factors?

Drucker: There are many factors which are causing people to have so much digestive ‘dis-ease.’ When I was growing up in Tennessee, every spring my Dad had a vegetable garden. I remember going to the garden and grabbing a tomato or a carrot and eating them after just a mild rinse. These vegetables were covered with healthy soil bacteria and they were loaded with nutrients.

Now, most people go to the grocery and buy produce that has been gassed, waxed and irradiated, effectively eliminating most, if not all, of the healthy bacteria, which are very beneficial to our digestive systems, because they help maintain a healthy gut biome or microbiome.

In addition, due to commercial farming practices, animals that are raised to give us meat, dairy and eggs are routinely fed antibiotics, which still contain trace amounts of antibiotics that we consume when we eat those foods. This has a negative effect on our gut biome.

Packaged foods may contain a number of preservatives and anti-microbial chemicals to help foods stay fresh. These types of additives are also likely to have a negative effect on our digestive systems. Furthermore, 130 million Americans take prescription drugs, which can have a negative effect on digestive health.

In addition to the regular use of prescription drugs we know that, too often, people rely on antibiotics to get over infections. Antibiotics, in particular, have a damaging effect on digestive health and our gut biome. And last, but not least, our fast-paced and stressful lifestyle is not ideal for a healthy digestive system. Many of us eat on the run.

Our digestive system works best when we are in the rest, repair and restore phase of our nervous system. This is called the parasympathetic nervous system as opposed to the sympathetic nervous system, which is responsible for our active fight and flight response. Let’s face it, we often just don’t take enough time to allow ourselves to properly digest food.

Grandma was right when she said sit down and eat your meal.

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