A year ago I wrote an article on bitters. These are a wonderful addition to any diet where you want to increase your health. The use of bitters has become a lost part of diet and digestion.
Although much is known about bitters in improving the digestion and absorption of nutrients, there are many other areas where bitters improve health. Traditionally they were used to prepare the body to digest your food. They up-regulate gastric acid, gastrin, pepsin, and pancreatic enzymes. All of these are critical to healthy digestion
For these bitters to exert their best influence, they need to be tasted. Your tongue has receptors for bitters just like it has receptors for things that are sweet, sour, and salty. Unfortunately these receptors get ignored in today’s society. Not enough bitter foods are consumed on a regular basis in the American diet.
Your taste buds are essentially hard-wired to your Vagus nerve which governs balancing your entire system. Because of this, any response of these taste buds have the potential of targeting every organ of digestion and metabolism.
Bitter receptors have been found on multiple organs, and influence function of all these tissues. Besides the tongue, these receptors are found on: Thymus, Kidneys, Epidermis, Thyroid, Vascular smooth muscle, Heart, Urinary tract, Bone marrow, Immune cells, Testes, Olfactory cells, and Lungs.
These receptors have an influence over inflammation as well as bacterial and viral invasion. Because of this, including bitters in the diet can influence a person’s immune potential. Just as sugar breaks down immunity, so these bitters can enhance immune strength. It’s been seen that those who suffer chronic sinus infections can alter this course of illness by a steady regime of using bitters before each meal.
Endurance and physical performance has been shown to be improved significantly by just rinsing the mouth with a quinine solution. This solution was not swallowed, but just rinsed through the mouth. This was all about the response of the taste response, and suggests that there is a corticomotor (brain induced) mechanism involved due to tasting bitter. For the same response, it would be reasonable that chewing on a leaf of the artichoke plant could increase rapid muscular response.
Different bitter compounds activate different receptors. Of 29 receptors, the combination of gentian, wormwood, and feverfew activate 12 of these. This is a formula which I like to use with patients to improve multiple areas of health. To cover other bitter receptors, using various plants in the diet can help. Herbs like arugula, dandelion, and artichoke can help to activate other bitter receptors.
Goldenseal, well known for it’s immune support, is antiviral, antibacterial, anti fungal, and anti-parasitic. One of the major hallmarks of goldenseal is the fact that it is very bitter. The berberine contained in this as well as in Oregon grape is the bitter portion of the plant, and is critical in it’s function of immunity. Since this berberine is also anti-diabetic, it follows that there’s a bitter influence on the pancreas as well as all the cells of the body in their metabolism.
Over the last 32 years I’ve been making a cold and flu remedy that has managed to find it’s way around the world. One of the key ingredients is goldenseal, which is why some of my patients call it Dr John’s yuck medicine. Yes, it is bitter, and for immune protection it works wonderfully. If using it prior to eating, and allowing for the bitter taste to do it’s thing, it can improve digestive function as well.
We live in a sweet driven society, and have lost these important bitters from our culture. Eat bitter herbs to stimulate digestion and aid immune function. Consider using a bitter tonic like Digest tablets from MediHerb with your meals. Taking a bitter pill isn’t always a bad thing.
Although much is known about bitters in improving the digestion and absorption of nutrients, there are many other areas where bitters improve health. Traditionally they were used to prepare the body to digest your food. They up-regulate gastric acid, gastrin, pepsin, and pancreatic enzymes. All of these are critical to healthy digestion
For these bitters to exert their best influence, they need to be tasted. Your tongue has receptors for bitters just like it has receptors for things that are sweet, sour, and salty. Unfortunately these receptors get ignored in today’s society. Not enough bitter foods are consumed on a regular basis in the American diet.
Your taste buds are essentially hard-wired to your Vagus nerve which governs balancing your entire system. Because of this, any response of these taste buds have the potential of targeting every organ of digestion and metabolism.
Bitter receptors have been found on multiple organs, and influence function of all these tissues. Besides the tongue, these receptors are found on: Thymus, Kidneys, Epidermis, Thyroid, Vascular smooth muscle, Heart, Urinary tract, Bone marrow, Immune cells, Testes, Olfactory cells, and Lungs.
These receptors have an influence over inflammation as well as bacterial and viral invasion. Because of this, including bitters in the diet can influence a person’s immune potential. Just as sugar breaks down immunity, so these bitters can enhance immune strength. It’s been seen that those who suffer chronic sinus infections can alter this course of illness by a steady regime of using bitters before each meal.
Endurance and physical performance has been shown to be improved significantly by just rinsing the mouth with a quinine solution. This solution was not swallowed, but just rinsed through the mouth. This was all about the response of the taste response, and suggests that there is a corticomotor (brain induced) mechanism involved due to tasting bitter. For the same response, it would be reasonable that chewing on a leaf of the artichoke plant could increase rapid muscular response.
Different bitter compounds activate different receptors. Of 29 receptors, the combination of gentian, wormwood, and feverfew activate 12 of these. This is a formula which I like to use with patients to improve multiple areas of health. To cover other bitter receptors, using various plants in the diet can help. Herbs like arugula, dandelion, and artichoke can help to activate other bitter receptors.
Goldenseal, well known for it’s immune support, is antiviral, antibacterial, anti fungal, and anti-parasitic. One of the major hallmarks of goldenseal is the fact that it is very bitter. The berberine contained in this as well as in Oregon grape is the bitter portion of the plant, and is critical in it’s function of immunity. Since this berberine is also anti-diabetic, it follows that there’s a bitter influence on the pancreas as well as all the cells of the body in their metabolism.
Over the last 32 years I’ve been making a cold and flu remedy that has managed to find it’s way around the world. One of the key ingredients is goldenseal, which is why some of my patients call it Dr John’s yuck medicine. Yes, it is bitter, and for immune protection it works wonderfully. If using it prior to eating, and allowing for the bitter taste to do it’s thing, it can improve digestive function as well.
We live in a sweet driven society, and have lost these important bitters from our culture. Eat bitter herbs to stimulate digestion and aid immune function. Consider using a bitter tonic like Digest tablets from MediHerb with your meals. Taking a bitter pill isn’t always a bad thing.
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