Thierry’s core speciality is in clinical homeopathy. This branch of homeopathy puts a strong emphasis on the importance of nutrition. Poor nutritional habits and dietary misconceptions can affect the body’s digestive process at a cellular or at an organ level.
General advice
First and foremost, eat in a calm and relaxed environment. Digestion works best if you are relaxed so take time & enjoy what you eat consciously!
It is also important to chew your food slowly as the digestion starts in the mouth. Chewing triggers the whole digestive process and makes digestion much simpler.
The following simple suggestions can already help you get a good start:
• Have a diet based on organic and seasonal vegetables, especially raw or lightly cooked. These should amount for about 60% of your daily intake in volume if you are an adult.
• The remaining 40% of your food intake should be made of protein and fat, with a limited amount of high-quality carbohydrates and fruit. If you wish an exact detail, I will need to organise a blood test and a metabolic balance plan. Do contact me directly about this.
• It is also important to allow yourself about 10-15 minutes of relaxed time after a meal, to ease the digestive process. This can be a relaxing walk or a friendly discussion with colleagues or family members.
If you suffer from a severe or painful condition impacting your digestive system, then mucous-forming food should be avoided. This includes the following type of food:
• Any dairy products (milk, cheese, cream, yogurt).
• Any forms of added refined and artificial sugar. Processed food and soft drinks should be avoided for this reason.
• White flour and wheat tend to be mucous forming for most people.
• Some people may also benefit of cutting eggs, peanuts, and soy-based food.
Nutritional advice for stomach issues (GERD, Heartburn, Hiatus Hernia)
Follow strictly the general suggestions above, and also the following advice:
– Follow the alkaline/acidic diet described in the Immune & Lymphatic page of the Nutrition section.
– Take you time when you eat. Allow 10 minutes to relax before and after eating.
– Chew food slowly… this is the most important to help the digestive process – the salivatory glands trigger the whole process and the salive helps to pre-digest.
– Do not exercise or bend shortly after meals.
– Be aware that coffee, sugar, alcohol and black tea can be triggers for some people.
– A potentially useful tip if you suffer from heartburn at night is to prop the head of your bed by placing two bricks under the legs so that you sleep in a slightly inclined position.
A potentially useful tip if you suffer from heartburn at night is to prop the head of your bed by placing two bricks under the legs so that you sleep in a slightly inclined position.
Nutritional advice for liver & gallbladder issues
Follow the General suggestions above. During the time of your treatment, strictly reduce eggs, sugar, foods containing sugar, dairy products, refined bread and cereals, meat and fowl (except for cooked liver). Try to stay away of fried food and of any food that may contain additives or preservatives. Luckily, the liver is known to regenerate quickly, and usually after a round or 2 of treatments, you can expand the list of food. When you feel more energised, then cooked liver, eggs and almond are known to have an affinity to restore the liver.
Nutritional advice for constipation
We should all have at least one daily healthy bowel movement, and ideally three. A healthy bowel movement is defined as stools that are soft and easy to pass, non smelly and brown or golden brown in colour.
If you suffer from an episode of recurrent constipation, follow the advice below:
– Drink a minimum of 1.5 to 2 litres of mineral or filter water a day (for adults). Dehydration is the most common cause of chronic constipation.
– It is best and easier to try and promote one bowel movement early morning or after breakfast. Try Green tea as it is a great gentle laxative, and also oats / porridge. Fruits like kiwi, prune, plums, apricot or figs should be included if possible as well for your breakfast
– If this does not help, try fermented food, such as non-pasteurised kefir or non-pasteurised sauerkraut.
– Nutritionally, you can also check that your has enough fiber (usually found mainly in green leafy vegetables and whole-grains). Increase these food at lunch and dinner.
– If this does not help, first thing every morning, drink 2 glasses of hot water, mixed with a squeeze of lemon as this will help relax the bowels. Also follow the HEALTHY TIP – Breakfast seeds below.
– If this does not respond, then it may mean that your constipation is not diet related, but linked to weak muscles or stress, you can check the pelvic floor exercises on the Muscular System and some relaxation techniques here. We can discuss this further at your follow-up.
HEALTHY SUGGESTION- Breakfast seeds, and how to prepare your seeds for optimal absorption.
Seeds are a great source of nutrients. They also help to maintain good bowels’ health and movements. Seeds are not well absorbed just by themselves, so do one of the following approach:
– take 2 to 4 teaspoons daily of seeds. The best types are linseed, sunflower, pumpkin and sesame seeds. If you are taking any conventional medications, then do not take linseeds as it can interact with some chemical medications. If you are not taking any medications, then include linseeds as they complement very well the other three.
– the best is to prepare your morning seeds as follows: in the evening, mix your sees and grind them manually or with a coffee grinder. Then put the ground seeds in a large glass of water, and put the glass in your fridge overnight. In the morning, pour them in your cereals / porridge, or take them with plenty of water.
– This preparation is now available pre-crushed in good health store. The pre-made pack tend to lose its quality when it is open, but it may be a better option if you are too busy.
– Here are other options if you want to take them :
1- Roast your seeds in a coated pan, great for salads.
2- Process/mash soaked seeds into a paste and use as a nut butter.
3- Allow the seeds to sprouts and then mix with your vegetables.
4 – Sprinkle seeds over vegetables and bake in oven.
HEALTHY SUGGESTION – Protein-Based Metabolism
The way we make energy starts with what we absorb (food, water, air) and finishes with what we eliminate (stools, urine, sweat, breathing out). This is called metabolism, and on the digestive side, there are 2 different mechanisms: carbohydrate-based and protein-based mechanism. There is a host of benefits to rely on the protein metabolism, and if you have been advised, to do so, follow these simple tips:
– Prepare and eat in a calm and quiet environment: be active 2-3 minutes before each meal and have a 5-10 minute walk after each meal. During meals, do not work and have social activities or your attention on food.
– Eat at least 5, but ideally 8 portions of vegetable: these are more important than fruit.
– Have one single type of protein in each meal: the different types are eggs, seeds/nuts, fish, seafood, poultry, yoghurt made of cow’s milk, yoghurt made of sheep’s or goat’s milk, cheese made of cow’s milk, cheese made of sheep’s or goat’s milk, tofu, tempeh, seitan, lentils or chickpeas. Other vegetable proteins such as oats or quinoa can be mixed with the different types of proteins but are not usually of good-enough quality.
– Vary protein types as much as possible: proteins are made of amino-acids, and there are 20-22 amino-acids that the body requires from food to repair and build tissues and other key components. If you vary the types of proteins then you are more likely to have enough of all the amino-acids, making your body and digestion work better. For this reason, make sure to rotate as much as possible, by having for example 3 different types of breakfast, 3 different types of lunch and 3 different types of dinner each week.
– Start each meal with a couple of spoons of your chosen protein,
– Reduce carbohydrate. See here to know about protein-rich food.
– Every day, have 3 periods of up to an hour each to eat, with a 4 hour spacing between each: do not eat between meals (drinking water is OK). Breakfast with proteins is an important meal.
– Reduce your intake of fruit and stay away juices: have fruit and carbohydrates only with meal, ideally at the end of the meal. One apple a day is also considered very good for digestion.
HEALTHY SUGGESTION – Oil pulling for the mouth
This simple Ayurvedic daily activity can help you strengthening your gums and improve overall oral hygiene. This is done preferably first thing in the morning, before eating/drinking. Incorporate it in an activity such as showering so that you keep it simple.
Organic virgin / first-pressed sesame oil or sunflower oils are considered the best type of oil. Other oils are good as long as they are organic and virgin / first-pressed. Use approximately one tablespoon of organic virgin sesame oil and put it in your mouth, on an empty stomach. The oil should be slowly swished, sucked, chomped and pulled through the teeth for 15-20 minutes, then spit out. Rinse out well after the procedure and drink a glass of water if you wish. The oil should have changed to a thin-white foam before spitting out.
If you wish, you can some drops of essential oils to help with breath smell, or infections. An original mix used the 5 following essential drops, with 1 to 10 drops of each to the litre of sesame oil: Lemon, Cinnamon, Clove, Eucalyptus and Rosemary.
Mouthwash for Mouth Abscess
Add a bit of salt and mix with warm water (a good ratio is 1/2 to 1 tsp in a 250 ml cup). Use it often during the day as a rinse or mouthwash as this will help drain the abscess.
Please, use our advice only as part of a treatment from our health practitioner. Also, refer to our Disclaimer and Legal Requirements.
Thierry Clerc, MARH, Rhom, MSc
Registered Health Practitioner, Cambridge (UK)
Clinical Homeopath, Bioresonance Therapist, Nutritionist
Thierry Clerc is qualified and insured to practice as a homeopath and nutritionist in the United Kingdom and the European Union.