Bacteria,
bacteria!! They're everywhere!!
Did you know that there are more bacteria in your digestive system than
there are cells that compose your body? It
is true! There are one hundred
trillion, weighing about four pounds! And
you have good bacteria as well as bad bacteria, just as we have
good and bad cholesterol. The good
bacteria - or friendly bacteria - are busy protecting you and aiding in
digestion of the food you eat. The
bad bacteria can cause infection and disease.
Some harmful bacteria names you probably know are E.coli and Salmonella.
Our government has decided to add chlorine to our water supply - as well
as other chemicals - to kill bacteria that may live in those hundred year old
pipes. The bad news is that when we
drink that treated water, we kill
off some of our body's good bacteria! Many prescription and over the counter
drugs (this includes Aspirin and
Tylenol) also lower your friendly bacteria count.
This weakens our body's first line of defense.
Unless we puncture our skin, the
number one way germs and bacteria can enter us is by our throat and what we
choose to eat. This is one
important reason to drink distilled water,
rather than tap water.
Friendly bacteria manufacture vitamins B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, B12, A, and K.
They aid the digestion process, clean
the intestinal tract, and destroy
molds, viruses,
and parasites. These
"good guys" help to increase the number of immune system cells and
protect us from environmental toxins, pesticides and pollutants.