Gut Instinct: What Your Stomach is Trying to Tell You

by Pierre Pallardy

Overview

A noted French health practitioner who has treated famous patients from Pablo Picasso to Mick Jagger offers this cutting-edge book—already a bestseller in France—on how to stay healthy by keeping one's stomach health in top shape

There is a growing trend in science to think of the stomach as a "second brain" that can impact the health of the entire body. Pierre Pallardy, a well-respected French nutritionist/osteopath has, over the course of 35 years, developed simple, effective methods for preventing illness by creating harmony between the body's two "brains." Now for the first time he shares with the general public his method for improving the healthy functioning of the stomach and, consequently, the health of the entire body. The book provides a 7-step method for improving stomach health that employs breathing techniques, diet, exercise, massage, and meditation. It also explains how Pallardy's methods can combat a host of afflictions, including allergies, anxiety, asthma, back pain, cancer, colitis, constipation, fatigue, headaches, insomnia, sexual problems, and more.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781623362645
Publisher:	Harmony/Rodale
Publication date:	12/26/2006
Sold by:	Random House
Format:	eBook
Pages:	224
File size:	3 MB

About the Author

PIERRE PALLARDY has focused on prevention during his 35 years of studying nutrition and osteopathy and has devised simple and effective methods for improving health and creating harmony between the spirit and the body. He has published nearly a dozen books, many of which are international bestsellers. He lives in France.

Read an Excerpt

THE RULES IN BRIEF

My approach to abdominal health can be broken down into seven constituent elements:

. Abdominal breathing

. Regular and slow eating

. Eating carefully

. Recreational exercise

. Exercises for the two brains

. Self-massage

. Abdominal meditation

Each of these elements is beneficial to overall wellbeing, but in order to address specific disorders, it is essential to follow all of the guidelines. Neglecting one or more will result in less than optimal results.

1. Abdominal Breathing

This is the key to achieving the correct balance between the upper brain and the abdominal second brain. I refer to this as respiration d'etente- bienetre, which roughly translates as "breathing for relaxation and health." This is an essential requirement for a healthy abdomen. Once you have acquired--or, to be more exact, re-acquired--this breathing technique, you will be astonished at the sustained improvement in your overall well- being.

2. Regular and Slow Eating

In order to function optimally, your abdomen must be nourished in a way that respects your natural biorhythms and prevents any rupture of the link to the upper brain. Regulated and slow eating must become a habit--and it should be enjoyed.

3. Eating Carefully

Stop eating whatever comes to hand--and avoid weight-loss diets at all costs. Instead, simply regulate and monitor your food intake with as much care as possible to achieve a balance based on personal preferences, specific health problems, and a number of basic guidelines. This is crucial to abdominal health.

4. Recreational Exercise

For the abdomen to function correctly, you need to build strength and endurance through physical exercise. Recreational exercise is important, but some sports are more appropriate than others. I have developed specific guidelines about the form of physical exercise that is best for the body and that will stimulate cardiac and neurological functions while helping mental relaxation.

5. Exercises for the Two Brains

Achieving harmony and balance between the two brains is one of the cornerstones of my method. This means a flat and well-muscled stomach, together with a supple back and joints. I have suggested a number of simple but imaginative "two-brain" exercises to promote balance on pages 114-19.

6. Self-Massage

To keep your abdomen in optimal shape, it is important to spend a few moments each day on abdominal and head massage. I offer some hints based on my own experience; these are easy to follow and, at the same time, pleasant, relaxing, and effective.

7. Abdominal Meditation

It has been demonstrated that the abdomen is not merely an inert collection of tubes, but rather an autonomous cellular organ intimately linked to the upper brain. I invite you to start "thinking" about and with your abdomen and to understand its contribution to sustained health and well-being.

The seven guidelines described above are discussed in greater detail in the following pages.

Note: When practicing exercises, the following scale is useful:

= easy

= slightly more difficult

= moderately difficult

= requires concentration/difficult