Hidreth: The Unity of the Inner Man: digestion and assimilation

This whole series has been based upon the importance of the glandular mechanism of the body and the autonomic nervous system of the body. I hope to show that without a balanced glandular and internal nervous system we will die within hours, days, weeks, or maybe even a few short years.

This episode is on the significance of the pancreas and what part it plays in the glandular mechanism. The pancreas enters with endocrine system with the responsibility of allowing the utilization of sugar in the form of glucose within our cells as one of its two primary jobs. The other is in the digestion and assimilation of carbohydrates, proteins and fats.

The production of insulin opens the cellular doors for the utilization of glucose for energy and heat. The production of digestive enzymes breaks down the raw carbohydrates, fats and proteins for assimilation into the bloodstream and liver.

All of these actions are held in a balance according to need by any of the organs of the body and availability. The pancreas can produce its order upon the slightest provocation by an order from the pituitary. The pituitary, being the master gland, determines need by all of the other endocrine glands. This is determined by demands placed upon any or all of the individual glands including the pancreas at any one time. In the case of the pancreas, it may be determined by sitting down to a large meal or by preparing for a big important race or a mental test.

A traumatic alteration of this balance, which must be dealt with by the pituitary and also in this case the pancreas as well as other glandular organs, would be any foreign drugs. Even antacids that might be used because you were upset mentally, ate too much or too fast, or 101 other reasons will upset the balance.

The antacid will block or alter the breakdown, particularly of proteins, which requires a low gastric pH within the stomach.

Another traumatic alteration to the pituitary and the pancreas would be taking in a large amount of only sweets for lunch or dinner. Most of the refined sweets today are made up of pure refined sugar with the only nutrient being the pure sugar. It is the pancreas’s job to keep the blood sugar within a safe range.

The overload of sweets in a child or an older adult throws a very traumatic load on the glandular mechanism. In fact, so much so, that the pituitary will bring the adrenals into play to control the flight or fight mechanism that may be part of the disarray that was created by the high load of sugar within the bloodstream at one particular time.

Another traumatic adjustment to the glandular mechanism could be a surgical procedure, such as hysterectomy including the ovaries, because of the loss of gonad activity which may create an overload of the pituitary because of the loss of gonad balance. This overload may involve the sympathetic- parasympathetic nervous system creating peripheral vascular dilation causing hot flashes and may involve the pancreas altering digestion and protein metabolism. This over time can influence blood sugar levels, high or low, and also serum protein levels.

Every performance of the endocrine gland system may in many other tissues of the body manifest themselves in relationship to blood sugar which in turn is supervised by the pituitary gland by way of the pancreas. References are available if needed.

I want to close by a comment about what the word “bio-identical” means and how it is appropriately used in hormone balancing. Bio-identical refers to a molecular structure that is identical to the molecular structure of each hormone that our body produces.

As we become older, our bodies have more trouble coping with the intake of chemical structures that are different from what the body produces. This is why Premarin got into so much trouble as was shown in the great study that was done in Women’s Initiative in 2002. This study, as, of course, all of you know, ended up showing that Premarin instead of helping the body showed an increase in heart disease, stroke and cancer.

Another aspect to this is the way all of the bio-identical hormones are used in our body.

Unlike most medical offices, we do not use any hormones in a therapeutic way. We use them in a physiological way. In other words, they are not used to relieve a symptom. In the case of hormonal imbalance with the result of hot flashes or other symptoms, if the hormonal imbalance is corrected the symptoms will go away. The human body knows what it needs and we as physicians should listen and respond to that need with what the body is used to using if at all possible.

Dr. DeWall J. Hildreth can be reached at 625-1101 or cnhcgv@yahoo.com. He practices with Continental Natural Health Clinic in Green Valley.