One Cause, Many Ailments: Leaky Gut Syndrome: What It Is and How It May be Affecting Your Health [Paperback]

There are many good books on natural healing, but there are only a few that will forever change the way we think about health and illness. One Cause, Many Ailments is such a book. The latest work to flow from the pen of chiropractic physician John Pagano, best-selling author of Healing Psoriasis: The Natural Alternative, it brilliantly illuminates our understanding of a condition that is just beginning to draw attention in mainstream medical circles: the Leaky Gut Syndrome (LGS).

Most of us have had experiences with leaky pipes, roofs, and faucets, but leaky gut--what on earth is that? No, leaky gut does not refer to diarrhea, although, to be sure, that may be one of its concurrent conditions. Rather, leaky gut refers to an abnormal permeability of the intestinal walls, affecting the ability of the gut to assimilate nutrients and prevent leakage and reabsorption of toxic substances into the bloodstream. This ultimately leads to a vicious circle in which the body is overwhelmed by poisons it cannot get rid of, while lacking the nutrients that are the basic building blocks required for cellular regeneration.

Before long, certain organ systems become affected and their function is impaired. Illness results, and we wonder where it came from. As this revolutionary book explains, numerous conditions may be attributable to LGS, including arthritis, abdominal pain and distension, chronic fatigue, migraine headaches, celiac disease, diabetes, lupus, poor exercise tolerance, psoriasis, eczema, and many others. But when we go to the doctor with our complaints, most of the time our symptoms get treated, while the underlying cause goes unrecognized.

Dr. Pagano appropriately looks upon LGS as an "elusive disease," because "you can't see it; it is hidden from view; pain may or may not be present, and unless special tests, such as gastroscope testing, or even biopsy of the gut wall, are medically performed, it may remain unrecognized and continue to evade the diagnostician." And while LGS is still not fully understood in the medical world, the Cayce readings, always ahead of their time, outlined the condition and its consequences, for instance in reading 3373-1, given for a woman suffering from psoriasis. This reading describes an abnormal thinning of the walls of the duodenum that caused toxins which should have been flushed out through the alimentary canal, to be eliminated through the perspiratory system and the skin instead.

For those who are not familiar with Dr. Pagano's work, he is the physician who, over an illustrious career spanning nearly half a century, has helped numerous individuals achieve near-miraculous recoveries from psoriasis, a condition that medicine considers to be incurable to this day. To obtain such amazing results, Pagano prescribed the Cayce diet first and foremost, but also applied adjunctive therapies such as castor oil packs, spinal adjustments, steam baths, and herbal teas.

How are these therapies effective in treating LGS, which can cause psoriasis and a host of other dreadful diseases? In One Cause, Many Ailments, the author explains his two-step approach: 1) stop the irritants that contribute to the thinning of the gut walls; and 2) provide remedies that soothe and heal them.

"It has been my experience that in many cases, it is what the patient stays away from that brings about the healing," states Pagano. He goes on to provide an in-depth explanation of how a build-up of yeast deep in the folds of the intestines results in an uncontrolled growth of mold and fungus that eventually penetrate the intestinal walls, thus forming the holes that cause the gut to become "leaky." To eradicate this yeast overgrowth and flush it out of the system, certain foods and substances that feed the yeast must be eliminated. Because yeast thrives on sugar, all sweets and refined starches, as well as alcohol and processed foods, must be strictly avoided. The book provides a detailed list of "Yes" and "No" foods, underlining the Cayce concept of the alkaline-forming diet. "The best results," writes Dr. Pagano, "were obtained with a change in diet, from highly acidic to highly alkaline, as recommended in the Cayce readings."

Alkalizing foods, along with certain food supplements, especially probiotics, which help to recolonize the "friendly" bacteria that are naturally present in the intestinal tract, are emphasized in the regimen, which also includes chiropractic or osteopathic adjustments. In this context, it is interesting to note, as mentioned in the book, that Edgar Cayce attributed the cause of one person's psoriasis to a single subluxation in the thoracic spine!

A chapter on the immune system provides an in-depth explanation of its function, reminding us that the gastrointestinal tract is the most active immune-reacting surface of the body and that 60 percent of human antibodies are produced in the intestines. It becomes clear, therefore, that LGS, with its destructive impact on intestinal health, severely compromises the body's immunity.

The book offers practical information on the medical tests available in the diagnosis of LGS, along with the remedies and therapies that can help to regenerate the gut and support the integrity of its walls, so that health can once again be restored to a body. But Dr. Pagano doesn't stop there. He goes a step further and delivers proof of the effectiveness of the therapies he recommends by providing before-and-after photos of some of his patients. There is little left to say but "amazing grace" when one looks at the impressive color images portraying trunks, arms, and legs once covered in flaming-red rashes now restored to smooth, blemish-free skin.

One Cause, Many Ailments is an eye-opener and a wonderful resource for a world that's suffering unnecessarily from the belief that ailments could only originate in the part of the body that feels them. Dr. Pagano effectively shows us that this is not so, and that, as he states so well in the book, "We must change our concept to conform to the laws of healing!" His groundbreaking book will help us do just that.

I suffer from gluten intolerance and have become very interested in body detoxing and colonics, as well as a career in homeopathics, so I've been doing a lot of reading on these subjects. While doing a subject search on my local library's online card catalog, this book popped up. I can tell you it has been an excellent read and it's been very hard to put this book down.

The fact that so many body ailments can be tied back to a Leaky Gut astounds me. I could see myself all throughout this book. When I was in high school, I started developing food and environmental intolerances. Chocolate and perfume/cologne were a couple of the first things that I remember reacting to. Oh, and eggs. A few years later, I suddenly could no longer have milk. Shellfish, peanuts, and wheat/gluten products came next. My back constantly aches, I struggle to lose weight (whereas I used to be rail-thin) no matter what I do, and I just generally suffer one ailment or another. I've recently started receiving colonics, which have helped, and am preparing to do my first 5-day liver detox. I also plan to do a gallbladder detox and kidney detoxes in the next 6-12 months. But after reading this book and one other, I am almost 100% certain I suffer from yeast overgrowth/candida albicans. As such, I plan on implementing the dietary changes outlined in this book, which are very similar to those outlined in the "Body Ecology Diet," which I've attempted to follow in the past. I'm more motivated now than ever before, though, and this book gave me a couple of tools to help stick to the diet.

If you are fortunate enough to find a Body Ecology practitioner in your area, or a homeopath trained in the use of a body analysis tool called the Avatar, invest your time with them. This will help you even more in your quest for total health.

I have psoriasis and bought this book along with Pagano's other book Healing Psoriasis: The Natural Alternative and it makes total sense. I now understand how I got this disease and how to get rid of it. I have seen improvement after following the diet and regimen prescribed in the book. Its only been around 2 months that Ive followed the diet and only now im beginning to get results. Yes it requires patience and faith and sacrifice of foods that you love but its all worth it. I am by no means clear of this disease but i know that i am on the way to healing. Your skin does get worse before it gets better and ive experienced the "die off" period 2 times already so dont be discouraged, just cntinue the program. Seeing the photo results in the book provides me with hope that I too can be clear just like these people who faithfully followed the regimen.
Buy this book, it is a God send and you will never fear this disease again, but will have confidence in combating it!
You can be healed, this book has the answer so stop looking elsewhere. The longer you stay on the regimen and diet the longed you will stay "cured".

Very satisfied with this book!!