Exciting news! If you live in the greater Tampa Bay area, be sure watch me LIVE on WEDU-TV tonight from 8:00 to 10:00 p.m. for my NEW PBS special, The Road to Perfect Health.

A lot of folks don’t realize that a healthy body begins with a healthy gut. That’s because your digestive tract is where more than 80 percent of your body’s natural defenses are found, and it’s where trillions of bacteria live in a delicate balance to help you absorb nutrients, defend against toxins, and fight off illness and disease—not to mention help with bowel regularity!

But what may surprise you is that even things you wouldn’t normally associate with digestive health—everything from anxiety, joint aches and food sensitivities to fibromyalgia and even high cholesterol—they all start in the gut. That’s how important it is to keep your digestive system running smoothly.

Join me to learn the secret to balancing your gut and healing your body, beginning with the power of probiotics. Those are the beneficial bacteria in your intestines that help with healthy digestion and immune function, and they are the key to a strong GPS, or what I like to call your Gut Protection System. From there, I’ll give you the keys to rebuilding your health from the inside out and finally living the life you’ve always wanted. See you there!

If you don’t live in the Tampa Bay Area, The Road to Perfect Health is also airing nationwide right now through mid-December. Visit PBS for air times and station in your area.

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There was a study done recently that got a lot of press, and I have to say it really got under my skin. Researchers looked at the effects of a gluten-free, casein-free diet in kids with autism, and what they said was that it didn’t have any behavioral effects on them. But I thought, “No way—something isn’t right here.” And it looks like I wasn’t the only one.

Nutrition Director Kelly Barnhill from the Autism Research Institute also had some pretty interesting things to say about this particular study. Check it out:

• First, only fourteen children participated in the study…fourteen! Common sense alone says that’s not nearly enough to make such broad conclusions.
• Second, the kids who participated in the study didn’t even have any gastrointestinal complaints. This is a big one, since most autistic children do have digestive problems of some sort—a good sign that gluten and casein (a protein found in milk) sensitivities are involved. But the children in this study were specifically chosen because they did not have digestive complaints. What?!
• Third, the children only followed the prescribed diet for four weeks, even though it takes at least six weeks to really get all of the gluten protein out of the body. Four weeks just isn’t enough time to call this an effective study, folks.
• And finally, the diet the children followed wasn’t even 100% gluten- and casein-free. This is important because some kids are sensitive to even the smallest amounts of gluten, so strict adherence to a gluten- and casein-free diet is absolutely necessary in order to see beneficial results.

Obviously this issue is far from over. So many parents of autistic kids report benefits after removing gluten and casein from the diet. No, it doesn’t cure autism—but it can alleviate the often debilitating digestive symptoms that these children endure, and as a result their behavior often improves. Don’t knock it till you try it!

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Autism Research Institute, autistic, behavior, casein, casein free, Children, complaints, diet, digestive, gastrointestinal, gluten, gluten-free, improves, problems, protein, sensitive, sensitivities, studies, study, symptoms

Exciting news! If you live in the DC/Baltimore area, be sure to tune in to your local PBS station this Saturday, September 11 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. for an exclusive one-day-only sneak preview of my NEW PBS special The Road to Perfect Health.

A lot of folks don’t realize that a healthy body begins with a healthy gut. That’s because your digestive tract is where more than 70 percent of your body’s natural defenses are found, and it’s where trillions of bacteria live in a delicate balance to help you absorb nutrients, defend against toxins, and fight off illness and disease—not to mention help with bowel regularity!

But what may surprise you is that even things you wouldn’t normally associate with digestive health—everything from anxiety, joint aches and food sensitivities to fibromyalgia and even high cholesterol—they can all start in the gut. That’s how important it is to keep your digestive system running smoothly.

Join me this weekend to learn the secret to balancing your gut and healing your body, beginning with the power of probiotics. Those are the beneficial bacteria in your intestines that help with healthy digestion and immune function, and they are the key to a strong GPS, or what I like to call your Gut Protection System. From there, I’ll give you the keys to rebuilding your health from the inside out and finally living the life you’ve always wanted. See you there!

The Road to Perfect Health will also air nationwide beginning in late November through mid-December and continue periodically in 2011 and beyond. Stay tuned to www.brendawatson.com and I’ll keep you posted!

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absorb, anxiety, bacteria, balance, Baltimore, body, bowel, Brenda Watson, defend, defenses, digestion, digestive system, digestive tract, disease, fibromyalgia, food, gut, healing, Health, healthy, high cholesterol, illness, joint aches, life, natural, new, nutrients, PBS, Probiotics, regularity, sensitivities, September, show, sneak preview, strong, toxins, Washington D.C.

Summary:
In this video blog I discuss a recent study published in the journal “Pediatrics” that suggest a very odd way to help children that have eczema. What do they suggest? What are some other options? Tune in and find out…

Full Script:

Can you imagine putting your infant or young child into a bath of bleach water with the raw skin associated with eczema? Well that is exactly what a study published in the journal Pediatrics is suggesting. The bleach, being an antibacterial will help eliminate bacteria on the skin as a result of so much scratching.

Julie Block, of the National Eczema Association says this type of suggestion “will help people learn options that they can do at home to empower themselves”.

Sounds more like a punishment to me.

How about all the studies out there now showing that probiotic supplements can greatly reduce eczema in children. Or how about getting your child tested for food allergies and sensitivities, which play a huge role in the development of eczema.

If your worried about the bacteria try getting a natural anti-bacterial cream from your local health food store. I’m willing to bet it won’t contain bleach!

In the meantime, ReNew Life Formulas has an award-winning line of probiotic supplements for children and adults.

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allergies, bacteria, bleach, Brenda Watson, eczema, national eczema association, pediatrics, Probiotics, sensitivities