I'd like to share with you some basic food combining rules as set forth by the late Dr. Herbert Shelton many years ago.

A couple of comments before we get to the rules.

First, the medical establishment says you're wasting your time if try food combining to help gas and indigestion problems.

Instead of paying attention to the types of foods you eat (combine) together, the folks in white coats claim you can cure your gas and indigestion problems by popping pills or swallowing some prescription goop. Unfortunately, besides being expensive and unnatural, these prescription and over-the-counter "cure" of course have side effects that are often as bad as the gas or indigestion you're trying to solve.

Well, to the naysayers who roll their eyes and turn up their noses to food combining, I have a very simple test. Try the natural approach of food combining for one week, and if your gas and indigestion problems don't improve dramatically, I'd be quite surprised.

Basic Food Combining Rules

* Eat acids and starches at separate meals. Acids neutralize the alkaline medium required for starch digestion and the result is fermentation and indigestion.

* Eat protein foods and carbohydrate foods at separate meals. Protein foods require an acid medium for digestion.

* Eat but one kind of protein food at a meal.

* Eat proteins and acid foods at separate meals. The acids of acid foods inhibit the secretion of the digestive acids required for protein digestion. Undigested protein putrefies in bacterial decomposition and produces some potent poisons.

* Eat fats and proteins at separate meals. Some foods, especially nuts, are over 50% fat and require hours for digestion.

* Eat sugars (fruits) and proteins at separate meals.

* Eat sugars (fruits) and starchy foods at separate meals. Fruits undergo no digestion in the stomach and are held up if eaten with foods that require digestion in the stomach.

* Eat melons alone. They combine with almost no other food.

* Desert the desserts. Eaten on top of meals they lie heavy on the stomach, requiring no digestion there, and ferment. Bacteria turn them into alcohols and vinegars and acetic acids.

Food combining works for a lot people.

It's free, it's simple, and you can do it yourself.

Who could ask for a better gas and/or indigestion aid?

Chet Day keeps a close eye on the wild and wacky world of the natural health circus. If you're tired of the same old health news and boring baloney, you'll enjoy Chet's informative and entertaining writing style at http://chetday.com and in his many free newsletters at http://dayzines.com