As you know, I am a huge fan of eating lots and lots of fat–healthy fat that is. Some people have no problems with this new diet, and in fact they almost instantly start to have more energy, lose weight and even kick a medication or two. Yet some people struggle with additional fats, often due to the previous lifestyle but it can also be the result of a unique health challenge that prevents them from being able to digest fats. This article should help you find the common causes and provide some “hacks” to get you digesting fats fast!
A newer patient asked me recently, “Dr. Ernst, why do you recommend so much fat when fat is the cause of most people’s health issues?”
The truth is, too much of the WRONG fats and not enough GOOD fats is the cause of health issues. Fats help to balance/lower blood sugar, stabilize hormones, transport vitamins, provide lasting energy – plus they keep you full so you ultimately eat less!
How Would I Know If I Cant Digest Fats Properly?
There are some unique symptoms that usually present immediately or shortly after eating anything with fat (especially fat bombs).
- Nausea and/or vomiting
- Abdominal Pain
- Skin reactions (rash)
- Diarrhea
- Gas/bloating
- Headaches
- Pain in region of liver/gallbladder
What Causes A Lowered Ability To Digest Fat?
Stress: Stress is a major factor when it comes to proper digestion of any food type (carb, protein or fat). Stress causes your body to lower digestive function – primarily as a fight or flight reaction to divert energy and blood flow to the heart and muscles vs. the digestive system. The challenge today is EVERYONE is STRESSED, even in relaxing situations.
Solution: Find ways to reduce stress, decrease cortisol and optimize sleep. Prayer/Meditation along with nightly grounding are scientifically shown to reset your stress reaction in as little as 24 hours. Additional therapies include chiropractic, acupuncture, energy work (reiki), massage and/or individual relaxation techniques.
Poor Diet: Another major factor is your previous diet (or lack thereof). If your diet has been high in inflammatory vegetable fats (oils, margarine etc), processed carbs and/or toxins your digestion will be inhibited simply because its been pushed into the nega- tive from being overworked. An instant diet change can take time for your system to reset.
Solution: Stay the course as your digestive system will reset itself (eventually). It’s best to stick to the cellular healing plan (reduce/eliminate all carbohydrates, sugars and grains, switch your meats from conventional to grass fed/wild/free range, and switch your current oils/fats to healing plant fats, nut and seed oils as well as other plant-based fats (olive, MCT, red palm, etc.).
Low Hydrochloride (Stomach Acid): Stomach acid is required for the digestion of fats. Most Americans are HCL deficient, even though they think they have too much (aka reflux). Anyone with a history of antibiotic use, chronic stress or those taking acid reflux medications have low stomach acid.
Solution: Increase the acidity of your stomach before/during your meals. You can take HCL directly as a supplement (betaine hcl) or a broad spectrum digestive enzyme which contains HCL (Digestzyme), or you can simply swallow 1-2 tbsp of apple cider vinegar mixed in equal parts of water 10-15 minutes before eating. Each of these techniques increases your stomach acidity, helping you to digest fats, carbs and proteins!
Congested Liver/Bile Pathways: Did you know your bile pathways extend as a massive network throughout your entire liver. Too many times I hear, “Dr. Ernst, I don’t have a gallbladder, so theres no way my bile pathways are blocked.” Yet nearly 100% of people without a gallbladder have “liver stones” because the bile has to come from somewhere. NOTE: If you do not have a gallbladder you cannot digest fats well – period. You must be taking a Bile Salt/Ox Bile when you eat food to remedy the lack of stored bile – and yes this is a FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE supplementation.
The liver and gallbladder work well together to produce and secrete bile, which is necessary to emulsify fats so they can be absorbed by the intestines. A congested liver is one that has small stones of bile formed within the small bile pathways in the liver, leading to a buildup of toxins and other issues with liver metabolism.
Solution: A liver/gallbladder flush is just the thing – and takes only 6-7 days to complete. The majority of people who have done this notice almost an instant release of stones (sometimes hundreds at a time) and once the liver is flushed clean, it will begin to convert fats properly. This is another MAJOR cause of the inability to digest fats and can also be a preventer of ketone production (i.e., fats to energy).
Hypothyroid/Hashimoto’s Thyroid: The thyroid gland is responsible for producing T4 which is ultimately converted into T3 (active thyroid hormone), whose #1 job is to turn on the fat-for-energy metabolism process, as well as facilitate the liver detoxification process. This is the number one reason most people with a thyroid issue have a hard time digesting fats.
Solution: Fixing a thyroid isn’t impossible, but its not a walk in the park either. Its suggested to have a full functional thyroid panel run and address any abnormalities. The most common include elevated Reverse T3 (i.e., toxic thyroid hormone – which turns off the fat digestive process, and is elevated in the presence of a congested liver), elevated TPOab/TGab – antibodies to the enzymes and proteins involved in the production of thyroid hormones directly. Elevated antibodies imply an underlying auto-immune cause of the thyroid disorder (Hashimoto’s) which almost always is accompanied with/caused by an increase in intestinal permeability (leaky gut). Addressing all of the above causes often helps a thyroid to reset itself – along with targeted supplementation of necessary precursors (glandular thyroid, selenium, adaptogenic herbs, adrenal support, etc.).
Digestive Dysbiosis (Microbime Deficiency): Any imbalance in digestive bacteria creates inflammation and ultimately leads to increased intestinal permeability, which can result in auto-reabsorption of undigested fats. Over time this can become a significant source of inflammation and inhibition to overall digestive processes mentioned above. Note: low HCL and bile secretion can actually exacerbate this issue by allowing other bacteria into the system that would otherwise be neutralized by normal acid/digestive processes.
Solution: Eat foods that support normal bacterial relationship in the bowels. These include lemons/limes, celery, cucumbers, parsley, mint, cilantro, radish, dandelion, milk thistle, ginger, turmeric, green tea and fermented foods (sauerkraut, kimchi, etc.).
Follow any one or all of these tips and you will becomes a fat burning machine before you know it. Remember, converting fats into energy is anti-inflammatory while sugar to energy is mostly an inflammatory process.
