Intestines

Intestines are a wonderful thing. I know they seem gross, and in war movies they are always popping out of people, and they make and hold poop, but regardless, intestines are a wonderful thing. Let's explore the delightful little coils.

There are two kinds of intestines: small and large. The small intestine is composed of three parts but, who cares? The small intestine takes all the crazy acidic broken down food from the stomach and breaks it down into tiny compounds that we can actually absorb. And use. Things like energy and vitamins and minerals. PRETTY IMPORTANT.

Of course, the large intestine plays a role too. The large intestine is, let me say, AWESOME. Not just for what it is, but also for what it holds. The large intestine is home to BILLIONS AND BILLIONS of bacteria. Not impressed? What if I told you those bacteria weighed MORE THAN TWO POUNDS!!! TWO POUNDS!!! And these bacteria do wild things. They digest food that the small intestine didn't. And not just that, they digest these waste products into THINGS WE CAN USE. And these things may protect against colon cancer. They also ward off the bad guys- they even secrete anti bacterial compounds that target "bad bacteria." Now that is just NUTS.

Then, when the intestines are done, poop is made. I love poop because it is funny and it also makes you think. Today I learned that the majority of poop is water and dead bacteria. WHAT??? That's wacky. And sweet.

Ok, it seems unlikely that you are still reading. But if you are, you probably understand why intestines are oh so great. And you probably also understand why I'm curious what my intestines want me to eat. I've been trying to tune in down there and find out what's going on. So far, no luck, so I think I'll just guess.

My intestines dream day:

Breakfast:
Yogurt (with millions of new bacteria friends)
Granola (to move my food through me at an optimal speed)
Lunch:
Chili with lots of beans (fiber, fiber, fiber. gives my intestines a good scrubin and makes sure everything is moving- but not too fast)
Salad (I really think that my intestines wish my stomach wanted more salads, just like may brain does)
Snack:
Aged cheese plate (more bacteria friends, plus I think my intestines probably like cheese as much as the rest of me) (and because I think my intestines really like to snack)
Dinner:
Roasted veggies including sunchokes (fiber, plus inulin which is food specifically for my bacterial friends)
Berries and more berries (we all like berries. All of me and and my bacteria friends)

Well, I hope you enjoyed this journey into my feelings on intestines and what life would be like if my intestines ruled the world. Or at least my plate.

I would also like to say that I'm sure some of you are thinking, "hey it's funny that Christie love's intestines so much, because her favorite foods are traditionally made from intestines, which is gross." I really don't have anything to say to that. As much as I love intestines, I do have a hard time wanting to eat them. But instead of dwelling on it, I have chosen to recognize the discrepancy, and move on.