8 • THE LIVER AND GALLBLADDER MIRACLE CLEANSE out themselves being changed. Digestive enzymes are contained in the saliva of the salivary glands of the mouth, the gastric juice in the stomach, the intestinal juice in the small intestine, the pancreatic juice in the pancreas, and the bile in the liver. Absorption is the process by which tiny nutrient particles of digested food pass through the intestinal walls into the blood and lymph vessels, which help distribute them to the cells of the body. The bowels eliminate as feces whatever food substances they cannot digest or absorb, such as the plant fiber cellulose. Fecal matter also contains bile, which carries the waste products resulting from the breakdown (catabolism) of red blood cells. Nearly one-third of the excreted fecal matter is made up of dead intestinal bacteria. The body can function smoothly and efficiendy only if the bowel removes these daily-generated waste products every day. Good health results when each of these major activities in the digestive system is balanced and well coordinated with the rest of the body. By contrast, abnormalities begin to arise in the digestive system as well as in other parts of the body when one or more of these functions becomes impaired. The presence of gallstones in the liver and gallbladder has a disruptive influence on the digestion and absorption of food, as well as on the body's waste disposal system.
Diseases of the Mouth Gallstones in the liver and gallbladder are also responsible for most diseases of the mouth. The stones interfere with the digestion and absorption of food, which, in turn, forces waste products meant for elimination to remain in the intestinal tract. The storage of waste in the intestines creates a toxic, anaerobic environment that supports breeding of destructive germs and parasites and undermines preservation of healthy, resilient tissues. Bacterial infection (thrush) and viral infection (herpes) in the mouth occur only when the intestines have accumulated considerable amounts of undigested waste matter. Destructive bacteria at-