Improve your digestive health naturally
The digestive system is a unique organ where food goes through and turns into nutrients that the body uses for energy, growth, and cell repair. A big part of your immune system and human health is in the digestive tract. You can suffer all sorts of health issues when your digestive system is off.
Digestive problems are common when they are occasionally troubling you but facing them frequently is not. It’s time to pay attention to improving your digestive health. Luckily, a good diet and lifestyle modifications can have a productive impact on your digestive health.
Here are the best ways to improve your digestive health.
Chew well
The digestion process begins in your mouth. When you chew properly, it eases the work of your digestive system. The breakdown of the food starts in your oral cavity, the food breaks down into smaller pieces and mixes up with saliva. The longer you chew, the more breakdown of solid food into a semi-liquid mixture with more saliva.
It eases digestion thus preventing indigestion and heartburn. Chewing food well n thoroughly improves the digestion process thus improving digestion health.
Eat foods that have life
Fresh fruits, vegetables, greens, whole grains, nuts, and seeds are real foods that are packed with high nutrients. These foods improve digestion and protect against all digestive disorders, help in balancing gut bacteria, and reduce the risk of digestive problems.
Refined carbs, saturated fats, food additives, processed foods, low-calorie foods, and ice-creams that contain artificial sweeteners are well known for their negative effects on overall health and increased risk of developing digestive diseases like ulcerative colitis, IBS, IBD, bloating, diarrhea, leaky gut. Therefore, including whole foods and limiting processed foods in the diet is best for optimal digestion.
Eat Fiber
Fiber helps keep your digestive system healthy. Fiber is good for regular bowel movements and also helps in treating and preventing various digestive disorders such as hemorrhoids, diverticulitis, and irritable bowel syndrome fiber also removes toxins and bad bacteria from the colon.
Include both soluble and insoluble fiber in your diet. Soluble fiber absorbs water and adds bulk to your stools and also absorbs toxins. Insoluble fiber can not be digested by the body and is known as roughage. It speeds up elimination and makes the digestive tract clean.
Legumes, lentils, nuts, fruits, vegetables, and oat bran are good sources of soluble fiber. Whole grains, the skin of fruits, and green leafy vegetables are good sources of in- soluble fiber.
Cut down unhealthy fats :
Good fats give satiety and aids in good digestion and help in nutrient absorption and also reduce digestive inflammations as in IBD while Unhealthy fats make the digestion process slow and difficult and make you constipated.
Limit your saturated fats (processed, fatty and fried foods) and include good fats like omega -3-fatty acids (flax seeds, chia seeds, pumpkin, sunflower seeds, nuts like walnuts, and fish).
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Hydrate your body:
Insufficient fluid intake makes digestive health sluggish and makes it constipated. Drinking sufficient fluids hydrates and heals digestive health. So, drink adequate water but not along with the meals. Foods that contain high water content like fresh fruits and vegetables, herbal teas, and unsweetened natural fruit juices also help in meeting fluid demands.
Take care of your liver:
The liver helps in improving your digestive health and makes it work efficiently. Just omitting alcohol is not the only solution but needs to include liver-friendly foods such as green leafy vegetables, dark-colored veggies like carrot, beetroot, and fresh natural juices to boost your liver performance thus supporting the digestive system.
Add in probiotics and prebiotics:
Prebiotics are a special type of fiber that acts as food for your healthy gut bacteria. Prebiotics are found in fruits, vegetables, and grains.
Probiotics are the same kind of beneficial bacteria and yeast that are naturally present in our gut. Probiotics help in improving your digestive health by combating the bad effects of poor diet, antibiotics, and stress.in addition, probiotics can improve nutrient absorption, strengthen your immune system, and even help in the treatment of IBS. Probiotics are found in fermented foods and as supplements.
Pay attention and Eat as Required:
Listening to your body and paying attention to what you’re eating and how much you are eating improves your digestion health. Overeating any food is not good for your digestive system. Food in excess requires the body to expend more energy and adds stress to the digestive system. it slows down the process of digestion. Improper eating habits and improper food timings have a great impact on digestive health.
Maintain good Stomach Acid levels:
Stomach acids are very important in the breakdown of the proteins (in the food) in the stomach and destroy pathogenic bacteria. Maintaining proper stomach acid levels is crucial for proper digestion. Boost your stomach acids by chewing food more, limiting processed foods, including fermented foods, and adding lemon to your water. Don’t have water along with your meal, it dilutes your stomach acids and diminishes the digestion process.
Ensure the adequate intake of nutrients:
Certain nutrients help in improving your digestion process. Glutamine is an amino acid that aids in gut health. Soybeans, eggs, and almonds are good sources of glutamine. Zinc is a mineral that is critical for a healthy gut, and its deficiency can lead to digestive disorders like diarrhea, colitis, and a leaky gut. Beans, Nuts, seeds like sunflower, and poultry are good sources of zinc.
Power-on with a Detox:
Detoxing on a regular basis can be the best way to restart your digestive engine. aloe vera, amla juice, mint, and lemon concoctions help to detox your system and improve your digestive health.
Exercise your digestive system:
Just like you train your muscles to grow stronger, it’s important to give the digestive tract a workout by eating high-fiber foods. These foods will make your guts work harder and take longer to digest.
By using machines to process and refine food, it means that our body can then focus the majority of its time and energy on things like digestion. When you don’t train for a long time, your body becomes weaker.
Regular physical and digestive exercise is one of the great ways to improve your digestion health.
Natural Digestive Enzymes:
Include Natural sources of digestive enzymes in your diet to improve your digestive health. Fruits like pineapple, papaya, and avocado, fermented foods are great sources that have digestive enzymes.
Manage your Mental health:
When you are low and stressed, your digestion also gets upset, isn’t it?? Stress not only messes up the mind, but it also has an impact on your gut as the stress hormones directly affect digestion. Your brain and gut are connected so when the brain gets affected, it affects your digestion. Stress badly impacts your digestive health and leads to digestive problems like IBS, stomach Ulcers, Diarrhea, and constipation
Practicing stress management and relaxation techniques like Pranayama, meditation, and yoga may improve your mental health thus improving your digestive health.
Skip the damaging habits:
Smoking, excessive caffeine, and alcohol can interfere with the functioning of your digestive system. Smoking increases the risk of developing acid reflux. Smoking also causes stomach ulcers, ulcerative colitis, and gastrointestinal cancers.
Alcohol consumption can increase acid production in the stomach and may lead to heartburn, acid reflux, and stomach ulcers. Excessive alcohol consumption also causes bleeding in the gastrointestinal tract, alcohol has also been associated with digestive disorders like IBD (inflammatory bowel diseases), leaky gut, and imbalance in gut bacteria.
Excessive intake of caffeine can lead to ulcers and heart burns.
Try to avoid these damaging habits to improve your digestive health.
To Sum-up:
Simple dietary and lifestyle modifications can help you to improve your digestive health. Eating a balanced diet packed with nutrients such as fresh fruits, vegetables, whole grains, healthy fat, and adequate fluids is the first move. Avoiding bad habits (smoking, alcohol, excess caffeine, tobacco) and practicing good habits (exercise, meditation, yoga) can help in improving digestive health.
