How good is your digestion?
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Check nowThe benefits of a fully functional digestive system will make themselves felt in all areas of your life; you'll have more energy, suffer less pain and bloating, feel invigorated instead of fatigued by your food, and even find yourself less prone to mood swings or poor concentration. Fortunately it's really easy to make simple changes that will help improve your digestion and ultimately how you look and feel - simply follow my guide below!
Keeping hydrated is key for maintaining healthy digestion, so drinking 1½ litres of water a day can be a very cheap and effective way of improving your digestion and raising energy levels.
However, try not to drink too much just before, during or after eating as you will only risk diluting your digestive juices.
More than 20 minutes before or after eating is the best bet for effective drinking!
Avoiding coffee, sugar and alcohol is particularly important if you are constipated, as they can upset the gastric secretions and risk upsetting the response of the bowel when consumed continually. Poor quality trans fats, highly processed foods and artificial sweeteners should also be limited as they can all risk upsetting the balance of your good gut bacteria.
More generally, these options are also all considered to be pro-inflammatory, which will not only risk aggravating a more sensitive gut, but may contribute to some more whole-body implications too.
The way to a happy tum is to instead focus on eating REAL foods! This includes lots of fibre and antioxidant-rich fruit and vegetables, wholegrains, healthy fats, prebiotics. Some especially gut-nourishing options from me, include:
Whilst fresh foods are generally a winner, we may need to be aware of high FODMAP foods, particularly in cases of IBS. These FODMAP foods contain a type of fibre that could potentially exacerbate a very sensitive gut. Click here to learn more about some FODMAP friendly foods.
Although it's also important to consider what you are eating, paying more attention to how we eat is crucial if you're looking to improve your digestion, and something many of us are guilty of not doing enough!
One of my all-time favourite top tips is to make a conscious effort not to bolt down your food - so simple, yet effective! If it hardly touches the sides as it goes down, the chances are the digestive system won’t be ready for it and all sorts of mayhem will break out.
Try chewing each mouthful 20 times for a while and surprise yourself with how much better your digestive tract feels.
Yes, it may sound silly; but what I mean is make sure you sit down to eat, rather than rushing to the shops in your lunch break with a snack in your hand, or jumping up all through dinner to fetch things for other people. This can be incorporated nicely into a more 'mindful eating' mindset. This means eating more consciously - really get immersed in all those lovely flavours and textures of your food and it should, with any luck, become a much more enjoyable experience for you!
Next, posture is another one to consider. So, sit down, relax, and make sure that you are sitting up with your shoulders back rather than slumping over your meal. This makes it easier for the stomach walls to move and mix food up with the digestive enzymes. Cramping up your stomach (which is situated under the ribcage) is a great way of successfully causing indigestion. Watch my self-care tip video below for more on this!
Here I explain why sitting up straight for meals could help support your digestion and potentially help protect against symptoms of heartburn or acid reflux.
Once you've finished your meal, give yourself five minutes to start digesting, rather than rushing off at once. This again will make the digestive process much more effective and less painful, not to mention enjoyable!
Even if you're only partaking in gentle exercise, moving more can help to effectively stimulate muscle activity and assist in the unique, wave-like muscular contractions throughout the gut called peristalsis. Yoga, for example, is a good option if you feel you need a helping hand as it helps to gently strengthen hidden muscles and increases mobility without being beyond anyone’s ability.
To give your bowel more individual attention, massage gently in a clockwise circle around your belly, going up the right hand side and down the left, gently but firmly. Massaging in lavender oil, using a cream or oil base, is also helpful (and nice for the nose too).
See, if you are producing the right amount of stomach acid then you are much more likely to break down your proteins properly and keep bugs such as Helicobacter pylori at bay. The production of stomach enzymes also triggers the rest of the digestive tract into action, so your liver and pancreas will wake up and take notice, meaning better absorption of food, less likelihood of food intolerances, and fewer cravings.
First published on 26/05/15, updated on 26/02/21
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Join experts Eileen Durward and Ali Cullen in the beautiful A.Vogel garden as they talk all about digestion including their tips on how to improve your digestion and how bitter herbs can make a huge difference to helping your digestive problems.
Check the health of your digestive system using our simple test.
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Always read the leaflet.
According to naturopathic principles, when two or three meals are being eaten daily, the bowel should move at least once or twice a day.
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