The occasional bout of gas, acid reflux, stomach cramping, or bloating may not be enough to cause you to think much about health of your digestive system. But it should, and here’s why.

Proper digestion, absorption, assimilation, and elimination of foods is your key to health. According to statistics gleaned from healthguidance.org, more than 20 million Americans suffer from digestive disorders that impair their nutrition. Here’s the thing: No matter how healthy the foods and nutrients you consume, unless they can be broken down so the body can absorb and assimilate them, you will experience less than optimal health.

Here are 5 simple steps you can take to bolster your digestive system:

  1. Drink water before a meal.   When you have a glass of water 30 minutes before your meal, you kick off mucus production in your stomach.  Making sure your mucous lining is hydrated prior to eating reduces your chance for heartburn.
  2. Chew your food.   Chewing predigests your food and partially liquefies it, making it easier to digest. When large particles of improperly chewed food enter your stomach, it may remain undigested when it enters your intestines where it will putrefy, potentially leading to gas and bloating, diarrhea, and other digestive distress.
  3. Add fermented foods.   Your small intestine is covered with literally trillions of microorganisms. When you eat a lot of grains, sugars, and processed foods, your intestinal flora can get out of balance as these foods feed the “bad bacteria,” that can contribute to a host of chronic health issues, including IBS, chronic fatigue, food allergies, and more. Consuming high-quality fermented foods such as sauerkraut, miso, kefir, and tempeh can help multiply the “good bacteria” in your gut and keep your intestinal flora in balance.
  4. Prep and cook beans properly.  Soaking dried beans from 12-24 hours before cooking them can make them easier to digest and helps you retain more nutrients in the beans. While cooking, add a few fennel seeds, a slice of ginger, or a bay leaf to make them more digestible and to help relieve gas.
  5. Consider supplements—digestive enzymes and probiotics.  Found in your saliva, stomach, and small intestine, digestive enzymes are chemical “scissors” produced by your body to help you break down food. To boost your digestive health, consider supplementing with a high-quality digestive enzyme. Probiotics are simply “good bacteria” that lives in your gut. They help keep your internal environment working right. They keep your pH levels conducive to digestion and absorption, and out of the acidic range that many less friendly bacteria and yeast thrive in. The most commonly known probiotics available in supplement form are acidophilus and bifidus.

Here's to a happy gut!

 

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Board Certified Holistic Health Practitioner and Food Toxin Expert

Copywrite 2014 Groovybeets.com

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Related Links

Digestive Wellness: Strengthen the Immune System and Prevent Disease Through Healthy Digestion, by Elizabeth Lipski, Ph.D., CNN, CHN

http://www.amazon.com/Digestive-Wellness-Strengthen-Prevent-Digestion/dp/0071668993

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