Digestion is one of the most important processes to improve at any point in life, but is especially important prior to getting ready to conceive a baby. If you are not able to properly digest the food you’re eating, then your body is likely not getting the all the nutrients it needs. As I have personally found out through my journey to become a Nutritional Therapy Practitioner, if you’re eating a high-quality nutrient-dense diet, but not absorbing all the nutrients due to poor digestion, you can have nutrient deficiencies. These nutrient deficiencies can negatively impacting your health and well-being along with your baby’s health.
In addition, the way a person eats their food can have an effect on various digestive symptoms they may experience when eating. Gas, burping, bloating, diarrhea or constipation are common symptoms that point to a potential digestive issue. Having an optimally functioning digestive system is especially important heading into conception, pregnancy, and the postpartum/nursing period, as these are very demanding times for our bodies. These periods of time require a significant increase in nutrients to carry out the necessary processes as well as to aid in recovery and re-cooperation. Absorbing the necessary nutrients during these periods requires an optimally functioning digestive system.
How do you improve digestion? It’s always helpful to have an assessment to see what individualized issues exist, but below are a few tips to try to help improve your digestion. If you would like a more personalized plan to improve your digestion, contact me to set up a consultation.
- In order to even begin digesting your food, your brain needs to be in a restful and relaxed state. Without being in “rest and digest mode,” our body will not turn on the digestive processes to begin to produce the appropriate amount of saliva, hydrochloric acid, and enzymes needed to digest the food we consume. If we are constantly in a state of arousal (which many of us are with our hectic and stress-laden lives) and do not slow down to eat, then our body will remain in a state of arousal and not be able to properly digest the food we are eating.
- Tips to Get Into Rest & Digest Mode:
- Take a few very deep breaths (in through the nose out through the mouth) to relax or even better, do a short mindfulness mediation prior to starting your meal.
- Sit at a table (or even on the floor) while eating (not standing up!).
- Take time to enjoy the aroma of the food you are about to eat to generate more saliva prior to eating. Bonus: this will help you calm down/relax prior to eating and be more mindful when eating a meal.
- Don’t multi-task while eating…just sit and enjoy your food in a present, mindful state. You may notice how much more you actually enjoy your meal when you can taste it! (and will also likely eat less and feel more full)
- **I know this one can be hard for moms. It has taken me a lot of effort, but it is making a difference for me, and I also feel like I am setting a good example/ developing good habits for my toddler)**
- Take a few minutes to rest and relax after finishing your meal to facilitate digestive processes.
- Tips to Get Into Rest & Digest Mode:
- To digest food properly, it needs to be appropriately physically broken down in your mouth prior to reaching your stomach. This gives your saliva time to help break down the food in your mouth (especially carbohydrates, which can only be fully broken down with the help of the salivary amylase enzyme). Chewing also allows your teeth to mechanically break down the food as your stomach doesn’t have teeth to do so!
- Tips to Physically Break Down Food:
- Chew your food thoroughly…chew 20-30 times after each bite. If you need to count at first in order to be become self-aware, then do that for awhile before it becomes a habit.
- Eat slowly & put your fork down between each bite.
- Eat a little bit of fermented food (like sauerkraut or beet kraut) prior to starting your meal. Eat it slowly, letting yourself salivate. This will help get you ready to eat and generate the necessary digestive juices.
- Tips to Physically Break Down Food:
- Once the food enters the stomach, the stomach needs to be appropriately acidic in order to continue to break down the food into an absorbable form. If you’re eating in a non-relaxed state, your stomach cannot make a sufficient amount of hydrochloric acid (HCl) to break down the food. Contrary to popular belief, heartburn is usually a symptom of low stomach acid, and more stomach acid is needed to properly break down the food and move it to the small intestine for absorption to avoid reflux (throw out those Tums and acid blockers!). Aside from the tips previously mentioned above to increase production of HCl, here are a few more helpful ideas.
- Tips to Improve HCl & Enzyme Production:
- Drink very little water with your meals, as water dilutes the acid in your stomach. It’s best to drink water 1.5-2 hours prior to and after your meals rather than with your meal. If I drink water with my meals for supplements, I usually add a little apple cider vinegar or lemon juice to it to help not dilute stomach acid.
- Avoid drinking carbonated beverages near meals, as they can affect your stomach’s ability to produce stomach acid.
- Take a tablespoon of raw apple cider vinegar at the beginning of your meal (you can mix with a little bit of water to make it easier to take).
- If you experience a stronger sensation than a warming sensation in your stomach (i.e. more of a burning sensation), then you may need to heal your stomach lining before you can tolerate the increase in acidity in the stomach. If you feel discomfort, then do not continue to take the apple cider vinegar and seek additional health from a qualified practitioner.
- An herbal supplement called bitters can be extremely helpful to naturally increase stomach acid and enzyme production as well as naturally stimulate the digestive processes. You can either eat bitter foods with your meal (i.e. arugula, and dandelion root) or you can take a bitters supplement such as this one from Urban Moonshine. **Only the Calm Tummy Bitters are safe for pregnancy and during breastfeeding**
- I highly recommend trying these…I have noticed a significant improvement in my digestion when I use them and notice a difference when I don’t have them.
- Tips to Improve HCl & Enzyme Production:
Making these changes can help improve the function of your digestive system and nutrient absorption. This is incredibly important because every cell in your body depends on the proper nutrients for optimal functioning. Improving digestion also improves gut health, which in turn helps strengthen your immune system because 70-80% of our immune system resides in our gut. Digestion has an impact on all areas of health, and is very important for everyone to improve, but particularly important prior to conception.
For a more personalized approach to optimizing digestion based on individual needs, please contact me for a consultation.
What are your favorite ways to improve your digestion? Leave a comment below!
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