Part I
In addition to tracking the health systems we’ve discussed in the last two posts, paying attention to your bowel habits🚽🧻 is a great way to tune into health as you start to make changes. I know, no one really wants to, but our bowel habits can tell as much or even more about health as things like tracking🗓️ your periods, your weight, moods, hair & nail health, or anything else that you pay attention to regularly.
So, what are you looking for? Here are some signs of a healthy digestive system💩:
⚡️1-3 bowel movements a day:
Pooping is how we eliminate toxins – both endogenous and exogenous, so the goal is one 1-3 poops a day that feel full and productive each time. Ideally your bowel movements are spaced throughout the day and not clustered together.
⚡️Stool that is:
- Well formed, not fluffy or falling apart, resembling a snake or sausage – ideally a #4 on the Bristol Stool chart
- Sinks, not floats – Floating stool can be a sign that your gallbladder isn’t doing it’s job breaking down fat appropriately, or a sign of gluten intolerance
- Free of obvious undigested food pieces – A possible sign that you don’t have enough stomach acid and pancreatic enzymes to break down food appropriately
- Generally brown – Some change in color is ok (for example, red tinted if you eat beets) but, usually we want to see brown stool without yellow/green/clay/red colored tint
- Not greasy – A sign that you might not be breaking down fats appropriately
- Easy to pass, free of blood, and does not cause irritation, or hemorrhoids
⚡️Absent or very infrequent reflux, heartburn or stomach pain:
Just like bloating, an occasional bout of heartburn after a night out is not concerning. However, reflux or heartburn that flares up more often, including after more acidic foods, is not a good sign and can often be caused by a bacterial infection (ie H.Pylori) or microbiome imbalance.
⚡️Gas that is not frequent or foul smelling:
Passing some gas is normal, but if you are passing gas throughout the day or if your gas can clear a room, you might be dealing with a microbiome imbalance or excessive amounts of certain types of bacteria.
⚡️Bloating that comes and goes occasionally:
Some amount of bloating is normal and not unhealthy, especially after eating things like cruciferous veggies, legumes, or artificial sweeteners. Bloating that increases throughout the day no matter what you eat, or bloating that causes pain or discomfort, on the other hand is not OK.
💥Remember these are just generalizations and everyone is different so you will have to pay attention to your own digestive health.
Part II
Now that we know how digestion plays a role in so many other systems of health, it’s time to help you figure out how to maximize gut health.💥 And while WHAT you eat does matter, I often think focusing on HOW you eat is a much better starting place.
⚡️Here are some tips and practices to start with:
01. Make time for your meals:
I know, we all have a million things going on, but if you want to help your body, you have to set aside time to nourish and feed yourself (not just the people around you). When possible, I challenge you to set aside even just 10 minutes⏰ to enjoy your meals rather than multi-tasking or rushing through them — and put the phones away! This doesn't have to look like a meditation practice, but give yourself the space to pay attention to what you are eating and enjoy your food more without any distractions.
02. Breathe:
Hopefully you already know I love to encourage deep breathing before your meals.🧘Deep breathing helps tell our brain that we are about to eat and are not still running from that tiger (=project/boss/child/errand) that we just escaped. Breathing helps turn off our sympathetic response (think lower cortisol) and prepare our digestive system to break down and absorb nutrients (think stomach acid, digestive enzymes, and stimulating your migrating motor complex). Bonus points for sitting🪑 - it’s hard to do any of this without sitting first.
03. Chew:
Yes, you've heard it before. And no, you do not have to chew each bite 100 times. But, chewing (along with breathing) is the first step in digestion. Chewing helps break down food, but did you know that you actually release chemicals that communicate📡 with the rest of your digestive tract by chewing? Chewing helps relax the stomach and esophagus, stimulate digestive enzyme production, and increase nutrient absorption.
04. Balance Meal Timing:
This one might be different for each of us⚖️, but there is often a rhythm that helps support digestion allowing for some down time and some focused time. Giving yourself a 12 hour fast between your last and first meal can be a huge support for digestion and allow for critical processes that only happen when you are not eating. And then, once you start eating in the day, you want to make sure you don’t go too long between meals which could trigger a stress response.
05. Support your Stress Response:
I’ve talked before about stress. The goal is not to eliminate all stress from our lives — that alone might create more stress in itself! 🌿But, how you respond to stress and support yourself in more stressful seasons is something you can focus on — this includes psychological stress but also how you take care of and nourish your body. Stress has various impacts on gut health, including slowing down digestion, releasing toxic chemicals that break down the gut lining, and impairing microbiome balance.
06. Move your Body:
Many of you have probably noticed that when you are more active🚴 throughout the day you stay more regular. Or, maybe you have seen that walking after a meal helps minimize heartburn or reflux. Most gentle forms of movement can help with various aspects of the digestive process, in particular motility. Keep in mind that too much intense exercise🥵 can actually slow down digestion and lead to bloating and gas for many people.
07. Get adequate sleep:
Good quality sleep is critical for digestive function and detox pathways. When we sleep💤, our migrating motor complex works to move food and bacteria along. Poor sleep can elevate cortisol levels which can then decrease gut health. And, research has shown that good sleep leads to increased melatonin production, which can improve your microbiome balance.
Part III
Too often I see clients wanting to jump straight to testing, treating, and even adjusting diet for digestive support. It’s important💥 to me that you read through and work on the last post before this one‼️. ONLY ONCE you have those foundational supports in place for HOW you are eating and living, here are some tips for WHAT to eat to support digestion:
01. Balance cooked & raw fiber:
Fiber, especially from vegetables🥕, in its raw form, can be particularly hard for our digestive system to break down. In general (and especially with GI distress), it can be helpful to include more cooked fruits and vegetables than raw. Most nutrients are actually more bioavailable in the cooked forms of these foods anyway. This doesn’t mean you have to eliminate all raw veggies, but pay attention🧐 to whether certain veggies seem to cause more discomfort when raw versus cooked.
02. Eat PRE & Probiotics:
You’ve all heard of probiotics, and these can be great for gut health — think fermented🫧 foods like sauerkraut, kimchi, kombucha, and yogurt. But, what you might not have heard yet is that we want to also consume Prebiotics, which are plant🌿 fibers in foods that help feed bacteria. Foods that are rich in prebiotics include garlic🧄, onion🧅, leeks, artichokes, asparagus, bananas🍌, oats, apples🍎, flaxseed, and cacao.
03. Consume Bitter foods:
So many of us have lost the taste for bitter foods. And yet, bitter foods are not only packed with nutrients, but help stimulate digestion and gallbladder function. Try to include bitter foods in your meals or even before meals. Examples include citrus🍋, ginger, mint, dill, turmeric, greens🥬, radicchio, radishes, turnips, apple cider vinegar, dark chocolate🍫, and coffee☕️.
04. Replenish hydration & minerals:
Both water💧, and minerals💎 can make a huge difference in gut health, in particular motility and constipation. And, while water is great to focus on, I love to encourage clients to add in minerals, or electrolytes, once a day, including magnesium, sodium🧂, and potassium🍌 to better hydrate your body. There is no perfect amount for water intake, just play around with what makes a difference for you using skin and gut motility as great indicators.
05. Minimize highly processed foods:
You all know that I don’t love labeling foods as ‘good’ or ‘bad.’ However, there are, no doubt, more negative digestive effects from consuming highly processed foods🍟. For one, it’s harder for our bodies to recognize and process ingredients that are not naturally occurring — and not just the ingredients themselves but the chemicals🧪 that are used in growing and processing that food. In particular, there are some chemicals and toxins in our food system (ie, glyphosate and artificial sweeteners) that kill☠️ beneficial bacteria, and increase intestinal permeability. When you have the choice, try to focus on the less processed form of any food.
06. Balance fiber with fats:
We have heard of the amazing benefits of fiber, but sometimes your system can be overloaded with fiber. This is where fat comes in! Fat is lubricating for your body🧍 and especially your digestive tract and helps move the fiber along. Fat helps to nourish🌿 the digestive lining, part by helping you absorb🧽 more nutrients from other foods. In particular, Omega 3 fatty acids have been shown to help increase microbiota diversity as well. Especially for those of you dealing with constipation🚽, I often recommend focusing on increasing fat first!
07. Cut back on alcohol:
Ugh, personally I hate this one. But, alcohol🍺 can be a doozy on our gut lining. There are countless studies showing the negative📉 impact of alcohol (of any kind) on the intestinal lining. Best to minimize or eliminate🚫 alcohol as possible, and especially if you are dealing with known gut issues.
💥Be sure to review the previous posts in this series on digestion!