Top 10 tips for perfect digestive health

Are you suffering from poor digestion, headaches, allergies, fatigue and mood swings? Follow these ten step for digestive health and you’ll notice the benefit on your waistline.

A balanced diet, that is high in both soluble and insoluble fibre, helps to keep food moving through your digestive tract. Besides lowering cholesterol, a high fibre diet also feeds the healthy bacteria and helps them to flourish. Vegetables, fruit and whole grains are all good sources of insoluble fibre, while oats and pulses like beans and lentils are rich in soluble fibre. Consuming a diet that is high in fibre and rich in whole grains, vegetables, legumes and fruits can improve your digestive health. In addition, it can help you achieve or maintain a healthy weight.

Fatty, deep-fried foods tend to slow down the digestive process. For optimal health, avoid sweets, fatty foods and processed foods as these may have an adverse effect on your body’s microflora. Instead, reach for brightly coloured vegetables and fruits as they are rich in antioxidants, vitamins and minerals.

How you eat may be as important as what you eat. We’ve all done it: grabbed a bite on the road, eaten too fast and ended up with bloating and indigestion. When food isn’t chewed thoroughly the amylase enzymes from the saliva don’t come in contact with the food for long enough to begin the digestive process – often causing gas or indigestion. Instead, take the time to slowly savor the flavour of food. Aim for 30 to 40 chews for every mouthful you take. Remember what your mum told you: Eat slowly and chew properly.

Probiotics are the healthy bacteria naturally present in your digestive tract. These good bacteria help keep the body healthy by facilitating the digestion of undigested food in the stomach, alleviating indigestion and bloating. But stress, bad eating habits and antibiotics, can all kill the beneficial bacteria in our body. It is important to restore the body’s balance by eating food which contains probiotics.

Water is necessary for the body to operate properly. Drinking enough water helps ensure the nutrients in food are digested and absorbed. Try to work in eight glasses a day, or more if it’s hot or you’re working hard. Not only will it alleviate bloating, it’s a great excuse to get up from your desk and walk around the office.

Smoking, caffeine and alcohol can all interfere with the functioning of your digestive system. Remember excess of any such food has a drastically bad effect on your health of digestive system thus on the whole body.

Aim to sit down for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks around the same time each day. And don’t eat a heavy, rich meal within three hours of bedtime. When you go to sleep, your digestive system slows down too, so eating a big meal before bed means your digestive system has to work through the night, which can disrupt your sleep.

Regular exercise can help you maintain a healthy weight, which is good for your health. Exercise also helps keep foods moving through your digestive system. Make it a point to work regular exercise into your schedule.

Stress is something that is quite difficult to avoid in today’s society. When we suffer from stress, our digestive system is one of the first parts of our body to react. Find stress-reducing activities that you enjoy and practice them on a regular basis. Some activities include meditation, craft, sport or even puzzles.

The amount of sleep we get can affect our digestive health. Much like the rest of our body, our digestive system needs time to rest. Going to bed and getting up at regular hours each day can help our digestive system work more effectively and improve the regularity of our bowel habits.

Keep yourself well with these 10 tips for the cold and flu season.