Getting to the Guts of your Health
Great Health is all in the Gut
From the first day of school through to your well-deserved retirement, challenges can arise at every age; your health is no exception to this. More and more, research is showing that your microbiome (i.e. your gut bacteria) is foundational for good health.
In a healthy gut, a wide range of good bacteria and other microorganisms work together to create a strong and beneficial ecosystem -- we call it the ‘gut microbiome’. In a healthy microbiome, good organisms keep the bad ones in check, allowing us to create and absorb important vitamins, our immune system functions well, and we clear waste products effectively (yes, I mean poo!). However, if the ecosystem in your gut is out of balance , life under your belt buckle can become quite uncomfortable.
What is Your Gut Trying to Tell You?
Your gut is one of the hardest working systems in your body. Meal after meal, it hustles to digest your food and extract the nutrients required to sustain you. Despite its solid work ethic though, your gut can experience performance hiccups which leads to digestive symptoms. While many of these are normal, others may indicate something more serious. Read on to discover what your symptoms say about your gut, and I’ll share some tips on how to improve them.
Transient Belly Bloating
What is it? Temporary swelling in the abdomen caused by gas that is trapped.
What causes it? While you eat, and afterwards,your gut produces enzymes and acids which break down your food. It is these enzymes and acids that cause bloating. So, it’s normal to produce gas, but it becomes uncomfortable when it’s more than usual -- which happens when you deviate from your standard diet; eating larger portions, rich and fatty meals, eating foods that are more laborious to breakdown -- including excess carbohydrates and fibre. These foods and ways of eating require more work from your gut , subsequently increasing gas production and bloating.
How do you improve it? While mild bloating generally passes with time, chewing your food thoroughly, consuming smaller meals and spacing out your carbohydrate and fibre intake can help. Eating a cleaner plant based and anti inflammatory diet can help avoid belly bloating and uncomfortable gas all together. To stimulate acid production a bitter herbal formula taken prior to meals stimulates gastric acid production. I suggest taking 1 dropper full of bitter herbs such as dandelion root 15 minutes before a meal.
Flatulence
What is it? Farting.
What causes it? Gas is produced by normal digestive processes, and ‘passed’ at regular intervals. Excess fibre, fat or sugar intake can also create gas. Your microbiome (gut bacteria) also influences the amount of gas produced by fermenting foods to help your digestion.
How do you improve it? We normally pass wind about 15 times per day. Additionally, the odd smelly fart is no big deal, particularly if it is caused by an increase in refined and processed foods (who can say no to the occasional slice of pizza?). However, if you would like to reduce flatulence, moderate your intake of these foods.
Borborymus
What is it? Stomach growling or rumbling.
What causes it? The movement of food, liquid or gas through your digestive tract. Your gut may also ‘growl’ to signal hunger.
How do you improve it? Give your gut a helping-hand by chewing your meals thoroughly -- this helps break down food more efficiently before digesting it and it reduces gas. Additionally, satisfying your hunger will stop the growl.
Symptoms That Require Attention
Chronic Constipation
What is it? The infrequent passage of hard poop (less than once daily), often accompanied by straining, a sense of incompletely emptying the bowel and discomfort.
What causes it? Insufficient fibre or reduced fluid intake can slow your transit time (the time it takes for your food to travel from your mouth through to the other end), making you less ‘regular’. Dysbiosis (an imbalance in the types and levels of gut bacteria) can also influence digestive processes and reduce your transit time. Additionally, chronic constipation is associated with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), a condition that affects the function of the bowel. When we are stressed or out of routine this also causes constipation.
How do you improve it? Consume more fibre-rich foods -- including fruit and vegetables, and drink enough water. I like to use magnesium citrate with clients to support a regular bowel motion and also it's something you can take when travelling to know you will continue to pass a bowel motion. You can safely take up to 300g per day. This specific type of magnesium draws water into the bowel to stimulate a bowel motion.
Diarrhoea
What is it? Soft, loose or watery stool that occurs more than three times daily.
What causes it? Diarrhoea may be a symptom of a bacterial or viral infection, such as gastroenteritis, or be related to certain medications; particularly antibiotics. Additionally, IBS and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) -- a condition which involves inflammation of the digestive tract -- may cause diarrhoea.
How do you improve it? IBS and IBD are serious conditions that require a professional diagnosis and care from a health practitioner. However, if your symptoms are associated with antibiotic use, a probiotic may help. Speak to your healthcare practitioner to get one tailored to your needs.
Malodorous Gas
What is it? Farts that clear a room.
What causes it? Your microbiome consists of a range of bacteria (38 trillion microbes!) that help digestion by fermenting your food, particularly fibre. Imbalances in the levels of different bacterial species can lead to increased gas production with a pungent odour. This can also happen from excessive sulphur ingestion. Sulphites are a food preservative and can cause the smell of rotten eggs. Check food labels of packaged foods to check. Foods higher in Sulphur include eggs, meat and poultry.
How do you improve it? Remove high sulphur foods from your diet for a few days to see if it makes a difference. There are three specific probiotic strains (types of bacteria) which have been shown to help restore a healthy balance of bacteria within your microbiome: Lactobacillus rhamnosus (LGG®), Saccharomyces cerevisiae (boulardii) and Bifidobacterium animalis ssp lactis (BB-12®).. Buying the correct probiotic is important to target an imbalance in the microbiome.
Abdominal Pain
What is it? Sharp, dull, stabbing, cramp-like, or twisting pain in your abdomen. Most people experience occasional gut discomfort, however severe gut pain that is episodic, regular or continuous requires assessment, particularly if accompanied by other symptoms such as fever, changes to your poop, nausea and/or vomiting.
What causes it? Abdominal pain has many potential causes, the most common ones are gas, food intolerances or allergies and indigestion. However, abdominal pain can also be a sign of something more serious, including; appendicitis, gallstones, ulcers, infections, kidney stones, and many other conditions.
How do you improve it? If gut pain has become a pattern rather than a one-off incident, seek guidance from a healthcare professional.
If you regularly experience one or more problematic symptoms, consult with a Natural Health Practitioner for further investigation, particularly if it is new or getting worse.
