You might be surprised to find out that your stomach plays a big role in your day-to-day well-being, mood, and overall temperament. If your stomach is upset or in a bad mood, you can feel it throughout your day, which might affect whatever it is you are doing. A happy stomach leads to a happy person, and if you have bad stomach health, you might not be the jolliest or happy person to be around. So, do you want tips on how to maintain stomach health for overall well-being? Look no further because we are here to give you certain advice, including tips and tricks on maintaining stomach health!
Table of Contents
What causes poor digestion?
Have you ever wondered what causes poor digestion? In this blog, where we talk about how to maintain stomach health, we need to find the root of why our stomach is unhealthy in the first place? What leads to it being unhealthy? Is it junk food? Is it your lifestyle? Sleeping habits, maybe? All these might sound unrelated, but let us assure you, it is not. Tune in to find out what causes poor digestion.
Lifestyle
Believe it or not, your lifestyle has a lot of impact on your health. Your daily routine, way of eating, the things you eat, and even the time matter. Your body might be unable to digest food normally because of your poor lifestyle habits. If you are wondering what it means to have a poor lifestyle, it means that your lifestyle includes lots of smoking, drinking, and unnecessary stress.
Don’t get us wrong, smoking, drinking, and stressing about life are very common. But when you do it to a level that is not normal, your body starts getting affected, especially your stomach. Also, the things you eat daily matter. If you eat greasy, heavy foods every day which are harder to digest, then your stomach might face digestion problems. Try replacing unhealthy foods with a healthy, balanced diet that includes proteins, fats, and carbs in equal amounts. However, do not forget to enjoy and give in to cravings once in a while to keep your gut happy.
Medical issues
Okay, so your digestive problems might also be a symptom of any medical issue you have and the medicines you are taking for it. Some medical issues that can lead to indigestion are irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), and lactose/gluten intolerance. Let us take a look at them in some detail;
· IBS( irritable bowel syndrome)
IBS primarily occurs in the large intestine. The common effects of IBS are diarrhea, vomiting, unnatural bloating, cramps, and excessive gas. However, IBS, in most cases, is not something serious that needs prolonged medical treatment. Sure, there are cases of severe IBS, but those are few. You can take care of your IBS with a few changes in your diet and lifestyle. However, it would be best if you were consistent with the lifestyle change, or your IBS is going to act up again.
· IBD( inflammatory bowel disease)
What is IBD, and how is it different from IBS, you may ask. Well, IBD or inflammatory bowel disease is a term that describes diseases, mostly inflammatory diseases that occur in our digestive tract. These diseases include Crohn’s disease and Ulcerative Colitis. Both of these are inflammatory diseases. The latter occurs on the lining of your large intestine and rectum. The former occurs mostly in the digestive tract and its several layers. IBD can be very serious and lead to complications, so it should be taken seriously in its early stages to avoid future risks. Some symptoms of IBD are diarrhea, unexpected weight loss, loss of energy, blood in stool, etc.
· Lactose/gluten intolerance
Lactose intolerance is basically not being able to digest dairy products. This is a condition that people are born with, and it continues their entire life. Lactose intolerant people can get really bloated and have terrible diarrhea and stomach pain if they consume anything with lactose in it. However, their diet mostly avoids it, and it is not a life-threatening disease.
However, Gluten intolerance, unlike lactose, can lead to serious complications sometimes. Gluten is something that is present in most foods, especially wheat. The bread we consume every day has gluten in it. People with gluten intolerance, their stomach will immediately react negatively to the slightest presence of gluten in it. Common symptoms are extreme bloating, pain in the stomach, diarrhea, constipation, and even vomiting.
Digestion Problem Solution To Maintain Stomach Health
So, we have listed some of the reasons that you might be having stomach health problems. There is no need to get worried after seeing the names of diseases. We have just merely listed them for your own convenience. However, since you now know the roots of your stomach issues, you might want to know how to solve those issues. Keep in mind that there is no miracle fix for getting rid of stomach problems easily. You need to do what fits best for your body and hope for the best. Let us now take a look at how you can better your stomach health;
Lifestyle change
You might be surprised at how big of a change you notice in your health once you change your habits. A lifestyle change can look easy from afar, but it isn’t easy to maintain. But once you change for the better, it is mind-blowing how your outlook towards life and health becomes more mature. To change your lifestyle, you must get rid of or reduce certain bad habits that are leading to your stomach problems.
First thing, you need to reduce smoking and drinking. Stopping it altogether with help you more, but we need to start small and aim big. Next is the sleep schedule. It affects your gut immensely and leads to bloating and gas. A proper sleep schedule will lead to a lot of benefits. Try to get your eight hours daily. And last but not least, a positive outlook towards life. Negatively clouds your health and judgment, but a positive outlook on life gives you more energy.
Eating habits
Eating habits matter the most when you are trying to maintain stomach health. Your bad eating patterns might be the root cause of your declining stomach health. If you catch yourself eating junk food every day, or eating at weird times, it is upto you to bring a change to your eating habits. Firstly, you need to time your meals accordingly. Starving yourself for a long time and eating lots of calories in one go can lead to an upset stomach and stomach cramps.
Moreover, try balancing your meals. It should have equal amounts of protein, carbs, fats, and fiber. Eating more fiber is good for improved bowel movement. Add more greens and lean meat to your diet too. However, the way you eat matters too. Do not gulp your food down without chewing properly. If you do that, it takes a longer time to digest properly. So, make these changes in your eating habits and see rapid change!
Medical help
Now, if you have tried to incorporate all of the above changes, and you still get stomach problems, and it is getting painful every day, go see a doctor. Do not wait for your pain to magically disappear, and go talk to professional healthcare personnel about your problems and symptoms. Sometimes it is better to be safe than sorry. It might be safe for you to discover a big disease too late.
What to do after a meal for good digestion?
Have you ever felt full after a meal and wondered about what to do to reduce that feeling of uneasiness? Well, we are here to tell you how to do that. If you feel uncomfortable after every meal, your stomach is not in the best of health, and you should look into that. However, to ease the discomfort temporarily, here are some tips that you can follow;
Drink tea
Tea has been a natural remedy for stomach health for generations. Tea has calming properties, and what tea you drink will greatly affect your stomach health. If you drink regular, off-the-mill packaged tea, it will have little to no effect when it comes to calming your stomach. Try switching it up with herbal teas, which will relieve you from the immediate discomfort and calm your mind. Teas like chamomile tea, Jasmine tea, and white tea. A Pro tip is adding peppermint to your tea. Peppermint will give you a kick, bringing you out from the nauseous and sick feeling and making you feel refreshed.
Take a walk
If you remember correctly, our parents or elders always say not to lie down or fall asleep as soon as we are done with a meal. This is because it leads to cramps and excessive gas. So, do not fall asleep or lay down directly after eating. Take a walk, and breathe in some fresh air. It will help you digest food faster and also refresh your mood.
Apple cider vinegar
Apple cider vinegar is known for its gut-improving qualities. Drinking apple cider vinegar after a meal will help you digest your food faster and improve your bowel movement.
How to improve digestion in old age?
As you get older, your stomach’s ability to digest food faster decreases. Also, it cannot digest a lot of food properly as it used to before. So, as you get older, you need to eat clean food. And it would help if you learned portion control. You cannot eat anything and everything whenever you want to. That will lead to worsening stomach problems. So, keep your portions in control.
You can take the help of medications to keep your gut in good shape during your old age. Taking probiotics has become pretty normal nowadays. You can even opt for home remedies to maintain stomach health.
Final Thoughts
So, we have come to the end of this blog – Maintain stomach Health. I hope you have properly understood the importance of taking care of your stomach health. So, incorporate certain changes in your daily routine to see your body changing for the better! Soon, you will be your fittest version, and your stomach will thank you!