7 Tips for Maintaining a Healthy Digestive System

All articles on this blog are written in collaboration and under the supervision of healthcare professionals from our gastroenterology center.

Do you experience heaviness, bloating, gurgling, flatulence, and other gastric disorders that disrupt your well-being? It’s high time to take care of your digestive system! Poor lifestyle choices can disrupt the proper functioning of the digestive system. Discover the top 7 tips from DDG Clinic to take care of your intestines!

Important! In our previous article, we explored in detail the functioning of the digestive system. If you haven’t read it yet, we encourage you to do so before continuing with this article to better understand its content.

Now, let’s focus on how to maintain a healthy digestive system. It’s clear that to promote regular bowel movements, it’s essential:

• to have a diet that promotes a healthier digestive system
• to consume foods beneficial for the intestinal flora, particularly those rich in fiber and probiotics
• to regularly cleanse the intestines

But that’s not all! There are numerous tips to follow to maintain a healthy digestive system and thus ensure good digestion.

1 – Eat regularly to maintain your digestive system

Eating meals and snacks throughout the day helps food to move through your digestive tract. Therefore, consuming at least three meals a day at regular intervals can aid in digestion. However, it’s important to adhere to certain rules during mealtime:

• be seated in a quiet setting
• allocate 20 to 30 minutes for each meal
• chew your food thoroughly before swallowing

Adhering to these guidelines allows the stomach to optimize enzyme secretion and thus more easily create chyme.

2 – Hydration, a fundamental element of digestion

It is essential to drink at least 1.5 liters of water daily. Indeed, staying well-hydrated helps the body to break down food more easily and the colon to function more effectively. Not to mention that if you increase your fiber intake, it is crucial to drink more water to avoid any bloating.

Thus, drinking whenever you feel thirsty is the simplest way to achieve this!

Contrary to popular belief, drinking during meals helps break down the food consumed, prevents dehydration, and increases the feeling of fullness.

If you find it difficult to meet this goal, you can also drink tea and herbal infusions (avoiding the addition of sugar). Many herbs are beneficial for digestion. This will allow you to take care of your digestive system by consuming more liquids and benefiting from the digestive properties of herbs in one go. Depending on your intestinal issues, you can choose the most suitable herbs that will help you:

• promote the expulsion of gas: carminative herbs like cumin, fennel, green anise, mint, etc.
• ease digestion: herbs that facilitate the secretion of bile include milk thistle, rosemary, turmeric, dandelion, etc.
• relieve nausea without vomiting: ginger
• prevent abdominal pain: peppermint is a powerful antispasmodic

Warning! Although these plants are natural, they may have contraindications. Therefore, it is essential to seek the advice of a healthcare professional before consuming any herbs.

3 – Do not hold back for a healthy digestive system

To avoid constipation, it is ideal to go to the bathroom as soon as the urge arises. Given that the colon reabsorbs water from the body, the longer you wait, the harder and potentially more painful the stools will become.

Moreover, holding back can lead to long-term demotivation of the internal sphincter, resulting in chronic constipation.

4 – Move to digest better

Beyond the benefits to body and mind, engaging in physical activity stimulates the digestion of food. Getting into the habit of walking for about ten minutes after a meal particularly contributes to the proper functioning of the digestive system.

Therefore, be active: take the stairs instead of the elevator, go for walks, ride a bike!

5 – Avoid Foods That Cause Stomach Aches

It’s not uncommon to consume food that causes digestive pain without even knowing it. Here is a non-exhaustive list of foods that can cause stomach aches:

• coffee
• alcohol
• certain spices
• wheat
• fried and fatty foods
• dairy products (especially if lactose intolerant)
• beans, broccoli, and cabbage, which can cause flatulence
• etc.

These foods are extremely harsh on the gastrointestinal mucosa (especially alcohol), even if you do not notice any symptoms. With continued consumption, the intestines become irritated and underlying issues emerge: acid reflux, abdominal pain, bloating, etc.

6 – Be Mindful of Air Intake

Swallowing air creates 90% of the gases in the digestive system! How can you swallow less air? Discover our best tips:

• avoid chewing gum and hard candies
• take your time eating, and be relaxed during meals
• prefer warm drinks over hot ones
• stop smoking
• drink from a glass: it may seem strange, but drinking with a straw or from a bottle (can) causes you to swallow more air

7 – Visit Your Doctor to Maintain Your Digestive System

If you regularly experience digestive issues such as:

• bloating
• flatulence
• diarrhea (also discover our list of foods to firm stools)
• constipation
• acid reflux
• blood in the stool
• etc.

It is essential to visit your doctor who will explain the right habits to maintain your digestive system. Following the consultation, they may refer you to a dietitian or a gastroenterology specialist. Indeed, the presence of these symptoms could indicate a more or less serious disease:

• celiac disease
• irritable bowel syndrome
• diverticular disease
• Crohn’s disease
• cancer
• etc.