Stomach cramps. Diarrhea. Constipation. We’ve all suffered from poor digestion at some point in our life. When those digestive complaints become regular or painful, it’s time to review your lifestyle and diet and see what changes you can make.

We’ve pulled together 10 tips for easier digestion to help you and your gut lead a healthy and happy life.

Stomach Cramps and Gas: Causes

Some foods naturally cause more gas, like beans. If you don’t let your gas out regularly, that can lead to pain in your gut as it builds up. Let it go! Of course, there are other causes of digestive discomfort, too.

• Irritable Bowel Syndrome or IBS affects around 15% of the population
• Food Allergies and Intolerances Can Lead to Increased Gas or Pain
• Viruses or Some Bacteria Can Cause Stomach Upset or Gastroenteritis

If pain or discomfort continues for a long time or gets worse, always see a doctor. You should see a doctor immediately if you notice blood in your stool, your stools turn black, or vomiting/diarrhea becomes persistent. Also, seek urgent medical advice for unexplained weight loss, chest pains, or feeling faint.

How to Get Rid of Stomach Gas

Some gas is natural, but if you are excessively flatulent, some small changes to your lifestyle might help.

• Try Eating Little and Often Instead of Large Meals
• Take a Note of What Foods You’ve Eaten Before You Get Stomach Gas or Cramps
• Try Eliminating These and See If It Helps
• Try Cutting Out Processed Foods
• Cut Out Candy and Gum

Excessive gas can be linked to IBS, so if gassiness continues despite adjusting your food or lifestyle, speak to a doctor.

Can I Learn How to Digest Faster?

Digestion is more about quality than speed. Of course, you don’t want food stuck in your body for too long, so efficient digestion is important. But artificially speeding up your digestion won’t have noticeable health benefits.

Proper digestion should be a regular flow of food in and out of the body, with minimal discomfort and plenty of nutrition absorbed by your body in the process.

How to Improve Digestion: 10 Tips for Digesting More Easily

Improving your digestion and boosting your gut health can be easy with our 10 top tips for digestion.

Eat Easily Digested Foods

Some foods are simply easier to digest than others. This is sometimes because the proteins or carbs in the food have already been broken down slightly. For example, toasting bread breaks down the carbohydrates, making them easier to digest. Other examples of easy to digest foods include:

• Bananas
• Applesauce
• Eggs
• Sweet potatoes
• Gelatin

Eat Helpful Foods for Gut Health

Are there such things as gut-healing foods? Sort of. Your gut digests food with the aid of bacteria. There is up to 4lb in every single person’s digestive system. Those bacteria thrive when you feed them right.

Good gut health foods include:

• Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Fresh Fruit
• Fresh Vegetables
• Nuts
• Brown Rice or Whole-Wheat Pasta

Eat Fiber-Rich Foods

“Good” gut bacteria love fiber. As the bacteria break fiber down, they produce cells that boost the colon and the immune system’s function. Whole grains, high fiber cereals, beans, lentils, and chickpeas are all great additions to your diet to increase your fiber intake.

Eat Leafy Greens

As well as being rich in nutrients and fiber, leafy greens like kale and spinach may boost the growth of healthy gut bacteria.

Drink Plenty of Water

Whatever changes you make to your diet, be sure to stay hydrated to avoid constipation and bloating.

Make Diet Changes Small and Regular

Don’t change your whole diet at once. Your gut will rebel as it’s not used to the influx of fiber and good stuff. This can leave you feeling very bloated and even give you an upset stomach. Make small, regular changes to include more gut-healthy food to allow your gut bacteria to respond and adjust gradually.

Probiotics

Live yogurt and some fermented foods contain probiotics. These are bacteria that can supplement the bacteria in your gut and aid with digestion. Some yogurts and other dairy products have probiotics added for additional potential health benefits.

Only Take Antibiotics When You Need Them

Many people still believe that antibiotics will cure colds and flu viruses, so stockpile them and take them every time they feel ill. This is bad news for your gut. Only take antibiotics when told to by a doctor because the nasty side effect of antibiotics is that they kill all bacteria, even the good ones, in your gut. That’s why you can feel nauseous, bloated, or even have diarrhea after a course of antibiotics.

Avoid Sweeteners

Foods with sweeteners can cause stomach upsets in some people. Studies have shown that this could be due to certain sweeteners encouraging the growth of harmful gut bacteria.

Digestive Aid Supplements

Digest Aid from Revive uses natural enzymes to help you deal with fat, carbohydrate, protein, and carbohydrate more easily. Your body uses enzymes to break food down, so supplementing those enzymes can help you:

• Absorb More Nutrients
• Produce More Enzymes Naturally
• Achieve a Balance of Healthy Gut Bacteria

You can take one of these capsules every day to help maintain good gut health. Some users may even find that supplementing their digestive enzymes helps to improve existing digestive problems.

Takeaway

Digestion is about breaking your food down for easy passage out of the body after absorbing plenty of nutrients. Avoid sweeteners and processed food, eat easily digested foods, and think about supplements that could boost the natural flora in your gut.

The information being presented in this blog is intended to be used as educational or resource information only. It is not intended to be a substitute for medical advice from your healthcare provider. This content should not be used for the diagnosis or treatment of any medical condition. If you have any questions or concerns about your health, please contact your healthcare provider. You should call 911 for all medical emergencies. Revive MD is not liable for any advice or information provided on this blog, which advice or information is provided on an “as-is” basis, and assumes no liability for diagnosis, treatment, decisions, or actions made in reliance upon any advice or information contained on this blog. No warranties, express or implied, are made on the information that is provided.