November 2009

Food as Medicine for Digestion

by Patricia Kowal, Licensed Acupuncturist in Noosa

My teacher always taught us that to reach profound improvements in your health you are to pay attention to your dietary choices. Adding medicines and non-food supplements to your diet may not be necessary if you make healthy choices and learn to enjoy healthy foods. Improving your knowledge on these subjects is important for your overall vitality. For me this was a learning process of being mindful of the food I eat and how it makes me fee. This was a key part in helping me towards my path of using food as medicine.

More and more people are concerned with their gut health: bloating, gas, constipation, diarrhea, heartburn or nausea. Learning about what is right for you body can set you up for making more tailored choices for how your particular body reacts to food and drink.

If you have started down the path of healthy choices in the past with no avail, do not give up! Start again slowly and use these tips:

Find out which healthy foods you enjoy eating and incorporate them into your meals. Think about various colored veggies to get a diverse supply of vitamins and minerals in your diet.

Monitor the pace of your eating, notice if you are eating fast or slow.

Slow down when you eat. By eating slowly you will feel satisfied sooner than if you tend to eat quickly. By eating slowly you are able to feel the fullness in your stomach sooner then if you finish your meal in a few minutes.

Eat with less stress. After a busy day or during a busy day take a moment to yourself. Try a deep breath before eating to help the body feel calm before digesting food. Stress can cause digestive problems such as constipation, bloating and heartburn.

Pay attention to the way certain foods make you feel. Do they make you feel tired or do they make you feel pleasantly satisfied and energetic? The goal of eating meals is to provide us with the fuel we need to keep moving. Therefore our meals should give us energy, not tiredness. If you feel tired after eating perhaps you are eating too much and not recognizing when your body is starting to feel satisfied.

Drink room temperature water or hot water/tea with your meal. You stomach does not like cold; it makes it work harder in order to digest cold temperatures. It is a given in most restaurants to serve ice water with your meals. Cold or icy water tends to slow the digestive process making it harder to digest your meals. Your digestion prefers warmer fluids or water.. Once you start choosing warmer drinks with your meals you may never go back to the ice water after all!

Choose slightly steamed or sautéed vegetables over raw foods like salads. This is not to say you should not eat salads, but more frequently choosing foods that are already slightly warmed up makes it easier on your digestion. Try it! You may notice a difference.

Ginger is a common natural herb in Chinese herbal medicine to aid digestion by calming an upset stomach. Choose ginger tea for an after meal digestive aid or grate raw ginger into some hot water for a stronger effect. Add a small amount of honey for a sweet treat as dessert!

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Patricia Kowal is an AHPRA Licensed Acupuncturist, Chinese Herbal Practitioner in Noosa on the Sunshine Coast.

Photo: pixabay

Disclaimer: please follow up with your practitioner if you are unsure or are having questions about the information contained in this material.