Tummy troubles? Here’s 5 tips for healthy digestion.

The gut affects many important functions in your body including healthy digestion. In fact, it’ll probably surprise you the extent it’s linked to your weight, mood and overall wellbeing. It’s not named the body’s ‘second brain’ for nothing.

A ‘gut feeling’ isn’t just a metaphor. According to Scientific American, our brain and gut are connected by an extensive network of neurons and a nerve highway of chemicals and hormones that constantly provide feedback about how hungry we are, our stress levels, healthy digestion and much more.

The brain-gut connection is real. And, oh, do you feel it when you’re experiencing stomach woes. Digestive disturbances are frustrating, painful, and often ongoing. It’s hard to rule out what’s causing the bloat, gas, constipation or post-meal fatigue.

Eating carb-loading foods like bread and beans compromise your healthy digestion, but so can something as simple as swallowing too much air, while you’re eating. Switching to a meatless diet can also upset the stomach, as can too much dairy.

Bye-bye, bloat, when your lifestyle looks like this…

Lots of fibre

The structural portion of a plant is your source of fibre found in fruits, veggies, beans, and whole grains. Make sure you’re consuming at least 30 grams per day, especially if you’re transitioning to a new eating regime. Zinzino’s Zinobiotic+ is a tailored blend of 5 natural dietary fibres: digestion resistant starch from whole grains, inulin from chicory root, beta-glucan from oats, and fructo-oligosaccharide (FOS) also from chicory root and psyllium husk. Aim to include a fruit or vegetable with every meal, and always choose wholegrain options over white, refined carbohydrate foods.

Consume ‘good’ bacteria

Your digestive system is populated by thousands of strains of beneficial bacteria – to help you break down foods that are stubborn to normal digestion. Give your body access to all the nutrients that pass through, by keeping harmful bacteria at bay. Add ‘good’ bacteria into your diet, through yoghurt and fermented soy products, like tempeh. Zinobiotic+ can also assist to stimulate the growth of beneficial bacteria throughout your colon.

Drink plenty of water

Struggling with that after-dinner ‘pregnancy’ bloat? Always have your water bottle near you to aid in digestion. Watery fruits and vegetables also help this natural process, so look for opportunities to include these foods into your recipes (and snacks).

Exercise (and eat) regularly

Moving your body also helps get your digestive tract going, as exercise stimulates the muscles to contract. It’s also a great natural anti-stress (and we already know the flight or fight response harms the ‘second brain’). Keep your meals frequent as well, to avoid indigestion.

Eliminate troublesome foods for healthy digestion

The foods that create chaos in your stomach and compromise healthy digestion might surprise you. Often, they’re healthy by nutritional standards, but simply don’t ‘agree’ with you. This might include broccoli, beans, tofu, ‘fake’ meat and dairy. Take your time, rule out one food at a time and keep a meal diary, so you can track how your digestive system behaves.

Follow a clean, wholesome Mediterranean diet, supporting your body with nutritional supplements, like Zinobiotic+ and  Zinzino’s Xtend+. With a full range of 23 vitamins, trace elements, and a purified 1,3/1,6 beta-glucan for overall great health. Complemented by BalanceOil that harmonises it… like a beautiful in sync opera.

Get your body back in Balance.