After many years of personal and clinical experience, I have developed the following 11
tips to help your digestion. Optimal digestion is vital for nutrient absorption, immune
system function and elimination of waste. Digestive function has also been linked with
behaviour, mood and headaches. All of these tips are based on a mixture of scientific
research and ancient wisdom combined with my interpretation and experimentation of
what is practical, easy and available to us. In some cases, I have listed specific products
based on the success I have experienced.
1. Abdominal Breathing
Lie flat on your back. Place one hand below your belly button and one hand above. As you
breathe in, push both hands out. As you breathe out, let your abdomen fully relax. Ideal to do
when you go to bed. Try do 5 to 10 breathes every night.
This helps turn on your parasympathetic nervous system which helps which controls your “rest and
digest” mechanisms and hormones. It also massages the intestines and other abdominal organs,
releasing tension in the viscera or covering around the organs.
2. Revive Bath Salts
The good old bath! Have a bath or a foot soak using the “revive” bath salts from Embody Spa.
Soak in a warm bath for at least 20 minutes. Once per week or once per day, whatever you can fit
in!
Balneotherapy is an ancient healing modality which assists in transdermal absorption of minerals
(through the skin) and has a very calming effect on our nervous system, which aids in relaxation.
Hence this assists with our digestion. The revive bath salts are a blend of clay, herbs and oils that
target the digestive system.
3. Heat
Lay with a heat pack or hot water bottle on your belly for 20 to 30 minutes. This is especially
helpful at bedtime or after your night time meal.
Heat assists with increasing circulation to a specific area and to calm the nervous system. This will
assist with allowing your body to focus on digesting, relaxing the abdomen and allowing a
balancing of the autonomic nervous system.
4. Chew your food
Digestion begins in your mouth. So you have to reprogram yourself to chew your food before
swallowing. It may help to count how many times you chew each mouthful. Try to count to 20 or
30 each mouthful.
Mastication or chewing is the process by which food is crushed and ground by the teeth and is the
very first step in effective digestion of food and significantly helps the absorption of nutrients from
food. It increases the surface area of foods to allow. It has also been suggested in research that
chewing your food more helps to decrease the amount of “hunger” hormones that are produced.
5. Herbal Tea
Herbal teas offer a great way to ingest herbs that assist with digestion. I recommend Diges-Tea
from Healing Concepts as it actually tastes quite nice. Make a pot of tea and keep it on your desk
to sip throughout the day.
Diges-Tea has a blend of digestive herbs including Alfalfa, Angelica, Blue mallow flowers,
Chamomile, Lemon Balm, Liquorice, Marshmallow leaf, Peppermint and Yarrow.
6. Lemon Juice in warm water
Squeeze the juice of half a lemon in warm water and drink in the morning, maybe 20 minutes
before eating, or before you go out and exercise.
The lemon juice will kick start your digestive fire and by drinking water will assist the detoxification
and elimination systems of your body.
7. Mindful Eating
When you eat, eat! Pay attention to what you are eating and do nothing else. Don’t read or watch
TV at the same time. This will change the way your body digests food, it will slow down your
eating process and will help you control how much you are eating.
8. Low HI
Go for foods that have low HI. Low HUMAN INTERVENTION! The closer it is to its original form
the better. Foods come from nature in a way that we can easily digest and absorb, with a complex
blend of digestive enzymes, vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates, proteins, fats and fibre.
Try to avoid foods that have added chemicals, preservative and sugar. These components destroy
the normal gut flora.
9. Drink more water
Water is essential for our bodies and assists our bowels to eliminate waste products. Increasing
your water intake can sometimes be a simple solution to constipation.
10. Self massage
Lie on your back and gently massage your abdomen in a clockwise direction, ie. From the right
side of your lower belly, up the right side, across the top and then down the left side. This will
assist in the normal motility of the gut and will also assist in relaxing any tension in the abdomen.
You can use a relaxing aromatherapy oil to help, however, avoid any massage oils or creams that
have chemicals in them. An easy blend is some good quality olive oil or almond oil from the pantry
combined with a few drops of lavender oil.
11. Soak your grains
Traditional wisdom tells us to soak our grains. Grains like oats, buckwheat, rice can be soaked
overnight and cooked in a porridge for breakfast. Soaking “pre-digests” the grains, allowing the
nutrients to be more easily assimilated and metabolised. Soaking also helps to neutralises phytic
acid which can block the absorption of nutrients.
For further detailed information specific to you or one on one consultations, contact me on 0415 998030 or
[email protected]. This document is not intended to replace medical diagnosis or treatment.