This week's focus: A Healthier You: Gastrointestinal Health

Note: This page discusses diet and lifestyle changes that published research has shown may support digestive health. Talk to your healthcare provider to learn more about your options and before making changes to your everyday nutrition and self-care practices.

Overview

A healthy digestive system requires regular care and maintenance. Because it is such a complex system, a number of common conditions can occur at anytime, causing mild to severe gastrointestinal discomfort. Some of these conditions include indigestion and heartburn, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), constipation, and diarrhea. People may be born with certain sensitivities such as lactose intolerance, or they may develop over time.

The good news: you can take preventive measures to stop the discomfort before it starts. And when occasional symptoms such as gas, bloating, burning, and nausea do strike, safe and effective solutions are available to provide relief.

Top Tips for Managing Gastrointestinal Health

Heartburn & Indigestion

“Heartburn” refers to a burning feeling that can be caused by stomach acid regurgitating into the tube that connects the mouth to the stomach (the esophagus). “Indigestion” refers to any number of gastrointestinal complaints, which can include gas (belching, flatulence, or bloating) and upset stomach. To halt the heartburn heat and avoid fueling the flames of indigestion:

• Slow down at the table: Take time to eat slowly and chew your food thoroughly.
• Try lactase enzymes: If your symptoms seem to be brought on by milk products, try taking lactase digestive enzymes before eating those foods.
• Help digestion with pancreatic enzymes: Taking enzymes at each meal that provide 30,000 USP units (IU) of lipase and also include protease and amylase enzymes can improve digestion.
• Check for food sensitivities: Work with a specialist to see if certain foods make your symptoms worse.
• Get a checkup: See your healthcare provider to make sure your symptoms are not related to a medical problem.

Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease

Also known as GERD or acid reflux, this is a disorder in which the muscular ring, or sphincter, of the lower esophagus is weakened, allowing irritating stomach acids and foods to pass up into the esophageal tube and cause heartburn. Check with your doctor to find out if GERD may be causing that uncomfortable burning sensation, then care for the symptoms:

•  Chew your food well: Chewing breaks down food to easier-to-digest particle sizes. Chewing also stimulates the production of saliva, which contains natural compounds that protect the esophagus from the adverse effects of stomach acid.
• Kick unhealthy habits: Avoid smoking and excessive alcohol to ease irritation that could lead to cancer of the esophagus.
• Uncover the irritants: Experiment with your diet to find out what triggers the discomfort; high-fat and spicy foods, peppermint, spearmint, chocolate, and acidic beverages are all potential culprits.
• Think about your teeth: Acid reflux may cause highly corrosive stomach acids to travel up the esophagus to the mouth, causing tooth decay—so it’s important to take extra care cleaning your teeth while you find ways to control GERD symptoms.
• Schedule your meals: Avoid eating prior to exercise and right before bedtime to reduce symptoms.

Lactose Intolerance

Sour stomach? Could be lactose intolerance: the impaired ability to digest lactose, the naturally occurring sugar in milk. The enzyme lactase is needed to digest lactose, and a few children and many adults do not produce sufficient lactase to digest the milk sugar. (Only one-third of the population worldwide retains the ability to digest lactose into adulthood.)

In people with lactose intolerance, consuming foods containing lactose results in intestinal cramps, gas, and diarrhea. Take it easy on your stomach by learning more about this common condition:

• Try lactase: Take over-the-counter products containing lactase enzyme when consuming foods containing lactose.
• Check out calcium: Take a calcium supplement providing 500 to 1,000 mg per day regularly if you avoid dairy products.
• Choose dairy products wisely: Try using reduced-lactose milk or yogurt to see if you can tolerate them.

Constipation

Find comfort from constipation, an uncomfortable change in normal bowel habits characterized by a decrease in frequency and passage of hard stools. Although the approaches described here are often effective, people with constipation should be evaluated by a doctor to rule out potentially serious causes:

• Get more fiber and water in your diet: To increase stool bulk, include more vegetables, beans, bran, flaxseed, and whole grains in your diet—and don’t forget to drink more water when you increase fiber intake. Fiber supplements are also available in many forms, such as powders that may be taken with liquid or mixed in with foods, or supplements that may be chewed or swallowed.
•  Make time for a checkup: Constipation that starts suddenly should be evaluated by a healthcare professional to make sure no serious diseases are the cause.

Diarrhea

Normal bowel habits vary considerably from person to person depending on age, diet, cultural factors, and individual physiology. However, loose watery stools occurring three or more times in one day is generally considered abnormal. While persistent or severe cases may need special care, relief of common diarrhea discomfort just takes time and a few well-chosen remedies:

• Refuel and rehydrate: Replace lost fluids and replenish electrolytes by drinking sports drinks and other rehydration formulas, or eating vegetable soup.
• Forego offending foods and supplements: Limit your intake of fruit juice, fructose, sorbitol, lactose, and coffee, and avoid large amounts of vitamin C and magnesium supplements to prevent diarrhea that may be caused by poor absorption of these substances.
•  Go with probiotics: Try “beneficial bacteria” supplementation to help with recovery and prevent recurrences; take 500 mg of Saccharomyces boulardii one to four times a day, or 3 billion colony-forming units of probiotic bacteria one to three times a day.
•  Rely on lactase: If you think you may suffer from lactose intolerance, try a digestive enzyme–containing lactase when drinking or eating milk products.
•  Get a checkup: See your healthcare provider if diarrhea continues for more than a few days or if other abdominal symptoms exist.

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Disclaimer: The information in this page was prepared by Aisle7 for educational purposes only; it is not intended to replace the advice of a doctor. Health claims are based on scientific studies (human, animal, or in vitro), clinical experience, or traditional usage. The results reported may not necessarily occur in all individuals. Consult your doctor, practitioner, and/or pharmacist for any health problem and before using any supplements or before making any changes in prescribed medications, diet, or exercise habits. Aisle7, Walmart, and Pierce Promotions make no representations concerning the information contained in this article and disclaim any liability for such information and the decisions you make based on such information.