mindful eating.

September 2023

Image: @bodyfwrd

Food is medicine and I am all about eating a balanced diet, but it's not always just what you eat that can impact your health. How we eat our meals can influence how our body absorbs and utilises nutrients, as well as how our digestive system functions.

Here are my top tips that can be easily implemented to help support healthy digestion and may help reduce any discomfort or bloating...

• Be mindful - take a few deep breaths before starting to eat to bring you into the present and notice the way the food smells and looks to help start the digestive process by producing digestive enzymes and stomach acid.

• Rest & digest - give your digestive system time to rest by limiting large meals too close to bed and spacing your meals out throughout the day rather than grazing all day.

• Stress less - Reducing stress can improve digestion as when we are in fight or flight mode our body will divert blood away from the digestive system, which can reduce digestive function and lead to discomfort. 

• Slow down - our mouth and teeth are the first stage of digestion, by slowing down and chewing your food thoroughly you can support the rest of the digestive system to properly digest your food.

• Stop eating when you are 3/4 full - listen to your body when it starts telling you it’s had enough, even when the food is delicious!

• Put your phone down - multitasking while eating can lead to rushing through meals, which can result in overeating or not chewing thoroughly making digestion difficult.

• Move after your meal - going for a short walk after meals can stimulate the rest and digest state, as well as assisting with the digestive process.

• Be aware - take notice of how certain foods make you feel - do they trigger digestive symptoms? Limiting these foods may help support reducing any inflammation in the digestive system.