Struggling with Digestive Issues? Make sure you’re Supporting These 3 Things
If you're suffering with bloating, indigestion, acid reflux, gas, constipation, diarrhea, abdominal pain - you name it, really - it's REALLY important that you take a look at these three digestive functions - it could be that they’re contributing to your symptoms!
These days, when we think about gut health, it seems that the microbiome, and our gut bugs are all people wanna talk about. And while our microbiome is majorly, majorly important with regards to both our gut health, AND our overall health and well-being - there are really other important digestive functions that we need to pay attention to!
Today I'm going to talk about three key areas that are definitely worth looking at if you're struggling with digestive issues: stomach acid, enzymes, and bile. I'm going to cover what it looks like if you might be struggling in one (or all) of these areas, AND what you can do about it.
Let's go.
1. Stomach Acid
Stomach acid is a gastric juice that plays a role in some of the first stages in digestion, and is one of our first lines of defense. It's made by our stomach lining, and get's released when food enters our stomach. It creates a super acidic environment in the stomach, which helps to neutralize any harmful bacteria/microorganisms that we may ingest.
This helps us to avoid getting sick everytime we eat something that has bacteria on it that may not agree with us, Other gastric secretions, like pepsin, help to break down proteins that we eat - and intrinsic factor, help us to properly absorb B12 later down the tract.
How do you know if your stomach acid is too low? You might experience some/many/all of these symptoms:
GERD/acid reflux
B12 deficiency (which can lead to fatigue and low energy!! - if you aren't properly producing the "intrinsic factor" that was mentioned above ^, your body is going to have a tough time accessing B12, which often leads to energy issues)
Imbalances in the microbiome, like dysbiosis, that can contribute to symptoms like bloating, IBS, abdominal pain, etc. This can even ultimately lead to things like SIBO, and SIFO in the small intestine. This happens because there isn't enough stomach acid to successfully kill of any "bad bugs" that we ingest through food, and they can make their merry way down the tract, and stir shit up.
It can also cause feeling "heavy" after eating - or general discomfort and bloating, because your food isn't being broken down efficiently
There are even other symptoms like skin conditions, acne, and mood instability that are also linked to low stomach acid!
Here are a few things you can do, if any of that sounds like you:
Mind your stress! Stress (or being in our sympathetic nervous system) can lower levels of stomach acid production. This one is key.
If possible, avoid the use of antacids and PPIs. These stop acid production in the stomach, which I suppose speaks for itself in that it can lead to many of the above mentioned symptoms of low stomach acid, over time. If you struggle with acid reflux and tend to reach for a TUMS, try a couple table spoons of apple cider vinegar in a small glass of water.
Try digestive bitters, or apple cider vinegar, in a little water 20-30 minutes before a meal - this will help to stimulate gastric juice secretions - including stomach acid, enzymes + intrinsic factor. Digestive bitters are a tincture (usually an alcohol tincture), that contains extracts from bitter herbs (like chamomile, dandelion, gentian, etc.).
Try to eat a diet rich in nutrient dense, whole foods. It may be that a diet void in essential vitamins like B vitamins, or consuming too many refined foods, could impact how we produce stomach acid.
2. Bile
Bile is a substance that's made by the liver, and stored and concentrated in our gallbladder. It's main function is that it emulsifies fats; it breaks down the fat that we consume into smaller sizes pieces, so they can be then broken down into their usable parts: fatty acids. Bile also has other important roles in our digestion, like aiding in the absorption of our fat soluble vitamins (A D E + K), aid in the transportation of lipids, and may help in getting rid of certain waste products.
How do you know if your struggling with low bile output? You might experience some/many/all of these symptoms:
Constipation
Fatigue
Greasy, floating, foul smelling stool
Acid reflux, GERD
Poor liver function
Jaundice
Here are a few things you can do, if any of that ^^ sounds like you:
Make sure you're taking care of your stomach acid production (see above). If you don't have enough stomach acid to start the process, and produce an "acid trigger" (which tells the stomach to empty), then the gallbladder won't be triggered to release bile!
Take care of your liver. Bile is primarily produced here - so if your liver is suffering, and unable to produce adequate bile, we have an issue. Keep your liver healthy by eating lots of bitter foods, drinking bitter liver-loving teas (like milkthistle, dandelion), incorporate green herbs like cilantro and parsley, and go easy on the booze and coffee (sorry not sorry).
Digestive bitters and lemon water/apple cider vinegar can actually help here too! 20-30 minutes before a meal, they'll help to stimulate the release of bile when the time's right.
3. Digestive Enzymes
Digestive enzymes are made by the pancreas, small intestine, and the stomach lining (among other places), and play important roles in the breakdown of basically everything that we eat. There are specific digestive enzymes that help to break down proteins, fats, and carbohydrates.
There are even enzymes (cellulase), that comes from plants - and actually helps us to DIGEST certain fibers that we get from plants. Pretty freaking cool. These enzymes become denatured when we heat up our food (anything above 117F/47C) - which is why it's helpful to incorporate some fresh plant foods into your diet.
How do you know if your struggling with low digestive enzyme output? You might experience some/many/all of these symptoms:
Bloating (this can occur if food is not properly being broken down, which leaves it up-for-grabs for bag bugs in our gut to feast on them, causes fermentation in the process)
Food intolerances or sensitivities
Fatigue (this can occur if you aren't properly breaking down your food and absorbing enough nutrients from them!)
Food particles/food pieces in stool
Skin conditions (ie. acne, rosacea)
Here are a few things you can do, if any of that ^^ sounds like you:
Again, go back to your stomach acid and make sure that you're producing enough of the stuff! Likewise with bile, if there isn't enough stomach acid produced, and we don't get that "acid trigger", than the pancreas won't be triggered to release it's important substances: our digestive enzymes + bicarbonate.
Make sure you're getting enough nutrients to begin with. Enzymes are made from proteins, vitamins, and minerals - so make sure you're eating a variety of nutrient-dense, whole foods, to make sure you're getting enough of the building blocks for these guys.
Stress also plays a major role here - it seriously impacts our digestive functions. In a big big way. Do whatever works for you to manage, or actively reduce stressors. Your digestion will thank you for it.
You can buy digestive enzymes as a supplement - which can work wonders for someone who's experiencing digestive issues, BUT I always recommend speaking with a practitioner before you start taking any form of supplementation.
OK so to recap:
If you're struggling with digestive issues like bloating, indigestion, acid reflux, constipation, diarrhea, gas, abdominal pain, etc. - definitely take a look at these three things. Low stomach acid, low bile output, and low enzyme production could be some of the root causes as to why you're struggling with these digestive issues.
If you're struggling with digestive issues that you're READY to get RID of, and you'd like to take a look at how supporting these digestive functions can help ya, let's chat! You can book a free no-commitment discovery call to see if getting support on this might be a good option for you. Book your free call here.
Resources:
http://ramauniversityjournal.com/medical/pdf_june/16-26.pdf
https://www.jlr.org/content/50/10/1955.short
