World Digestive Health Day 2024 is on the 29th of May. This year the theme is about deciding to make your digestive health a priority. Good digestive health brings many benefits beyond good gut health – so getting this right acts as a springboard to wider good health.
Digestion is perhaps one of the health topics that doesn’t get the attention it deserves. But, according to the The World Gastroenterology Organisation (WGO), one-third of the world’s population has some form of digestive symptoms, most common being bloating and constipation.
This article covers the benefits of improving digestive health as well as tips on how to change it for the better.
The benefits of having good digestive health
Having a good, healthy digestive system means that we are able to absorb nutrients effectively and at optimal amounts. Mental health can be influenced by poor gut health, this is because serotonin, that carries messages between nerve cells in the and throughout the body, is made in the gut. Cultivating your gut health can raise your serotonin levels and boost your moods.
Serotonin plays a key role in such body functions as mood, sleep, digestion, nausea, wound healing, bone health and blood clotting. When serotonin levels are normal you will feel happier, calmer, more focused, less anxious and more emotionally stable. However, having poor gut health could trigger depression and affect your memory.
And, according to the NHS, a diet rich in fibre can help digestion and prevent constipation. To avoid problems such as constipation, heartburn and symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), it’s important to eat the right foods.
Lifestyle and good digestive health
A simple way of helping to improve your gut health is to start making lifestyle changes as your lifestyle can affect your gut health. The changes you need to make for good digestive health go beyond diet – and include:
- Doing physical activity
- Staying hydrated
- Sleeping well
- Managing stress levels
And here’s how to male some of these lifestyle and diet changes:
- Stop smoking. Smoking loosens the muscles in your stomach leading to acid reflux which can cause or aggravate ulcers and other digestive issues
- Don’t rush your food, making sure to chew slowly
- Drink plenty of water. Try to avoid fizzy and caffeinated drinks as they can aggravate many digestive issues
- Try not to skip meals and instead eat regularly
- Try to eat smaller meals, so instead of three main meals instead have 4-5 smaller meals that can be more easily digested in your stomach
- Losing weight can relieve some digestive issues such as heartburn and acid reflux due to the extra weight pressing down on your stomach
Diet and food tips
Let’s get a little more focused on the actions and habits needed to deliver good digestive health.
Eat more fibre: To have good digestive health you should have 30g of fibre every day, there are many sources of fibre that help to fuel the probiotics in your gut such as: Wholemeal bread, brown rice and pasta, fruit and vegetables, beans, oats and lentils. For further details on the dietary properties of fibre, please see our article ‘Eating well – with pulses and other vegetarian and vegan options’.
Avoid fatty and processed foods: Such as burgers and fried food. These foods are harder to digest, instead try to eat lean meat and fish, drink skimmed or semi skimmed milk and grill your food as a healthier way of cooking.
Limit your alcohol: Binge drinking can aggravate other digestive disorders as well as increasing the acidity in your stomach. Binge drinking in men is considered 8 units or more in one sitting and for women it is 6 units or more.
Consume probiotics: These are gut friendly bacteria that are found in miso, live yoghourt, kimchi and fermented foods. Probiotic supplements are good but consuming them is a better way of providing a greater source of nutrients.
Read more on diet and habits for good digestive health with this NHS guide ‘Good foods to help your digestion’.
Avoiding bad food habits in the workplace
Employers have an opportunity to influence good digestive health in the workplace by encouraging a healthier approach to processed foods. Healthy eating can be challenging when working, especially when on the go. With frequent travel, long hours behind a wheel and shift work we often end up reaching for processed foods including snacks and ready meals – neither of which are the basis for a healthy diet.
For more information on how to both reduce consumption of processed foods while still realising that it’s almost impossible to avoid them completely, please see our article ‘A healthier approach to processed foods at work’.
In conclusion
The wrong kinds of diet can lead to digestive health problems such as constipation, heartburn and symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), so it’s important to eat the right foods. What’s more, good diet boosts positive mental health. Put together, the benefits of good digestive health can make a major contribution to wider workforce health with the productivity benefits this brings.
Get our guide
We have a newly published guide on Digestive Health available to subscribers to our wellbeing subscription service. If you are not signed up to this service and would like to find out more, please contact us on wellbeing@cordel.247developments.com
