Love Your Gut

September to bring new digestive plans?

Wednesday, September 1st, 2010

For those of you who may have missed last week’s Gut Week (although we have had coverage across the country so where have you been?) you may have seen that we have somewhat been overindulging ourselves.

In fact it would seem that as a nation we are 23 million stone overweight – on average we all seem to be carrying an extra stone in weight, so it’s probably a little more than overindulging!

But of course the big problem is where we are carrying this excess weight, and with many of us confessing it’s around our middles, we could be in line for some additional problems – a higher risk of type 2 diabetes, heart disease and acid reflux and other digestive problems.

But now it seems that summer is on its way out, in fact the summer sun has appeared! And so with September arriving with a pleasant weathered bang, perhaps it’s time to take advantage and get our plans together?

How about taking some post work walks? Or even lunchtime walks? Taking a walk after a meal is good for the digestive system and will help to move towards taking more exercise.

Do you have a garden? How is it looking ahead of the Autumn and Winter frosts? Not only is it good to make sure you’re starting to weed or dig up some of the dead plants but it’s good exercise too! It might seem like a chore but it provides fresh air and exercise and of course – a beautiful garden! I proudly looked at my freshly weeded garden on my return from work yesterday and remembered the hard work but the pleasure to look at it now!

But if we can take just one of Dr Christian Jessen’s tips for getting fitter over the next season then lets think about reducing. It’s hard to give up some of our favourite foods completely and more often we’re doomed to fail, so why don’t we think about reducing instead? If what you like is high in fat or salt or sugar could we find a version that has less? What about some of the baked rather than fried varieties of crisps? Or limiting the amount of packs you have a week? Do you need bar snacks when you’re out socialising? Those lost calories will soon add up – in a positive way.

So whatever you’re going to reduce why not share it here and we can try and encourage each other?

Tags: acid reflux, digestion, Dr Christian Jessen, good digestion, heart disease, low fat
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Have you been listening to your gut?

Tuesday, August 10th, 2010

As we get closer to Gut Week (23-29th August), perhaps it’s time to focus in on some of the areas of the gut that we tend to ignore – or at least try to!

Everyone’s gut makes noises. Some of us may only have these on occasions, whereas others might be blighted by uncomfortable and irritating noises on a day to day basis. How do you deal with these? Well sometimes, you have to get to understand your body well enough to know that your gut ‘talking’ could be part of its way of showing you it’s working efficiently.

 Burping for instance is regarded as uncouth, but eructation, as it’s properly called, is simply air escaping from the stomach or oesophagus. If you think that with each mouthful of food or drink you take in air, and while most escapes through a breath or is absorbed in the blood, some needs to use other routes.

Technically burping three or four times after a meal is about normal – making a big show of it isn’t though! And what about when you hear a noise AFTER eating? Why on earth does that happen – I mean it’s not like you can be hungry! No, it’s actually caused when partly digested food entering the small intestine is processed by bacteria which help to break it down. A by product of that is gas and it can cause a gurgling or popping sound from the abdomen.

It can be fascinating understanding more about the workings of the digestive system, but more than that, the more we know, the more we can understand but also recognise the warning signs and the healthy signs. And of course if you’ve had some warning signs which are persistant then maybe it’s time to speak to your GP or practice nurse. And that’s what Gut Week is about. Understanding more about the digestive system, thinking about how to look after it and knowing when to take action. And if even a few of us take those steps, we could be a bit closer to better digestive health.

Tags: digestive system
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