Do you often suffer from heartburn, diarrhea, flatulence, constipation, abdominal pain or bloating? The stomach and intestines are part of our digestive tract and these can all be symptoms of stomach or intestinal discomfort.

Almost 1 in 4 Dutch people walk around with gastrointestinal or liver problems. This concerns more than 3.7 million people. Here we see that over 60% are women and 40% are men.[1] 

What is digestion?

Digestion is the process by which the body loosens, absorbs and converts nutrients from your food and drink into usable energy and building blocks. This total process from mouth to butt takes about 24 to 48 hours and involves numerous organs. Think of your mouth, esophagus, stomach, small intestine, liver, gallbladder, pancreas, colon, rectum and microbiome.

In practice, human digestion is not always without problems. This is not surprising because so many organs with different functions are involved. A small hitch already has consequences. The most common causes of poor digestion are chronic stress and an unhealthy diet with lots of processed, sugary and low-fiber foods.

If you want to get started on improving your digestion, you can already put these tips to work at home:

1. Chewing properly: digestion begins in the mouth. When we do not chew properly, it can cause digestive problems in the digestive tract.
2. Reduce the intake of sugars: sugars have a great impact on our body but especially on our intestines.
3. Eat whole foods rich in fiber: fiber makes you feel full and satiated but is also important for a healthy gut microbiome
4. Reduce stress: digestion occurs properly only when we are at rest. When stressed, we are still in fight and flight mode. When we start eating during stress, digestion cannot function optimally

5. Digestive enzymes:

Digestive enzymes are proteins released in the digestive system when you eat. The pancreas and small intestine play an important role in this process. The job of digestive enzymes is to break down food into usable nutrients for the body. The non-usable nutrients leave your body again through the stool. When this process stagnates, your body can no longer absorb important nutrients properly, resulting in a nutrient deficiency. Gastrointestinal problems can also occur.

 

For example, when your body does not produce enough lactase, it has trouble digesting lactose. This can cause symptoms such as abdominal bloating and flatulence. It can then be nice to use a lactase enzyme with every lactose-containing meal.

Our digestive supplement (link to supplement) contains a four enzyme:

1. Amylase converts carbohydrates to sugars
2. Protease converts proteins into amino acids
3. Lipase converts fats (lipids) into fatty acids and glycerol
4. Lactase is needed to digest lactose 

If you have been having gastrointestinal problems for a long time, it is important to look at the cause. This can be done through a colon consultation with microbiome research.

 

[1] https://www.rivm.nl/nieuws/bijna-kwart-nederlanders-kampt-met-klacht-of-aandoening-van-spijsverteringsstelsel)C