Fix Your Digestion Naturally

There are few things worse than tummy troubles. If your digestive system doesn’t work as it should, the result might be pain or discomfort right through to downright embarrassment at the gurgly noises and bad smells your body produces. And this can be doubly annoying if it is also exacerbating your symptoms of IBS.

It doesn’t have to be that way and, as a nutrition practitioner, I am always amazed by how long some of my clients have been trying to muddle through before they seek my help.

What scientists now call the ‘microbiome’ is a parallel universe of all kinds of different microorganisms running all through your digestive tract, that runs from your mouth to… well, the other end.

Most of these organisms are bacteria, and there are lots more of these than there are cells in your body - about ten times as many. The balance of the bacteria in your digestive system has implications for your health in general and not just your innards. In short, it’s important to have the right kinds of bacteria in the right places. It matters that the ratio of good to bad bacteria works – when you’re out of balance (there are more unfavourable bacteria and other microorganisms) nutritionists call this ‘dysbiosis’.

Dysbiosis can result in your digestive system becoming a more favourable environment for yeasts like candida or parasites. There are some places you don’t really want many bacteria, whether good or bad, like in the small intestine. Your body really should do a daily swoosh of all bacteria from the small intestine down to the colon (it's called the Migrating Motor Complex).

There are many reasons why this might happen – like having had food poisoning in the past – and the result is that the bacteria left behind feast on the food you’re eating, causing bloating, wind, feelings of nausea, diarrhoea and constipation (or a combination of the two). Essentially, all those things you might be linking to your irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

I’m going to be straight with you and say that the ideal situation is that you bring your digestive problems to me, and that we talk about getting to the bottom (excuse the pun) of exactly why your system isn’t working the way it should, and this usually involves some testing. When you’re ready to prioritise your health, you know where I am.

In the meantime, here are my top 5 tips to help to fix your digestion

1. Use your senses

The first step in the digestive process is often overlooked but it's a really important one. Known as the cephalic phase, it’s triggered when you see or smell food. You are literally whetting your appetite. When you start thinking about the lovely meal you are going to prepare, you are getting your digestive juices flowing. The enzymes in your saliva help you break down your food more easily so, when the time comes, your body is actually ready to start digesting food before you have even cut the first slice – never mind actually putting anything in your mouth.

It may sound an incredibly simple step – and it is – but these days we are often so busy that we don’t make the time to think about our food in this way. If you find you're always eating on the go, throwing a sandwich down your neck at your desk or having a TV dinner, this is a vital step you are missing out on. One trick is to be mindful and try and spend a few minutes thinking about your tasty lunch before you eat it to get the digestive juices going.

2. Chew Your Food

Your stomach does not have teeth! Chewing your food is the second phase of digestion, and it’s key when it comes to good gut health. With proper chewing, you are mechanically breaking down the food into smaller pieces, so that there’s a greater surface area and the digestive enzymes can get to work more easily, doing their job. And the bad news?

If you’re not chewing properly, it’s highly likely that you’re not digesting your food properly. And that means you won’t be absorbing vital nutrients either. Not chewing also means the food you eat takes much longer to break down and, as it hangs around in your digestive system, it can start to ferment, causing uncomfortable wind, gas and bloating. Don’t worry about chewing a certain number of times – that all depends on what you are eating and various other factors.

Instead try this test: chew your food enough so that if someone asked you to spit it out, they wouldn’t know what you had been eating. Another sign you need to chew more is if you start to see undigested food in your stools.

3. Balance Your Stomach Acid

Sales for heartburn tablets are skyrocketing because so many people wrongly assume that their digestive troubles are because of too much stomach acid. What nutritionists like me find more frequently in the clinic is the total opposite! Getting older, stress and some over-the-counter medications can make your stomach acid levels drop to the extent that you don’t produce enough to digest food sufficiently.

Why is this important? The stomach acid you produce not only kills any bacteria in the food you are eating, but it also breaks down the protein in your meal. If you’re not properly digesting the protein element in food, it can start to ferment, creating gases that force up the oesophagal sphincter muscle (a type of muscle flap) and what little stomach acid there is can escape. So that burning feeling, especially if accompanied by smelly gas, can be a sign your digestion isn’t working as well as it should be. 

One solution is to have a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar before each main meal. It’s important you choose apple cider vinegar with the ‘mother’ rather than one you can buy in the supermarket (that’s for your chips).

There are people who genuinely produce too much stomach acid and, if you try the apple cider vinegar trick and it seems to make things worse, you can neutralise the acid by taking a little bicarbonate of soda.

4. Take a digestive enzyme supplement

Digestive enzymes break down your food into nutrients so your body can absorb them. But as you age, you naturally produce fewer of these helpful enzymes. You can counteract this by increasing your intake of foods that are higher in them – eating pineapple or papaya before a meal can help.

If you aren’t a fan of these fruits, instead try a digestive enzyme capsule (available from health food shops), which will give your system a gentle boost to help it do its job properly.

5. Take time out

Not eating is almost as important for your health as eating. It’s important to space out your meals so the digestive system actually gets a chance to rest. This might require some self-discipline if you’re a frequent grazer.

Eating every 4-6 hours is a good benchmark to aim for and gives the body enough time to completely digest the previous meal and have a break before you put it to work again.

Of course, there will be days when your eating routine falls out of whack, but don’t beat yourself up. Just try and get back on track the following day.

And if you would like some help working out *why* you have these symptoms, why not get in touch? You can book a free call here.

The Link Between PCOS and IBS

PCOS is an endocrine (or hormonal) disorder, whereas IBS or Irritable Bowel Syndrome is a gastrointestinal disorder meaning it affects our gut health and digestion. It is generally given as a diagnosis of exclusion, where conditions like Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis and coeliac disease have been eliminated.  It is thought to affect 1 in 5 people in the UK. Symptoms include Typical IBS symptoms include abdominal pain, diarrhoea and/or constipation, bloating, wind, indigestion, mucous.

If you have PCOS, you may also experience symptoms of IBS. Here are potential reasons behind the association, according to research:

High levels of hormones

PCOS is marked by overly high levels of luteinising hormone (LH) and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), which are there to stimulate ovulation. Not only are excess levels of these hormones indicative of PCOS, but they can also lead to symptoms of IBS. Research shows that high levels of LH and FSH can cause slow transit of food in the digestive tract, leading to constipation.

Being female

Studies show that far more women suffer with IBS than men. Therefore, being a woman may increase your chance for having both conditions.

Although it isn’t entirely clear why IBS is more common in women, it’s thought to be related to sex hormones. Oestrogen and progesterone may slow down intestinal muscle contractions leading to constipation. Plus, hormone fluctuations during menstruation can lead to fast transit, which can cause diarrhoea. 

Inflammation

Inflammation is a common driver of PCOS symptoms – and it is a common driver of IBS.

Inflammation plays a role in the development of IBS. This includes inflammation of the mucosal gut lining, as well as neuroinflammation via the gut-brain axis The gut-brain axis is the neuronal system that connects your brain and gut.

Stress

Stress is another drive of PCOS, as we have seen. 

Strong emotions like stress, anxiety, and depression trigger chemicals in the brain that turn on pain signals in your gut that may cause your colon to react. Stress and anxiety may make the mind more aware of spasms in the colon. IBS may be triggered by the immune system, which is affected by stress.

Alterations to the gut microbiome

We have around 2kgs of bacteria in our large intestine called our gut microbiome. These bacteria help with our immune tolerance, create special chemicals to feed our gut lining, help make vitamins and many other important jobs. Research shows that women with PCOS have far less diverse microbiomes than women without PCOS. 

But why do we get IBS? As a syndrome it’s really an umbrella name for a variety of different digestive disruptions, such as: 

• Poor digestion - the right amount of stomach acid is needed to break down proteins, as well as for the absorption of minerals, such as iron or zinc. Enzymes helps us to break down fats, carbohydrates and proteins allowing them to be properly absorbed. So, any issues with stomach acid or enzyme production can cause symptoms. If our digestion is impaired for any reason, it can lead to bloating, wind, diarrhoea or feeling full when we’ve not actually eaten that much.
• Food sensitivities or intolerances – these are different from true food allergies which are life-threatening and can cause anaphylaxis. Food intolerances, such as lactose intolerance, is where we don’t produce enough of the correct enzyme to break down a type of food, which can lead to upset stomachs and inflammation. Food sensitivities are thought to be caused by an immune response generating symptoms such as stomach pain and irritation, joint pain, fatigue, and rashes.
• Small intestine bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) – normally very few bacteria live in the small intestine, so an overgrowth here can alter the shape and function of it. It can interfere with digestion of food and absorption of nutrients. SIBO is often characterised by bloating and distension, diarrhoea and/or constipation, belching, and nutrient deficiencies.
• Microbiome disruption or dysbiosis - Dysbiosis is an imbalance of the numbers of beneficial (‘good’) and pathogenic (‘bad’) bacteria in the large intestine which may cause discomfort, bloating and constipation and/or diarrhoea.  This is becoming more common due to overuse of antibiotics, stress, alcohol, and high sugar diets.

Working with a qualified health practitioner, like our team here at PCOS Clinics, can help you get to the root cause of your digestive discomfort. Fully trained practitioners can organise testing such as:

• Food intolerance and sensitivity testing.
• Comprehensive stool analysis for dysbiosis, candida or pancreatic enzyme sufficiency.
• Breath test for SIBO.

If you’re suffering from symptoms of IBS, why not get in touch? We can help you determine the root cause of what’s going on for you. Tackling your IBS may be one of the main steps to getting your PCOS symptoms under control, especially as IBS can be a major trigger for inflammation. Why not book a call?