Avoid the foods that HARM your digestive system and discover those that HEAL your digestion problems.
by Mike Geary, Certified Personal Trainer, Certified Nutrition Specialist
Author of best-sellers: The Truth About Six Pack Abs & The Top 101 Foods that FIGHT Aging
The feedback from most of my readers shows that digestion issues are one
of the topics that most people want to learn more about. Apparently,
even on the Dr Oz show, any episode about "poop problems" or digestion
end up being some of the most popular episodes.
So pay attention to this article if you have any bowel irregularity or digestion issues at all, whether it's constipation, diarrhea, indigestion, bloating, or just irregular bowel movements.
Over the last couple years, I've perfected a daily digestion-healing
plan that's worked wonders for me, as well as some of my friends and
clients. Quite literally, I've had some friends that either had chronic
"runny stools" or constipation, and this type of plan has totally fixed
their issues.
A side effect of the digestion-healing meal plans below is that most people start to lose body fat faster by eating this way too!
Keep in mind that I'm not "prescribing" anything here as I'm not a
doctor, and this is solely my observation on what's worked for me and
several friends of mine that have tried my plan, which is based on
science.
First step in healing digestion issues:
First, you need to identify if you have any food allergies,
intolerances, or sensitivities and try to minimize or completely avoid
those foods. For many people, wheat, soy, and conventional dairy are 3 issues that come up most frequently.
With that said, keep in mind that certain types of dairy, such as
grass-fed Kefir can actually be a very strong healer of digestion issues
due to the extremely powerful probiotics in kefir which help to fix
harmful bacterial imbalances in your gut. And kefir is also 99%
lactose-free since the friendly bacteria pre-digest almost all of the
lactose. So kefir ends up being one of the most digestible forms of
dairy.
Also, keep in mind that it's generally either the lactose in dairy or
the proteins in dairy that some people can be sensitive to. But many
people don't realize that they can still reap the health benefits of dairy fat, including the CLA, vitamin K2, and omega-3's of grass-fed butter and cream without anything more than traces of lactose or dairy protein.
If you don't currently know if you have a sensitivity to gluten, one
test that you can consider running on yourself is to completely avoid
any wheat-based foods (that means no bread, muffins, pasta, cereals,
crackers, etc) for 2-3 weeks and see if you notice a considerable
improvement in your digestion and your bowel movements.
Many people are quite pleased to find that their digestion problems
start to go away within the first 2 weeks of eliminating wheat from
their diet, as the constant inflammation that can be caused by gluten
(and other antinutrients found in wheat) in the digestive tract subsides
once they stop eating so much bread and cereal.
This should be obvious, but to be clear, you also need to avoid junk
foods that are loaded with sugar, trans fats, corn syrup, and chemical
additives too, as these all can cause digestion problems and other
health issues.
Ok, now that you've eliminated foods that might be causing inflammation
and other digestion problems, you need to start HEALING your digestive
system...
Second step - foods that HEAL the digestive system:
I've been amazed at the power of fermented foods (loaded with
probiotics) and how dramatic the improvement to digestion and bowel
movements can be, since many digestion and bowel issues are caused by
either a harmful bacterial imbalance in the gut and/or too many foods
that cause inflammation.
I've had at LEAST 6-8 friends of mine that started trying a similar food
plan that I lay out below and their chronic constipation, runny stools,
or indigestion completely cleared up within one week of starting this type of plan.
Keep in mind that the VARIETY of probiotic sources is what I consider to
be most important, as each type of food or source has different strains
of good bacteria that have different health benefits to your digestion
or immune system.
Even though I've always eaten healthy at least for the last 15 or so
years, I didn't focus more on probiotic intake, except intermittently,
until the last year. Over the last 8-12 months, I've focused a LOT more
on getting DAILY sources of probiotics instead of just occasional, and
the results have been phenomenal to my digestive system!
In previous years, I would only occasionally eat fermented veggies like
kimchi or other krauts, and I would occasionally drink kefir a couple
times per month. But that's changed, and my digestive system is LOVING
my new plan.
My personal daily plan for PERFECT digestion:
Morning (first thing)
- 1 serving of this superfoods-cocktail mixed with unsweet iced tea (7 Billion probiotics + 76 superfood ingredients all in a delicious drink)
- Organic coffee with grass-fed real cream* (good source of the healthy fat CLA, and vitamin K2 for heart health)
Late morning
- 3 eggs (over-easy is my favorite, plus slightly healthier than scrambled since scrambling can oxidize some of the cholesterol)
- Chicken, turkey, or bison sausage
- Half an avocado
- Fermented veggies* (a nice pile of them)
- tea (green, white, or oolong) with tiny bit of raw honey
- 1 serving of ProX10 microencapsulated probiotics (protects the probiotics through the stomach to the intestines -- the most powerful probiotic supplement I've found)
I've noticed that some people that don't like the taste of typical fermented cabbage dishes end up really liking the fermented carrots or beets instead. TMI alert: Several friends have told me that their years of poop problems completely cleared up after only 1 week or so of including fermented veggies each day with their meals as well as Kefir.
Afternoon snack
- 1 cup plain or greek full-fat Kefir (grass-fed) with added 1 tbsp chia seeds, 1-2 tsp of real maple syrup, and 1/2 tsp of vanilla (if you don't like the tangy taste of plain kefir, try it the way I make it here and I'm pretty sure you'll LOVE it!)
Note that according to their website, Lifeway brand kefir is made from 100% grass-fed dairy in all of their products even though they don't include "grass-fed" or "pasture-raised" on the label.
Dinner
- Some sort of meat - grass-fed steaks, chicken, or wild fish typically
- Some form of steamed veggies or vegetable side dish
- Fresh greens salad with real homemade olive oil dressing
Late night snack
- Handful of nuts (pistachios, almonds, or pecans are my favorite, and loaded with nutrition) and a small square or two of extra dark chocolate
- 1 cup of caffeine-free tea such as chamomile, rooibos, mint, or tulsi tea (each have their own unique antioxidants)
- 2nd daily serving of ProX10 microencapsulated probiotics
Once or twice a week, I'll also grab a Kombucha tea (a fermented probiotic tea) if I'm out and about, which is another good source of probiotics, although not as powerful as the others I listed in the above plan.
There you have it! Again, this is NOT a prescription for any health condition... this is solely my personal digestion-healing plan that I've used with great success and that many of my friends and clients have used to fully HEAL many of their digestion and bowel problems.
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