Seattle Health Blog

A good digestion is a matter of making simple changes in lifestyle and eating habits (better nutritional knowledge / dietetics). The reason is that the health of your digestive system depends on the food you eat (or do not eat), how you lead your life and your physical activity level. Healthy living and get enough physical exercise are essential to good digestive health and your overall well-being.

Here’s how you can work your digestive system optimally:

1. Reduce stress
Excessive stress can divert blood flow to your digestive system. The digestive system responds well to routine. The scheduling of tasks to your digestion can help you feel more in control. If you suffer from irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), stress can also stimulate the spasms in your colon.

2. Maintain a good body mass index (BMI)
People who are obese or overweight face an increased risk of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and cancer. The cardio-vascular (colloquially known as cardiovascular exercises) help to strengthen the abdominal muscles and reduce the sluggishness by stimulating the bowel muscles to push the digestive contents through your digestive system.
3. Quitting
Smoking affects the entire body, including the digestive system. It lowers the pressure at the junction between the stomach and esophagus, causing acid reflux into the esophagus can cause heartburn and other diseases. Smoking also aggravates peptic ulcers and inflammatory bowel disease. Smoking is associated with an increased risk of many cancers.

4. Limiting consumption of alcohol, caffeine and sugary drinks
These drinks can all affect your digestion and cause problems such as heartburn and constipation. They can aggravate conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome. Alcohol can cause inflammation of the stomach or esophagus lining, as well as symptoms of heartburn. Caffeine may make the stomach acid flow backwards (reflux) and heartburn triggers.