Gut Feelings — Why They Matter
You’ll likely find many contradictions when you search for health information. Sorting through it all can be an overwhelming process given that each body needs different things which aren’t always clearly addressed with mainstream advice. Yet every body, relies on the same basic foundations of good health.
Several things make up foundational health:
Nutrient absorption
Blood sugar balance for a continuous supply of energy
Utilization of healthy fats
Proper absorption of minerals
Hydration
These are all foundational structures that build a healthy body. A healthy gut is at the core of these foundations.
Getting to Your Best
If your body is stressed, your nervous system is unsettled and often in “fight or flight” mode. This doesn’t allow the digestive process to work properly.
Digestion depends on a state of calm. When you eat on the run, standing, while busy with work or in moments of distress, you’ve set yourself up for negative results. Many factors like acid, bacteria, enzymes, and pH balance all work brilliantly to help you with nutrient absorption, but your body has to be ready to receive them and hopefully they start off nutrient dense. Repeatedly falling short of that, your gut health suffers and your body is likely to become run down as a result.
Checking in with Yourself
That breakdown results in symptoms, the little things that come and go, those you may take for granted and brush off. They become so routine that eventually they stop irritating you.
Heartburn, gas, bloating, pain and constipation are some common symptoms that people experience. The thing is, in most cases they return repeatedly and never fully disappear. It’s easy to brush these ailments aside. We all do it in our busy lives.
So your body keeps repeating its message hoping you realize what it’s trying to say, “Something’s not right. Pay attention.”
Gut feelings are real. They take on many forms and if we learn to pay attention to them early on we can often prevent many chronic conditions that may arise later.
Unfortunately, most women wait until a symptom becomes unbearable or that one symptom has turned into two before seeking help. Sometimes we just need to stop and put our focus on ourselves.
Ask yourself the following questions:
Do I enjoy the food I eat and does my body feel good when I finish a meal ?
Do I feel energized when I wake up in the morning or in the middle of the day?
Am I mentally alert, clear thinking?
Am I managing my stress?
Do I fully resolve regular symptoms that occur? Or do they occur more frequently than I acknowledge?
If you answered yes to most of these, you are on the right track. If you answered no, to any of these, there are likely areas you need some extra support and should consider seeking help where needed. The support of a nutrition professional can make a world of difference in helping you find what’s best for you.
Supplementing for Support
Many people grab supplements hoping to improve in areas where their diet is not helping them. Yet they still don’t feel better and their immune system doesn’t seem any stronger for it.
The thing is, supplements are codependent. Your body needs to be able to absorb them and they often need to be taken at the right time, with the right cofactors.
Quality can vary greatly and what you think you’re getting may not be what you’re actually getting. You can throw a lot of money down the toilet by using poor quality supplements.
Supplements can be extremely valuable support but quality and form are key to absorption, as well as knowing how they work synergistically to get the most beneficial effect from them. In addition, if you take medication this may be affected by supplement intake, so it’s best to always get the help of your health and nutrition practitioner to find the most beneficial supplements for you.
Food First
Supplements aside, it’s unlikely that anyone has asked you about your kitchen? What’s in your cupboards, in your refrigerator? Are your shelves full of packaged, processed foods, refined sugars and refined, hydrogenated oils? When your gut sends you signals it’s time to take a closer look at what you’re eating. There are dozens of reasons your symptoms may arise. The first step is to acknowledge them. Sometimes it’s just a simple tweak that’s needed!
Good gut health needs to be supported by other healthy choices too. Healthy sleep habits help the gut heal, daily movement is vital and managing emotional, physical and chemical stressors enables the digestive process to function effectively. So what steps will you take today?
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Jordi Morwani-Mangnani, Panagiotis Giannos, Clara Belzer, Marian Beekman, P Eline Slagboom, Konstantinos Prokopidis Sleep, Volume 45, Issue 12, December 2022, zsac239, https://doi.org/10.1093/sleep/zsac239
