Why are you bloating?
Let’s face it, nobody likes the bloat.
Though bloating every once in a while shouldn’t be a cause for alarm if you experience bloating on a regular basis and it’s starting to interfere with the quality of your life, then it’s time to investigate!
Bloating arises due to excess gas production in the intestines, issues with digestive peristalsis (movement of food), and fermentation of undigested foods.
So what are some common reasons you may find yourself needing to change into yoga or sweat pants after a meal?
Food reactions
There are several food reactions including allergies, intolerances, and sensitivities. Sensitivities and intolerances are much more common than allergies.
Common food intolerances (meaning you lack the enzyme to digest the food) include lactose, fructose, and gluten intolerance. For most of us we lose the ability to digest the sugar lactose in milk after around age two which is one of the reasons why many of us cannot tolerate dairy products. The first step in addressing whether you are reacting to a food or not is to start a food journal. This can help pinpoint which foods may be causing you discomfort. Apart from the obvious junk and processed foods which we shouldn’t be eating any way there are some common foods that many people find themselves reacting to.
I usually recommend eliminating the more allergenic foods such as gluten, eggs, dairy, corn, and soy for a month to see if this helps. Other foods that can commonly cause bloating in people include artificial sweeteners, carbonated beverages, cruciferous vegetables, beans and legumes, and alcohol however this will be individualized to you. Following an elimination diet with the assistance of a trained health care practitioner is advised in order to make the process go more smoothly and take less time.
Supplementation with digestive enzymes at meals in addition to a quality probiotic supplement can make a tremendous difference with your ability to tolerate foods and reduce unwanted symptoms.
Poor food hygiene
One of my favourite topics to talk about with my clients! It’s not just about what you eat, but how you eat. In order to optimally digest and break down our food the body needs to be in the parasympathetic state, aka the rest and digest or relaxed state. However, for most of us we are in a constant state of stress and use meal times as a side event instead of the main event.
This compromises our ability to secrete the appropriate digestive secretions such as stomach acid and enzymes which can result in poorly broken down foods that can putrefy and ferment in the digestive tract. Remember, your stomach doesn’t have teeth, that’s your mouth’s job so don’t forget to use it!
Our ancestors got it right when they assembled around a meal to enjoy the food and each other’s company. We can’t expect to feel good after a meal if we are doing it on the run, in front of the TV, scrolling on our electronics, or while working. We need to create a habit of making our meals sacred and sitting down to enjoy them fully. Your body can’t focus optimally on multiple things at once, especially during digestion. This means no electronics, just sit down with your food for at least 20 minutes and chew your food well. I promise you this will make a world of difference.
Chronic stress
As mentioned above, stress can put a real damper on your digestive system. This is because when the body is in a state of stress and focused on an outside threat it really does not care about digesting your burger. In fact, it will put that on pause while it can focus on keeping you alive. Because #priorities right?
And thank goodness our bodies are designed this way! We’d have a big problem if it were the other way around…
If you are constantly under stress it can promote chronic digestive issues and many other imbalances in the body.
So what can you do? The reality is that we can’t entirely eliminate stress from our lives but we can reduce it, we can delegate tasks, and we can support our bodies.
It’s important to take note of what is causing you stress and to tackle that first and foremost. This could be too many work tasks in a day, financial stress, relationship stress, but also stressors such as not eating enough, not eating nutritionally dense foods, not moving your body, imbalanced blood sugar, or lack of sleep.
Another big form of stress is mental. Perceived stress accounts for a majority of the stress experienced and this means we perceive our environment to be unsafe or we are thinking of stressful situations from our mind. There might not necessarily be a threat yet our minds are conjuring worse case scenarios and projecting our fears into the outside world. Taking note of our daily mental chatter is such an important step to start turning this around and create a less chaotic state. I love to recommend journaling to start to pay attention to your inner most thoughts and then work on re-wiring new ones that are more empowering and useful. As humans we can literally think ourselves sick, but the good news is we can also think ourselves into a positive and healthy state of being.
As stress is inevitable, it’s part of life, we must also take the time to support our physical, mental, and emotional bodies. This will help you to increase your resiliency under stress but also reduce the negative impacts that chronic stress can have on the body. What are ways that you can nourish your nervous system you may ask? Eating balanced and nourishing meals at regular intervals during the day, getting enough sleep (minimum 7 hours), moving your body in a way that feels good to you, making fun and joy a central part of your life, and connecting with loved ones.
There are also ways that you can promote the relaxed state and reduce stress which may include deep breathing, meditation, earthing, and walking. These are practices I would highly recommend incorporating if you do find yourself feeling overwhelmed or highly stressed out.
In addition there are natural and herbal supplements that can be quite useful to support your body going through stressful times and may include magnesium glycinate, chamomile, vitamin C, B vitamins, l-theanine, and adaptogens. Adaptogens are herbs that support your body in adapting to stress and becoming more resilient while reducing stress hormones.
Ashwagandha is one of my favorite adaptogens as it supports vitality and sustained energy, reduces stress-related damage caused by an overactive nervous system, increases stamina and physical performance helps maintain vitamin C levels and supports immune function and thyroid hormone production. As with any adaptogen, ashwagandha doesn’t just act on one area of the body, its effects are systemic and supportive of various systems to create hormonal balance.
Ashwagandha Alive is my go-to choice because it uses fermentation to enhance the formula and improve the efficacy of the herb. This particular ashwagandha supplement is fermented using a diverse species of micro-organisms from kefir and kombucha cultures. This activation delivers the complete synergy of the herb within a living food matrix for exceptional vitality and bio-availability, and you can feel the difference. You can receive an extra 15% off with my code Laurence15.
Dysbiosis
If there is an imbalance of bad to good bacteria we can experience symptoms such as bloating and gas but also much more. A healthy gut = a healthy body. You don’t necessarily need to be experiencing digestive symptoms to be having an unhealthy gut environment because the effects can become systemic.
Pathogens like yeast or parasites can become overgrown and cause gas and bloating among other symptoms like fatigue, cravings, skin conditions, brain fog, depression, and food sensitivities. These bugs feed on sugar and can cause fermentation, from the digestion of carbohydrates, which can then produce gases that trigger gas and bloating.
Many people do find probiotics can be helpful to break down food and re-establish a healthy balance of bacteria. I encourage my clients to include probiotic-rich foods such as sauerkraut and kimchi with their meals as well as prebiotic-rich foods that help to feed good bacteria which include unripe bananas, oats, leafy greens, artichoke, onions, garlic, asparagus, dandelion, carrots, and coconut meat.
If you don’t eat a lot of fiber-rich foods, always increase slowly as it can create gas and bloating if you add too much too soon to your diet.
I always recommend testing for things like SIBO, candida overgrowth, and parasites so you can get to the root of the problem and eliminate any bugs that may be causing problems. They are more common than you may think!
Often times supplementation will be needed while you work on correcting the root cause of your gut problems. Probiotics can help to rebalance the gut microbiota by re-establishing a healthy balance of beneficial microbes. The quality is important though! There are so many probiotic supplements on the market now it can be very daunting to even begin your search for a probiotic. I have taken many probiotics during my health journey and I can tell when it makes a difference. One of my favorites is Your Flora Terrain, as it is targeted to supporting the rebuilding of the digestive lining, however, their whole line of probiotics is fantastic. Not only have they made a difference in my symptoms but also enabled me to eat foods I normally might not tolerate so well. One of my favorite things about this company is that they focus on whole food sourcing that is certified organic and non-GMO verified so your body can better recognize, utilize, and assimilate what it is getting.
Low enzymes and low stomach acid
If we can’t break down our food, it will putrefy and ferment and provide fuel to the harmful gut bugs mentioned above. Undigested food particles can also lead to food sensitivities and create inflammation in the intestines. Stomach acid production is commonly too low, contrary to popular belief, and this can not only compromise our ability to break down protein but also trigger the rest of the digestive process to function sub-optimally.
So we really need to start with the basics. Taking a digestive enzyme can be very helpful. If you eat protein (especially animal protein) and feel bloated, feel like your food sits like a brick in your stomach, or experience heartburn, your stomach acid is probably low. I usually recommend starting with 1 tbsp of apple cider vinegar or a dropper of herbal bitters in some water before meals which can help stimulate stomach acid production. Though you may need to supplement with Betaine HCL if your levels are too low. Check with your practitioner before supplementing and avoid betaine HCL if you have or suspect ulcers.
Poor food combining
The food combining theory follows the reasoning that macronutrients (carbohydrates, fats, and proteins) are digested at different speeds, and also require the release of different digestive secretions and enzymes to be broken down.
So food combining can help ease this process and avoid fermentation, putrefying, and symptoms like gas and bloating or post food coma (you know what I mean!). When foods are not digested properly this can lead to toxin buildup, overgrowth of bad bacteria, and food sensitivities.
For example, carbohydrates require an alkaline environment for digestion and proteins require an acidic environment. So classic combos like a burger, sandwich, or pizza are no-nos.
Improper food combining can look like a traffic jam in your gut.
Though it can become quite complex, I usually recommend following some more basic food combining principles if you are struggling with digestion:
Keep fruit to the morning and try to keep fruit at the beginning of your meal versus the end (desserts are terrible for food combining!)
Avoid eating protein-rich foods with fat and sugar. Examples of these would look like BBQ meats with sugary sauces or baked treats with eggs!
Try to keep grains away from animal protein consumption (so grab a lettuce bun instead of the burger bun)
Top tips to reduce bloating
Sit down with your meals, eat slowly, and chew your food until mush.
Avoid refined carbohydrates, gluten, and dairy.
Take digestive enzymes with your meals.
Take 1-2 tbsps of apple cider vinegar in some water before meals.
Eat enzyme-rich foods such as raw fruits and veggies and fermented foods.
Avoid drinking lots of water with meals and instead sip small amounts and keep the gulping for between meals.
Opt for room temperature water or warm water instead of ice-cold water as this can dampen your digestive fire and make things more sluggish in the digestive process as well as promote uncomfortable feelings like bloating.
Skip the coffee in the morning and swap for warm lemon water, which will help rehydrate, flush toxins, and get the bowels moving.
Supplement with probiotics when necessary
Though this is not an extensive list as to why you may find yourself to be bloating, it’s a good place to start! If you need further support or assistance, check out my holistic programs right here.