7 daily habits for a healthy gut

Healthy habits from eating, living, and daily exercise directly affect intestinal health, helping to digest better.

According to Dr. Hoang Dinh Thanh (Endoscopy and Digestive Endoscopy Center, Tam Anh General Hospital, Ho Chi Minh City), a healthy, smoothly functioning digestive system helps the body absorb nutrients easily. This is the leading factor that determines the health, immunity of the body, and disease prevention. The health of the digestive system is formed from daily eating, exercise, and living habits. Ways to improve intestinal health can come from the simple, easy-to-implement habits below.

Regular exercise: Adults should maintain physical activity for 30-60 minutes a day, 5 times a week with a suitable sport . Exercise improves muscle flexibility, strengthens the immune system, increases blood circulation, and improves mental health. Regular, moderate physical activity also helps the intestines function more healthily, preventing digestive problems.

Exercise will move the large intestine, increase intestinal contractions, promote food digestion, improve constipation, and control irritable bowel symptoms. Good exercises for intestinal health are yoga, brisk walking, cycling... You should exercise before eating or at least 2 hours after eating to limit the risk of reflux and choose appropriate exercises that are within your strength.

Exercise increases intestinal contractions, reducing symptoms of irritable bowel. Photo: Freepik

Eat lots of fiber: Fiber is abundant in vegetables, fruits, whole grains, beans, etc. Doctor Thanh recommends that the amount of fiber needed per day for an adult is 25 grams. When entering the intestine, fiber will absorb a lot of water, increase the mass of stool and stimulate intestinal peristalsis to expel stool. Thanks to that, it can help prevent and support the treatment of digestive problems such as constipation, hemorrhoids, irritable bowel syndrome.

Eat slowly and chew thoroughly: Chewing food sends a signal to the digestive tract that it is receiving food. Chewing food thoroughly helps reduce stress on the stomach. Because when chewing, the body secretes enzymes to digest food, activating the body to produce hydrochloric acid in the stomach, helping to digest better by adjusting the pH, increasing acid to support food breakdown. If you eat quickly, the body does not secrete enough digestive enzymes, causing symptoms of bloating, indigestion or constipation.

Doctor Thanh said that depending on the type of food, the level of chewing is different, on average food should be chewed 30-40 times before swallowing. You should chew for a long time (maybe 40 times) when eating beef, goat...; soft fruits like watermelon, ripe papaya... can be chewed about 10 times is enough.

Eat on time and divide into many meals: Eating at a fixed time for main meals and snacks helps the digestive system work more effectively. In addition, you should divide your meals into many small meals so that the intestines do not have to work too much at certain times of the day. Adding snacks and mid-day meals helps avoid overloading the digestive tract.

Choose lean meats, increase healthy fats: Protein is an essential part of a healthy diet. However, eating fatty meats can lead to indigestion, eating a lot of saturated fat will tend to slow down the digestion process. Therefore, choose lean meats such as skinless poultry. Increasing the intake of healthy fats (unsaturated fats) from sea fish, avocados, nuts... will be very good for intestinal health. Because many studies show that omega-3 can reduce the risk of developing inflammatory bowel disease.

Control stress, limit stress: Frequent nervous tension will greatly affect the digestive system. Doctor Thanh said that the brain and intestines are closely connected through the central nervous system. When stressed, hormones and neurotransmitters are released into the digestive tract, causing vasoconstriction and reducing blood flow to organs.

Stress also causes poor intestinal motility, increases acid secretion in the stomach, and increases the risk of ulcers. Stress can also disrupt the balance of bacteria in the intestines and reduce antibody production, affecting digestive health. Therefore, you need to control stress by balancing work and rest time, taking time to relax such as reading books, watching movies, meditating, practicing yoga, writing a diary...

Reading books helps relax the mind and reduce stress. Photo: Freepik

Drink or eat probiotics: Probiotics, which increase the number of good bacteria in the gut, such as yogurt, kefir, fresh sauerkraut, and supplements, all provide good bacteria to help keep the body healthy. Probiotic supplements also help improve nutrient absorption, the immune system, and help treat irritable bowel syndrome.

In addition to the above habits, Dr. Dinh Thanh also noted that people need to drink enough water every day (2-2.5 liters a day), limit alcohol and caffeine, and quit smoking because these substances stimulate digestion, easily causing constipation and stomach ulcers. When there are unusual signs in the digestive tract that occur frequently, you should see a doctor for timely diagnosis and treatment and to prevent the disease from progressing.

Quyen Phan

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