Fruit Juice

Fruit Juice Contains Vitamins, Minerals and Antioxidants but It lacks fibre and is loaded with sugar. Fresh orange juice, for example, contains Vitamin C and is a decent source of folate, potassium and Vitamin B1. It also contains antioxidants, some of which can increase the circulation of blood. But calorie for calorie, it is nutritionally poor compared to whole oranges and other plant foods like vegetables.

Fruit juice causes the stomach to bloat.

Fizzy Drinks

Fizzy or carbonated drinks release air as they move through the digestive system, causing a bloated stomach. This air goes down into the digestive system and the bubbles coming out of carbonated drinks continue to be produced, causing a build-up of air in the food breakdown pathways. These bubbles contain carbon dioxide, a gas that is released after it reaches your stomach. The added gas produced by stomach bacteria can also cause bloating.

Avoid fizzy drinks to stop the painful swelling.

Alcohol

Drinking alcohol can prevent your body from burning fat. This is because your body prioritizes the breakdown of alcohol over other sources of fuel, including stored fat. Regular drinking therefore contributes to an increase in body fat. The body cannot store alcohol like it can food. Once ingested it must be burnt immediately. It takes precedence over any foods we eat with it or even what we consume over the course of a day. Worse, given alcohol’s high energy density, what food we eat will count as surplus to our daily requirements. This surplus also gets turned into fat.

At the very least, alcohol makes losing weight five times harder. 

Out of season fruit and vegetables

According to scientists, researchers, and natural health experts, it is important to eat with the cycles of nature and only consume foods in season. Winter foods such as root vegetables are more yang with warming stews and soups. These are key to a healthy, winter diet and stabilize the liver, pancreas and stomach, building strength into the immune system. Summer foods are generally more yin with water-rich qualities. Cucumber’s high-water content will help you “stay as cool as a cucumber”. Fruits like watermelon, pears, apples, plums, berries and strawberries are more cooling and cleansing. They are available for a short season but kick the body’s lymphatic system into high gear helping to detoxify unwanted fats.

Eating a seasonal diet boosts healthy gut bacteria.

Too much flavour

While plenty of curry enthusiasts delight over blazing hot peppers, others find that spicy foods cause unpleasant reactions such as profuse sweating, a runny nose, diarrhoea, gas or tightness of the stomach and swelling.

Chillies, palm sugar, curry powder, coconut milk, oyster sauce, artificial sweeteners, high fructose corn syrup, monosodium glutamate (MSG / E621), trans fat, common food dyes, sodium sulphite (E221) and sodium nitrate all cause the stomach to bloat and should be had selectively and in balance.

Keep flavours simple – less is more.

Drinking cold water while eating

The digestive system breaks food down into small molecules that are absorbed into the bloodstream. The temperature of and the digestive organs is 37 degrees C. This temperature doesn't, under healthy conditions, change more than about 1 degree either side of normal. Drinking cold water before or after a meal lowers the temperature of your digestive system and solidifies fatty foods such as pizza, curries that use coconut cream (a saturated fat), cheese dishes and other dairy foods like butter or fatty meats such as bacon and salami.

Drink water at room temperature or lukewarm. 

One plate is enough

Overeating is probably the most common cause of bloating. Smaller portions are much healthier and satisfying. Serving your meal from the kitchen is better than putting all the food on the table which entices one to go back for seconds and overeat. No matter how healthy your foods are, quantity destroys quality.

Enjoy each mouthful as if it were your last.

Eating before bed

It usually seems like a good idea at the time but eating a quick snack before bed because your stomach is churning causes problems such as insomnia, heartburn, digestive difficulties and bathroom runs. One of the most important keys to your weight loss journey is not eating before bed. Eating before bed gives our body immediate fuel to be used as energy – the only problem is we don’t need energy at this time.

Sleeping is the perfect time to give our body a rest from food. 

Not chewing well enough

The longer a person takes to chew his or her food, the longer it will take to finish a meal. People who eat slower tend to eat less. Chewing your food well not only alerts your stomach that food is on the way in the first place – but it helps you to digest it faster and more effectively. Enzymes in the saliva help break down the food. Proper chewing helps with digestion, gas, bloating, constipation and aid in proper absorption of nutrients.

Chew your food about 30 times per mouthful till it is soft enough and becomes a homogenised mixture to pass through your stomach and intestines.

Make eating your food an experience, not an exercise.

Lack of core exercise

Any exercise that involves the use of your abdominal and back muscles in coordinated fashion counts as a core exercise such as all sports, sit-ups and twisting your torso with weights or a medicine ball all build your core strength.

There are several effects of exercise on the body that can positively alter digestive system functioning, such as increases in endorphins, human growth hormone (the feel good hormone) and improved efficiency of the metabolism. Exercise can even alleviate symptoms of digestive diseases and prevent constipation.

Twisting the torso massages your internal organs.

Get your body and your life on track today.
Call David on 0212 44 44 58