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Taste for Life Magazine, Elisabeth Hsu-LeBlanc August 2009

The gastrointestinal (GI) tract is an engineering marvel. “By far, the most energy you expend in your life is digesting the food that you eat,” says food educator Janie Quinn—and no wonder when you consider that your health depends on the proper breakdown and absorption of nutrients from everything you eat. On any given day, most people experience some form of GI symptoms. Almost half of all Americans report that digestive problems affect their daily lives. People with faulty digestion struggle with weight or suffer bad breath, bloating, constipation, diarrhea, gas, heartburn, joint pain, nausea, and skin problems. Because 70 percent of the immune system is located in or around the digestive tract, proper digestion is critical to whole-body wellness.

IN THE GI TRACT
The salivary glands located beneath the tongue often start to work as soon as you see, smell, or imagine what you’re going to eat. When your teeth crush food into small pieces, the digestive enzymes found in saliva further this breakdown. As you swallow, your tongue pushes food into the esophagus, a 10-inch stretchy pipe that involuntarily moves what you’ve ingested into your stomach.
   
When empty, the stomach holds only one-fifth of a cup of fluid, but full, it can expand to hold over eight cups. Its stretchy wall is lined with cells that make digestive fluids that continue breaking down food and with other cells that begin to absorb nutrients. Mucus coats the thick lining of the stomach wall to protect it from acid that softens food and kills harmful bacteria.
   
The stomach releases its contents one teaspoon at a time into the small intestine where what you ingest continues its conversion into absorbable energy and nutrients. The amount of time this process takes depends on what you’ve eaten and the amount of fluid in the GI tract. (The more fluid, the faster the stomach empties—one reason most nutritionists suggest drinking between, but not with, meals.)
   
The 22-foot-long small intestine performs the bulk of digestion, taking one to four hours to continue food breakdown and absorption with the help of digestive enzymes and hormones. Bile from the gallbladder and liver enter the small intestine to emulsify fat and enhance nutrient absorption. From here nutrients are carried in the bloodstream to the liver for cleanup and storage before distribution throughout the body.
   
Undigested material (including fiber that helps move the digestive process along), unabsorbed nutrients, and large amounts of liquid move next into the body’s waste-processing plant, the 5-foot-long large intestine. The appendix, a small fingerlike pouch in the large intestine, appears to produce and protect beneficial bacteria. Substantial colonies of bacteria are needed to convert undigested waste into acids, gases, and micronutrients before this material leaves the body.

OPTIMIZE DIGESTION
The human body is programmed to run on authentic fuel. “Whenever possible, buy real food that is organically and sustainably grown,” advises Quinn. Organic produce has been found higher in antioxidants and other important nutrients and has fewer toxins for the body to eliminate.
   
Regularly select easy-to-digest foods: apricots, asparagus, avocados, bananas, beets, carrots, celery, chicken, fennel, fermented soy, fish, garlic, greens, kefir, leeks, mushrooms, peas, seaweeds, spinach, wild rice, yams, and yogurt. Sprouted grains are also easily absorbed.
   
Smaller, more frequent meals are easier to digest. Also, make mealtime relaxed. “Stress sends blood away from the stomach and digestive organs, reduces enzymes in the saliva, and literally shuts down
Digestion,” explains nutritionist Martie Whittekin, CCN. Chewing slowly produces more saliva, which helps protect the esophagus from acid damage and alerts the rest of the digestive system that food is on its way.
   
A healthy mouth is critical in digestive health. Not only are strong teeth important in breaking down food, but germs in dental plaque have also been linked to H. pylori, a cause of stomach ulcers.

COMBAT GI PROBLEMS
Two of the biggest assaults on digestive health are too little dietary fiber and too many refined foods, says nutrition researcher Angelica S. Vrablic, PhD. Food-borne diseases are the next greatest threat.
   
“Eat, drink, and be wary is my motto,” says nutritionist Ann Louise Gittleman, PhD, CNS. Pay attention to food safety, particularly in hot weather and when traveling to less developed countries. “You shouldn’t assume that water and food on a commercial airliner is always safe to consume,” adds Dr. Gittleman. “Those items may have originated in the country from which a flight takes off.”

Stomach acid, also critical to healthy digestion, declines with age, and indigestion in one form or another becomes more problematic as we grow older.

“What the body needs is the right balance of stomach acid],” says integrative physician Jonathan V. Wright, MD, “and especially in the right places” like the stomach, where it’s supposed to be.

Friendly bacteria in fermented foods like kefir and yogurt assist in production of digestive enzymes and stomach acid, help turn cancer causing toxins into more stable substances that can be eliminated from the body, and make vitamins (A, numerous Bs, and K) that are useful in digestion.
   
Sometimes the valve between the stomach and the esophagus doesn’t function properly and acid rises into the throat. A small number of individuals suffer from hiatal hernia, which interferes with normal valve functioning.

Whittekin believes that this type of hernia may be due to obesity, smoking, and/or stress, although poor diet, food sensitivities, and nutritional deficiencies can also play an indirect role.
   
An unhealthy body pH also causes digestive problems. “A normal pH of all tissues and fluids of the body (except the stomach) is slightly alkaline,” explains Tom Bohager, author of Everything You Need to Know About Enzymes.
   
Urine tests (using pH paper available in natural products stores) help determine whether the body has a proper pH balance, he adds. The optimal range is between 6 and 7. If urine tests average below 6, your body is becoming too acidic; if your average is above 7, your system is becoming too alkaline. Either way, diet (eating more ripe fruits and vegetables, beans and their sprouts) and lifestyle changes (avoiding alcohol and drinking more water) are advised.
   
Bloating, gas pains (either dull or sharp), and flatulence caused by fermentation (another way to break down food if stomach acid is insufficient) can also result from faulty digestion. These complaints may signal that we’re not absorbing the nutrients we need from what we eat, though certain foods (the cabbage family and beans) can be culprits. If you regularly notice abdominal pain and gas after consuming certain foods, food sensitivities or allergies to substances such as gluten may be issues.

SUPPORTIVE SUPPLEMENTS
If you suffer from indigestion, consider digestive enzymes. “A good multi-enzyme supplement is best taken directly after a meal,” suggests Dr. Vrablic, who recommends a combination of protease enzymes for protein digestion, amylase enzymes for carbohydrate digestion, and lipase enzymes for fat digestion.
           
Probiotics, or beneficial bacteria, counteract pathogens in what we eat and drink, help break down lactose, and assist the body in its natural production of digestive enzymes and stomach acid.
           
Friendly bacteria also produce vitamin K, which helps close the valve between the esophagus and the stomach, and probiotics even fight inflammation that leads to gastritis.

Aloe vera is useful for heartburn and other GI complaints. Garlic fights unwanted bacteria while aiding digestion. Catnip, chamomile, deglycyrrhiznated (DGL) licorice, fennel, fenugreek, papaya, and peppermint also support digestion.
   
A HOLISTIC APPROACH
It’s important to manage stress. The National Heartburn Alliance finds that  58 percent of heartburn sufferers identify “hectic lifestyles” as a contributing factor. Stress is likely to trigger factors—such as drinking alcohol, eating too fast, or choosing the wrong foods, and smoking—that contribute to digestive distress.  Research suggests a number of mind/body therapies, including hypnotherapy, are useful in relieving GI problems. “I do not consider a body tune-up or a periodic stress-relieving massage a luxury,” adds Whittekin.