Ask

Happy Tummy Expert

9 months ago

Dear Abhilash, Thank you for the question

Food is an essential component for living healthy. Our body and minds cannot survive without right proportion of micronutrients and macronutrients. A healthy diet is very important for our energy, wellbeing, to ward off diseases, immunity, etc. One of the key aspects of living a happy healthy life amongst many others is to enjoy food which is healthy, delicious and consumed in right proportions and in a mindful manner.

Being Mindful while eating is necessary to have a control over food cravings & hunger. Mindfulness is an intentional focus on one’s thoughts, emotions, and physical sensations in the present moment. Eating mindfully is when you are using all of your physical and emotional senses to experience and enjoy the food choices you make. Mindful eating encourages one to make choices that will be satisfying and nourishing to the body.

Acidity, Bloating, heart burn, Gastritis, Abdominal discomfort can be a symptom of gastrointestinal digestive issues such as indigestion, constipation, IBS, intolerances etc., and/or due to an underlying health condition.

Certain food intolerances can cause bloating and stomach pain after consuming specific foods. In lactose intolerance it is seen after consuming milk and milk products like cheese, paneer etc. And in gluten intolerance it is seen after consuming, wheat, rye, barley etc.

Constipation can be due to inadequate fiber and water intake. Some other causes that can lead to constipation include neglecting urge to defecate, irregular meals, excess stress etc.  For further diagnosis and assistance kindly contact your specialized health care professional.

We recommend you to consult a specialized health professional such as a gastroenterologist for further diagnosis and management.

Here are a few tips to help manage acidity

• Do not skip your meals, have small frequent meals at regular intervals.
• Avoid large, heavy meals,
• Food should be eaten slowly and chewed well as fast eating provokes gastric feeding reflex.
• Avoid lying down immediately after your meal consumption
• Have a gap of minimum 2-3 hours between bedtime and your last meal
• Try to limit the foods like caffeine, spices, raw onions etc.

The Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) of fiber for Female is 25g per day

Here are a few tips to help manage constipation

• Include adequate amount of fiber to your daily balanced diet. Some of the good sources of fiber include Whole grains, multigrain, millets, Psyllium, fruits such as apples, banana, citrus fruits, vegetables like green beans, peas, potato, cauliflower, nuts and soybean etc.
• An intake of at least 2 litres of water per day.
• A glass of hot water, preferably taken with lemon juice taken early in the morning, stimulates gastro colic reflex and helps ease constipation.

Some of the guidelines to be considered general digestive health are as follows:

• Eat a well-balanced diet including minimum 5 serving of vegetables and 1 serving of fruit in a day as they are good sources of fiber and essential nutrients such as vitamin A, Vitamin B, iron, zinc etc.
• Include prebiotics such as banana, soyabean, garlic etc., good sources of probiotics like yogurt, buttermilk etc., to maintain a healthy gut.
• Practice portion guidance.
• Try to include whole grains like wheat, multigrain and millets in your daily diet as they are a good source of fiber and other nutrients.
• Deep fried foods to be restricted. Method of cooking like baking, grilling, boiling, steaming is preferable over deep frying with excess fat/ oil.
• Drink at least 8 glasses of water per day
• Engage in physical activity for a minimum of 30-45 minutes for at least 5 days a week.
• Try to follow a good sleep regimen in terms of both quantity and quality.

For a customised and personalised meal plan for specific conditions, please contact your Health care professional.

Hope we have answered your query.

Wishing you a great day ahead

0 Reply