Gut proof your health

​Do you experience bloating, pain, cramping or diarrhea? Unsure what foods may be triggering these symptoms?

Firstly, It is important to rule out any serious medical conditions that might be an underlying cause for your digestive disturbances. Conditions such as gastric ulcers, gastritis (inflammation of the stomach), Coeliac Disease and Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) like Crohn's and Ulcerative Colitis can all have long term implications of malnutrition and nutrient deficiencies if not diagnosed or treated properly. The risk of bowel or ovarian cancer must also be explored to rule out anything more sinister - the last thing you want to happen is for your symptoms to disappear only to realise later that there are still ongoing issues at the root of the problem.

The next step is to review your eating habits from a nutritional perspective to ensure there isn't an easy fix to your symptoms. Only 3% of Australian's achieve their daily fruit and vegetable serves each day, meaning that many are not consuming enough fibre. Fibre is important not only to keep you regular, but it's also the fuelling force for our microbiota in our gastrointestinal lining which then helps us to breakdown and absorb nutrients. There are also different types of fibre in your food that all have unique roles in the body, and ensuring you have a balance of all three can make a world of difference!

Other factors that also need to be considered are caffeine, alcohol and medications as these all affect the gut in different ways and may be impacting on your symptoms.

Think about the way you eat and the timing of your meals throughout your day. Often long periods of fasting, skipping meals or eating quickly can impact the mechanics of your digestive tract and cause bloating and cramping. Eating regularly and mindfully can make all the difference.

Once all of these areas have been ticked off, then only would you consider eliminating or avoiding particular types of food. Food intolerances are common and a very real thing however you don't want to jump into excluding foods just for the sake of it. Testing for food intolerances requires a methodical approach and is time-intensive so you want to do it the right way with an accredited dietitian to ensure you get a successful outcome. 

If you think you may have a food intolerance or would like to chat more about your gut health, contact us and book your appointment with one of our accredited dietitians.