digestive health

You know you're supposed to get at least 25 grams of roughage, and you know what you should eat each day to get your daily fiber, but when you do, you end up with some serious digestive issues. Don't give up! If your fiber intake has been well under the recommended amount, then you suddenly start downing flax-filled oat bran muffins, your tummy is likely to protest. Here are some ways to prevent the shock to your system when upping your fiber intake.

1. Mix whole wheat pasta with regular pasta.
2. Eat a piece of bread or crackers with hard-to-digest fruits such as pears or apples. You can peel the skin if your stomach is super sensitive, bur remember the skin contains a lot of nutrients not in the fruit.
3. Sprinkle a tiny amount of flaxmeal on your cereal. Jumping into ingesting a one- or two-tablespoon serving is bound to upset even the strongest of stomachs.
4. Mix a high-fiber cereal like Kashi's GoLean with an easily digestible rice cereal such as Nutty Rice.
5. Stir a small amount of beans into cooked quinoa, and gradually increase the ratio of beans to grain.
6. If raw broccoli does a number on your belly, steaming or stir frying the florets may be easier to digest.
7. Skip the raisins and opt for fresh grapes instead. Dried fruits tend to cause more issues than the fresh version.

Dear Fit,
I'm not embarrassed to admit that I'm an extremely gassy person. I know it's a natural bodily function, even though I seem to do it more than the average person, but now I have an embarrassing problem. I used to work from home, so it didn't matter if I let my gas pass, but I just got a new job where I work in a big office. All our desks are in one big room, so there's absolutely no privacy. I've been there for a week now, and have just been holding it so my co-workers don't know my smelly secret. It's been hurting my belly a little, and I'm wondering if this is really bad for my body not to let it out.
— Full of Hot Air

Although most wouldn't like to admit it, we can all relate to your problem of being gassy in public. I don't blame you for not wanting to let 'em go at your new job, or any job for that matter. Who wants to admit that they're the source of smelly gas? I have some suggestions on how to curb your flatulence, so read more

Here's another reason to eat whole grains: it will help put an end to the dreaded belly bloat. Eating too many refined grains like white rice, enriched pasta, or white bread slows down your digestive tract, which causes that bloated feeling. I don't know about you, but I hate getting dressed when my belly is full of air.

For the next few weeks, swap out any refined grains in your diet with whole grains, and see if you notice a difference. Whole grains are full of fiber, which helps keep us "regular" and our digestive tract moving along at a normal pace. By doing this, you should find that you'll have much more energy during the day since your body won't be working overtime to digest food.

I know that eating whole wheat pasta may not sound delicious to some of you, but there are a lot of easy and tasty swaps you can make instead. Choose whole wheat bread over white, and eat a whole grain cereal like Kashi or muesli. I also love the taste of quinoa, which is a hearty grain filled with fiber. Why not try this curried quinoa salad for dinner tonight?

I've been around my share of people who always seem to have stomach issues (read: gastrointestinal problems) after drinking coffee. Frequent trips to the bathroom aren't enough to stop them from drinking it though. But a new study may be the answer to making coffee a pain-free experience: scientists have discovered substances in coffee that may be the culprits behind stomachaches and heartburn.

A group of scientists in Europe were able to identify that caffeine, catechins, and chemical substances in coffee cause the stomach to produce excess stomach acids. Also of importance — it's not one substance doing the harm as much as the combination. The hope is that this research will lead to a more stomach-sensitive coffee. In the meantime, the scientists are playing around with different roasting methods to see if a more stomach-friendly coffee can be produced. The good news is that they've discovered that the darker the roast, the easier it is on your belly. Looks like I'll be switching to espresso!

DrSugar is in the house! This week she's teaching us about digestive issues.

In last week’s column, I answered a great question from a reader who was diagnosed with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) by her physician. I addressed her question regarding Candida infection of the gastrointestinal system but felt that a separate column on IBS was warranted, given its common prevalence and media attention. As many as one in five adult Americans have symptoms of IBS, making it one of the most common disorders diagnosed by doctors. It occurs more often in women than men; the onset of the symptoms occurs before the age of 35 in over half of people with IBS.

To learn more continue reading.