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Keep Your Digestive System on Track
Nutrition Tips from the Mayo Clinic
What you put on your plate each day has a great deal to do with healthy digestion. With a busy summer ahead of you, now is a good time to review the basics of how proper nutrition and healthy lifestyle changes can help keep your digestive system on track. Mayo Clinic on Digestive Health (Mayo Clinic, 2004), offers the following "recipe" to keep your digestive system healthy:
- Eat plenty of fiber. Foods that pass more easily and quickly through your digestive system are the same foods that form the foundation for a healthy diet. Plant foods – fruits, vegetables and foods made from whole grains – contain beneficial vitamins, minerals and compounds that may protect against cancer. Plant foods are also an excellent source of fiber, a nutrient that's especially important to digestion.
- Cut the fat. Excess fat slows digestion and can lead to heartburn, bloating and constipation, in addition to increasing your risk of heart disease, diabetes and perhaps even colon cancer.
- Drink ample fluids. Water is the best beverage. Caffeinated beverages and alcohol don't count. Most people should drink eight to 10 8-ounce glasses of water each day.
- Practice good eating habits. Eat moderate proportions, eat at regular times and relax while you eat.
- Maintain a healthy weight.
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