After a weekend of indulging maybe a little too much, your digestive system may not be happy with you. It’s time to make your gut happier before the next big holiday, when ham, potatoes, cookies, cakes, pies, and all sweet treats alike are abundant. Then again, there’s always the option of taking it easy and avoiding these foods that can lead to bowel troubles, allergies, or other digestive problems.
It can be hard to know what healthier foods you should replace with other foods to make your system happy. Follow the food replacement list below for a happy gut.
Replace This With That
- Gluten, Wheat – Brown Rice, Non-Gluten Grains
- Processed Sugars – Stevia
- Dairy and Eggs – Whole Vegetables, Leafy Greens
- Coffee, Soda, or Alcohol – Green Tea or Apple Cider Vinegar
- Creamed Vegetables, Peanuts – Whole Fruits, Berries, & Raw Nuts and Seeds
- Corn Oil – Extra Virgin Olive Oil or Organic Unfiltered Coconut Oil
- Soy – Beans or Lentils
Move It To Lose It
It may be difficult to motivate yourself, but movement and exercise are great tools for stimulating healthy bowel movements. Most people get blocked up, so to speak, during the holidays because they sit or lay down immediately after finishing the meal. The best thing you can do is take a short walk or do some easy yoga poses. This helps food move efficiently through your digestive system.
Flush Out Toxins
This is crucial for making your gut happy. The easiest way to do this is by drinking water and eating whole fruits and vegetables that are high in fiber. Drink about 8-10 8oz glasses of water per day, and eat foods like leafy greens, figs, pears, cherries, prunes, fresh green vegetables juices, and warm water with lemon.
Relax And Let The Body Heal
Stress can wreak havoc on your digestive system. Whether it is returning to work after the holidays, worrying about losing holiday weight, or the general chaos of too much family, stress hormones can actually slow down bowel movements. It’s important to relax during this time. Try taking a few minutes every morning to do some breathing exercises or yoga poses. Maybe you need to soak in a bath at night, or even get a massage.
These tips are meant to help stimulate bowel movements and keep your gut healthy. Let us know if these help calm any digestive issues.
Vincent Stevens is the senior content writer at Dherbs. As a fitness and health and wellness enthusiast, he enjoys covering a variety of topics, including the latest health, fitness, beauty, and lifestyle trends. His goal is to inform people of different ways they can improve their overall health, which aligns with Dherbs’ core values. He received his bachelor’s degree in creative writing from the University of Redlands, graduating summa cum laude. He lives in Los Angeles, CA.
