The intestines are the mirror of our health. Most often, when there is a health problem, we will also feel pressure in the pit of our stomach. This is a signal that disturbing things are happening in our body. You may also feel pain when bending down or when you get stressed. There are also other factors that negatively affect the health of the intestines. Here are some of them.
Sugar is a highly addictive substance and I’m sure all of us will admit to snacking on sweets at work or at home. Unfortunately, sugar can be very damaging to our intestines – it is a breeding ground for so-called bad bacteria, including yeast and fungi. In large quantities, sugar can even lead to inflammatory bowel disease! Do you sweeten with aspartame or drink drinks with sucralose? Unfortunately we have bad news for you – they also cause the growth of bad bacteria, and as a result give us gas and bloating.
An innocent glass of red wine with dinner can do no harm, but excessive drinking of alcohol significantly increases the risk of esophageal, pancreatic and stomach cancer. Excessive consumption of alcoholic beverages also leads to colon cancer. This is because alcohol is a very strong poison and can quickly damage the intestinal wall. The risk of cancer increases up to 52% if we drink more than 4 drinks every day.
Red meat is hard to digest, so blood steaks can lead us to unpleasant bloating and constipation. People who frequently eat red meat are up to 20% more likely to develop colon cancer. Fish, lean poultry meat (including turkey) and vegetables are always good alternatives.
Fat in itself is not negative for our body. Unfortunately, deep frying or foods that are considered hard to digest can have a bad effect on your intestines. If you often give in to the temptation of fried foods, you will feel bloated and pain in the pit of your stomach after a meal. The intestines cannot cope with such an amount of fat for digestion, so the excess has a negative effect on their peristalsis
In order for the intestines to work well, you need to eat an adequate amount of fiber. It is contained, among others, in wholemeal bread, but also in flaxseed. White flour does not provide much nutritional value. Often after such bread you can feel bloating and discomfort. A large number of products made of white flour can even lead to a leaky gut. All because of too much gluten in the diet
Intestines require from us special care and attention. For sure we should take care of proper nutrition. The following are beneficial for intestines:
An easy-to-digest diet, full of vegetables and fruits, which contain fiber, also works very well for them. In order to take care of the intestines it is also worth to bake food in a steam oven or cook it in steam.
While working in an office among people, unfortunately we often tempt ourselves to have a smoke. If we do it on holidays, the situation is not dangerous for us. Regular smoking, even two or three cigarettes a day, can significantly increase the risk of colorectal cancer. The Journal of Clinical Oncology published a study in 2015 that shows that the walls of the intestine are damaged when smoking cigarettes. The consequences, unfortunately, are lamentable: we have as much as 30-50% more chances of developing colorectal cancer when we do not deny ourselves daily cigarette smoking.
Certainly when you feel stress, you are also accompanied by an unpleasant pressure in the pit of your stomach. Unfortunately, excessive anxiety can lead to damage to the walls of the large intestine. Stress has a negative effect on our body, but it also makes the absorption of nutrients from food or supplements much worse. Poor absorption of nutrients negatively affects our entire body, so too much stress affects us very badly and takes a toll on our health.
Surely each of us at least once had to take an antibiotic. On the one hand, this is often the only drug that can get rid of inflammation or a viral disease. On the other hand, antibiotics very often damage the extremely thin and delicate intestinal wall. Research by scientists confirms that 7-day antibiotic therapy can significantly disrupt the intestinal microbiota. The damage is still visible for another two years! Our bad habit during antibiotic therapy is forgetting to take the sheath. These are priobiotic preparations that help protect the gut from damage. With their clinically proven physicochemical properties, they can reach their target site and repair the damage done by the antibiotic.
Also, it is a very bad habit to ask your doctor for an antibiotic too often. With very severe tonsillitis it is the only salvation, especially if antipyretics only work for a while and we feel worse and worse. Taking antibiotics during a cold makes no sense, and can only weaken us strongly later. During the flu, we often only need rest, painkillers and antiviral drugs.
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Main photo: Jordan Nix/ unsplash.com
