Stoking digestive fire in Winter
How to support healthy digestion and bowel movements during the colder months
Some people need more support to improve digestion during the Winter months.
In the parts of the world with seasons, Yang begins shifting to Yin during the Autumn months. The days grow shorter, darker, colder. The expansive energy of hot, bright, energizing summer days give way to a slower, more introspective, more restorative time.
As human beings, we are intricately connected to the cycles of Nature. When Nature slows down, the Nature within us follows. The body intuitively prioritizes conserving heat and energy. This can take attention away from the digestive process and contribute to digestive symptoms like bloating, pain, reflux, constipation, and loose stools.
If you have any of the above symptoms, see your doctor for medical advice. But consider the following list of considerations to give your digestive system a gentle boost
Warm, well-cooked foods
The digestive process uses up 5-10% of our daily energy expenditure—moreso when foods are cold and hard to digest, and less when foods are warm and well-cooked. Warm, well-cooked foods are simply easier for the digestive tract to process. The body doesn’t have to work as hard to extract their nutrients. And when it’s cold outside, the body is spending more energy keeping the body temperature up. We can make digestion easier by choosing foods that require less work—soups, stews, cooked fruits and vegetables; consuming fewer cold salads, smoothies, and raw vegetables.
Consistent eating times
This can become more challenging during the winter months due to holidays, time off, and other changes in routine. But the body and brain thrive on consistency. When you’re consistent with a routine or habit, it not only requires less energy for your brain to prepare for, but the internal body clock expects and gets ready for what’s coming. In terms of digestion, this means your body is more likely to be ready to breakdown and absorb the nutrients in your food when you’re eating at (roughly) the same time each day.
Carminative herbs
The term carminative in relation to botanical medicine refers to an herb that is antispasmodic (relaxing) to the digestive tract. Carminative herbs contain compounds that help relax the smooth muscle in the walls of the intestines, gently stimulate blood flow and peristalsis (proper movement of the intestines), and lead to proper breakdown of food, absorption of nutrients, and elimination through stool. These actions can help lessen the incidence of gas, bloating, reflux, and pain. Some carminatives, such as ginger, are also warming to the body, doubly helpful for the colder months. I intentionally cook with more herbs and spices when it’s cold to give my digestive system the extra stimulation. Here is a list of carminative herbs you can include in your food and drinks:
Ginger root
Turmeric root
Fennel seed
Peppermint & spearmint leaf
Anise seed
Chamomile flower
Black pepper
Clove
Fenugreek
Cinnamon
Lavender flower
Lemonbalm leaf
Saffron
Add fresh or dried herbs and spices to your meals, turn them into tea, add them to your baked goods and morning lattes.
Constitutional hydrotherapy
Traditionally, this hydrotherapy technique involves a series of hot and cold towels applied to the abdomen with gentle electrical stimulation placed strategically on the back and belly. Although the e-stim acts as a sort of jumpstart for healthy blood flow and motility (movement of the organs), this therapy can be done with the towels alone. The application of contrasting temperatures, cycling between hot and cold, draws energy into the abdomen and encourages blood flow to the area. Everyone responds differently to constitutional hydrotherapy—some patients drift into a nap, others feel extra energized, and others (this is me) become notably hungry by the end. This is a sign that digestive fire has turned up! Check out this blog post to learn about this traditional naturopathic therapy.
Keep moving
Your digestive system is in motion—just like every other system, organ, and cell within your body. Daily movement supports healthy movement within the digestive tract. One of the best ways to support proper motion of the digestive system is through walking. While walking, the rhythmic contractions of the hip muscles connecting legs to torso then stimulate the surrounding abdominal muscles and organs, offering a gentle massage. This helps the system continue breaking down food to be absorbed and move everything in a forward direction. It also helps regulate appetite; if stomach motility is sluggish, food moves more slowly into the small intestine, and the satiety signal from a hormone called CCK (cholecystekinin) is delayed. Because walking supports proper motility, it can help your body to better communicate hunger and fullness signals.
Relax your belly
Just like your body as a whole, your belly must experience motion, too! When we’re breathing functionally, our abdomens will naturally move out and in with the breath. When stressed—this includes cold temperatures and shivering—the body reflexives tightens abdominal muscles restricting both the breath and the movement of your abdominal organs. I often remind clients that it’s natural for their belly to take up space—and holding it in is a learned response that can be unlearned with practice.
Self-massage
Another way to keep the belly moving is by using your own hands for a gentle massage. It is generally recommended to use light pressure, dragging the fingers in a clockwise circle across the surface of the abdomen—along the path of the large intestine. Moving in and out of wind-relieving pose (hugging one knee in toward the chest while stretching the other leg long) can have a similar effect.
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