Vibe
Naturopathy
Digestive Bloating
Bloating is an extremely common and uncomfortable feeling that many people experience after eating. Whether it occurs occasionally, after eating certain foods or on a daily basis; it can cause varying degrees of abdominal discomfort and can often make you feel self-conscious as your stomach swells – “I feel 6 months pregnant by the end of the day” is one of the most common remarks heard during Naturopathic consultation when talking about bloating.
Many people think that this must be a normal reaction to food or eating and just put up with it, but bloating is a sign that something is out of balance with your digestive function.
A Naturopath can be helpful by assisting you to discover the cause of your bloating and by finding out the cause, they can individually treat with herbal and nutritional medicine to restore your digestive function and banish your bloating for good.
Common causes of digestive bloating :
- Low stomach acid production
- Food intolerances
- Stress
- Fermentation of food in the digestive tract
- Excessive gas production
- Overeating
- Rich foods
- Eating too quickly
- Imbalance of good and bad bacteria in the digestive tract
- Digestive parasites - detectable with functional stool testing
- Digestive disorders like IBS, Coeliac Disease, Inflammatory Bowel Disease
Your stomach produces a special acid to break down the food that enters it. If the food you are eating enters the stomach too quickly, isn’t chewed properly or the stomach isn’t producing enough acid, then this can contribute to bloating after meals.
Underlying causes like bacterial infections, stress and the types of food you eat can all be factors that can influence how well our digestive function is or isn’t working. Stress can affect your body’s ability to produce stomach acid and break down food properly, which can lead to stomach discomfort and swelling.
Conditions such as Coeliac and IBS often have bloating as a symptom, so it is important to figure out the exact cause in each case, in order to determine the most effective treatment approach.
Natural ways to assist bloating and support digestive function
ZINC and VITAMIN B6
Zinc and Vitamin B6 are essential nutrients required for the production of stomach acid. By ensuring adequate intake of these vitamins and minerals, you can make sure your body is getting everything it needs to produce healthy levels of hydrochloric acid. Whole foods are a great way to get your daily intake of healing nutrients. Try salmon, eggs, legumes and walnuts for Vitamin B6 and pumpkin seeds, whole grains, cashews, eggs and oysters for Zinc. A Naturopath can offer blood tests for zinc and b6 levels to see if supplementation would be helpful for you.
Do you find yourself saying,
"I just don’t feel quite right"
Do you find yourself saying,
"I just don’t feel quite right"
Book your Naturopathy Appointment
What to expect from your Naturopathy consultation
The best way to understand the cause of dysfunction in the body is to take a comprehensive health history. Your Naturopath will spend an hour with you at your first consultation asking questions about all the systems in your body – this gives us the framework to understand which areas of your body are working well and which areas need help.
Your Naturopath will give you an evaluation of your health, a plan for your treatment and then ask you in which order of priority you would like to treat your health issues. You will receive a hands on treatment and be given proactive recommendations to take home to improve your health.
PRICING Elysia Humphries:
Initial Consultation 90 minutes $300
Follow Up Consultation 45 minutes $150
PRICING Ananda Mahony:
Initial Consultation 60 minutes $200
Follow Up Consultation 30 minutes $100
PRICING Georgia Limmer:
Initial Consultation 60 minutes $200
Follow Up Consultation 30 minutes $100
Meet the Naturopaths at Vibe Natural Health Brisbane
Elysia is one of the most experienced naturopaths in Brisbane and she is passionate about integrating Naturopathy into our health care system. Her treatments combine a balance of nutritional advice, pathology testing, lifestyle advice and evidence based natural medical advice.
Ananda has developed programs to assist in management of pain from autoimmune conditions, digestive complaints, hormonal conditions, functional issues, musculoskeletal problems and neuropathies.
Georgia is down-to-earth, committed and she works quickly to get the best results for her patients.
She sees a broad range of patients often treating several members of families at a time.
Natural ways to assist bloating and support digestive function
ZINC and VITAMIN B6
Zinc and Vitamin B6 are essential nutrients required for the production of stomach acid. By ensuring adequate intake of these vitamins and minerals, you can make sure your body is getting everything it needs to produce healthy levels of hydrochloric acid. Whole foods are a great way to get your daily intake of healing nutrients. Try salmon, eggs, legumes and walnuts for Vitamin B6 and pumpkin seeds, whole grains, cashews, eggs and oysters for Zinc. A Naturopath can offer blood tests for zinc and b6 levels to see if supplementation would be helpful for you.
PROBIOTICS
Probiotics are beneficial bacteria that live in our digestive tract and contribute to many positive health effects like keeping inflammation at bay, protecting our bodies from invading baddies and helping to keep our bowels regular. Including fermented foods regularly in your diet is a great way to promote healthy levels of good bacteria. Fermented foods include kefir, sauerkraut and yoghurt. For conditions such as IBS, strain-specific probiotic supplements can often be helpful in supporting digestive health. A Naturopath can use functional testing to discover your current levels of healthy gut bacteria and design an individualised treatment plan to restore optimal digestive function.
SLOWING DOWN
Eating mindfully is an excellent way to promote good digestive function. By being aware during your meals (not distracted by your computer, phone or TV), concentrating on chewing properly and eating slowly you can eliminate the chances of developing stress or rushing-related bloating or abdominal discomfort. One great tip is to take 3-5 deep breaths in and out before beginning your meal. This helps to signal to the “rest and digest” part of your nervous system, to calm the body down and turn digestive function on.
FUNCTIONAL TESTING
Here at Vibe we have a range of functional testing options to thoroughly explore the nature and cause of your digestive complaints if initial recommendations don’t help you. Thorough Naturopathic case taking will be able to determine the best, most specific testing options for you and your current health complaints to ensure the most accurate treatment is applied to help eliminate your bloating and improve your digestive wellness. Testing options can include (but are not limited to) food intolerance testing, stool analysis, leaky gut and liver function profiles.
So if you're fed up with your bloating and would like to seek help, contact us today. It's important if bloating has been persistent to seek advice from a doctor, we have in house Doctors at Vibe Natural Health in Brisbane who can assess medical causes of bloating. We often see clients who have been to their GP or Gastroenterologist, had scans or colonoscopies and told everything is fine, you may just have IBS. It's good news to know there's nothing major wrong, but you still need help reducing your bloating on a daily basis. This is where Naturopaths can help you identify the functional causes and help you banish your bloating.
