What can I eat for stomach pain? 4 important tips

Health and nutrition

Do you feel confused about what to eat and what you should and what not to eat when you have stomach pain? Maybe you read somewhere that you should follow a ketogenic diet, low sugar, high fiber, vegan and raw veggies… But you also heard low fat, cooked foods, carnivore diet and low fiber…

It is such a confusing world out there with many different messages about food! Before you jump on one of these special diets, check if you’ve tried these first important steps! They help you decide what works for YOU…

1: Eat whole foods

If you eat a diet high in processed foods and you have bloating, acid reflux, stomach pain… your first step is to replace those by whole foods. Whole foods are – well… what the are! A chicken is a whole food, a sweet potato is. Oats, rice, nuts, seeds are.

Processed foods often contain a whole list of ingredients: flours, sugar, processed oils, colourings, flavourings… That makes it much harder to recognise which ingredient is causing you issues. Processed foods make up most of the shelves of the supermarket and the messages on the package can suggest they’re a healthy food. So be careful and check the ingredients on the label!

2: Ditch the sugar and the refined grains

Sugar and refined grains (like white flour, most breads, cakes, biscuits, pasta, crackers, cereals etc) feed the wrong bacteria in your gut. They can also create yeast overgrowth. And result in stomach pain, fatigue, bloating, joint pain, cravings… I’ve seen many clients feel much better the instant they stopped eating these refined carbohydrates.

3: Eat when you feel relaxed

Many people eat while they’re driving, working or watching the news. If that’s you – you’re in action mode and your body is not focusing on digesting and absorbing food. The result: bloating, acid reflux, IBS symptoms and much more.

If you’re in a calm state you are in ‘rest and digest’ mode. Your body knows everything is safe, relaxes and focuses on sending more blood to your digestive organs. The solution? Resist the urge to eat on the go. Set the table with a nice plate. Light a candle. Make this a time to connect with your partner or family. And take some deep breaths and appreciate the food in front of you. It doesn’t take more than that to switch to the rest-and-digest mode. Your tummy will thank you for it.

4: Write down what you eat and how you feel

When you write down what you eat and drink and you take some time to connect to how you actually feel, you can start connecting the dots. You might for instance notice that you snack more than you thought, or that you always feel heavy after certain meals. This is how you can find out what works and what doesn’t work for you.

If you find out you are sensitive to certain foods and want to know why, check out this video!

1 Comment

  1. Ebba de Niet

    Heerlijk, je tips!
    Ik heb vanmorgen stewed Apple gegeten met kaneel.
    Liefs, Ebba.

    Reply

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