Beat the Bloat

Bloat-Busting Tips and Recipes

The key to beating bloat is three-fold! Presuming you do not have irritable bowel disease, Crohn’s, or any medical condition linked to stomach problems, the average bear struggles with feeling bloated for three different reasons: either they’re holding excess water weight, they’re constipated, or they have gas.

To reduce excess water-weight we need to do some very basic things. First, drink more water. The more water you drink the less water your body will hold onto. Second, make sure you don’t eat too much sodium. No more than 2000mg a day unless you are working out like crazy and sweating often and profusely. Third, you want a good balance of electrolytes (other than salt) to help regulate your hydration as nerve and muscle function, amongst other things. So look for foods with calcium, magnesium, and potassium in particular.

While constipation and gas are different issues they can be related as constipation can cause gas. And, often what helps with constipation also helps with gas. So here’s the hit list to help manage both. One quick caveat – constipation can be a significant problem for many. If this is chronic for you I strongly recommend seeing a gastroenterologist to help you identify the cause of the issue and work out a safe solution to provide relief. Personally, I can troubleshoot the obvious for you here with some safe, common sense strategies to help you stay regular.

• First, hydration is key. It literally helps to keep things flowing properly – pun intended. Now if you are gassy, then avoid carbonation / carbonated waters and just stick with flat water.
• Make sure you are regularly taking in pro and pre biotics. Probiotics make up your “microbiome”, which refers to the colony of microbes living in your gut. These little guys can help with everything from fending off disease, to regulating metabolism, and yes helping with gas and constipation. So be sure to eat plenty of fermented foods like yogurt, miso, kimchi etc. Plus, make sure to get plenty of prebiotic foods like onions, garlic, bananas, legumes, and artichokes or galacto-oligosaccharide rich foods. You should also consider taking a probiotic WITH pre biotics. This is the brand I love. Check it out if you are inclined. Even I do this for overall health and I don’t have any tummy issues.
• Fiber has long been recommended, as it serves to be a platform for waste removal, but some results have been mixed. Regardless, as mentioned above, fiber is great for your microbiome and heart health so at the very least you will get some positive benefits. Aim to mix both soluble and insoluble fiber to your diet so consider supplementing with psyllium husks for the insoluble fiber and make sure to get plenty of fruits and veggies (banana and artichoke are a great source of prebiotics as well).
• Consider a magnesium citrate supplement or foods high in this mineral. Magnesium not only helps to regulate hydration levels as I previously mentioned, but it also serves as a stool softener and can help with constipation. Bananas, almonds, wild salmon, avocado, and spinach are all magnesium rich foods.
• Enzymes! Do you notice a difference after you eat certain foods? For example, if you have dairy do you feel bloated? Or, do certain foods like beans make you feel gassy? This is often because some of us simply don’t have the digestive enzymes to break these foods down. So, you have two options: the first is to avoid the food. If you are slightly lactose intolerant don’t have dairy OR consider a supplement like lactase before consuming it. If you can’t eat foods that have those good galacto-olgosaccharides because they make you gassy try an enzyme supplement like beano. And, try eating foods rich in digestive enzymes like pineapple, honey, mango, kiwi, kefir etc.
• Organic Coffee! Coffee can stimulate the muscles in your digestive tract to contract helping with bowel movements. Just be sure that the coffee is organic. Coffee is one of the most heavily sprayed edible crops in the world – so to avoid all the pesticides, fungicides, herbicides etc. go organic.
• Exercise!!! Exercise is one of the best ways to keep yourself regular.

Recipe #1 - Juice Flush

Serves: 1

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cup coconut water
• 1 frozen banana
• 1 stalk celery
• 1 tbsp ground flax seeds
• 1 tbsp raw honey

INSTRUCTIONS:

Add all ingredients to a high-speed blender and blend until smooth. Sip and enjoy!

Recipe #2 - Banana Mocha Smoothie

Serves: 1

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
• 1 cup full-fat unsweetened Greek yogurt or kefir (use coconut milk yogurt for a dairy-free option)
• 1 frozen banana
• 1 tsp cacao nibs
• ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp raw honey
• 1 shot of organic espresso or organic Lucky Jack Cold Brew Concentrate

INSTRUCTIONS:

Add all ingredients to a high-speed blender and blend until smooth. Enjoy!

Recipe #3 - Summer Smoothie

Serves: 1

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cup coconut water
• 1 banana
• 1 cucumber, sliced
• 1 handful of fresh mint leaves
• 1 tsp raw honey

INSTRUCTIONS:

Add all ingredients to a high-speed blender and blend until smooth. Enjoy!