Staying Regular

Good digestive health depends on a healthy immune system. Learn what you can do to keep your bowels healthy to avoid common bowel problems.

The intestines are the waste disposal and water reabsorption centre for the body. Optimal health depends on waste and toxins continually moving out through the bowels. This waste includes not only food, but also hormones and cells the body no longer requires.

Digestion and immune health

Providing your digestive system with healthy food and good microbes will enhance your ability to properly digest the foods you eat. Further, good bowel habits can help to prevent many common bowel conditions and keep other body systems working properly.

The intestinal lining is protected by a large part of the immune system called the gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT). A fine balance exists between the bacteria found in the bowels and the ability of the intestines to defend against disease. Prebiotics such as inulin and fructooligosaccharides (found in bananas, leeks, garlic and onions) increase the effectiveness of the microbes in the intestines, giving a natural boost to your immune system.

Common bowel conditions

Unfortunately, imbalances can occur, sometimes leading to painful and embarrassing symptoms. The following information may help pinpoint common bowel conditions.

Constipation itself is not a disease; it is an indicator of another issue relating to your digestive system. It is defined as fewer than three bowel movements per week and is a common and temporary health concern primarily in women of all ages and in anyone more than 65 years of age.

The symptoms to look for include stool that is hard and dry or that causes straining. To prevent constipation, increase your fibre intake to 21 to 38 g per day, stay hydrated, do not ignore your body’s urge for a bowel movement and keep active.

Diverticulosis is a bowel condition that occurs when small pockets of the intestinal lining bulge through the intestinal or colon wall. If these pockets of lining become inflamed, it is called diverticulitis.

The symptoms of diverticulosis include abdominal discomfort, bloating and constipation. These are vague symptoms that may relate to one of many digestive concerns. Diverticulitis symptoms, on the other hand, come on suddenly and severely. They include abdominal pain in the lower left side, nausea, vomiting and fever.

To prevent diverticulosis (and, therefore, diverticulitis), a high-fibre diet is often the first recommendation, as it is thought that straining for stool may lead to pressure on the colon walls, making them susceptible to weak spots.

Faecal incontinence is an upsetting condition characterised by an inability to hold the bowel movement. Faecal incontinence is often caused by weak pelvic floor muscles, haemorrhoids, diarrhoea or muscle or nerve damage to the sphincters.

A proper diet full of fibre and whole grains can often correct the underlying issue if it relates to improper digestion or improper bowel habits. Bowel training is often helpful to retrain the body to have a bowel movement at specific times during the day. Pelvic floor exercises, characterised by squeezing and relaxing the pelvic floor 50 to 100 times daily, may also be beneficial.

Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs) cause inflammation and irritation to the intestines. The most common IBDs include Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, and symptoms include severe or chronic abdominal pain and frequent diarrhoea. Other symptoms include rectal bleeding, weight loss and fevers.

Often IBDs are genetically inherited, and those who smoke have a higher risk of developing Crohn’s disease in particular than those who don’t. The true cause of IBDs is not fully understood; however, the current hypothesis is that the immune system overreacts to harmless bacteria or food, thereby increasing the white blood cells in the intestinal lining, which leads to chronic inflammation and injury to the intestines.

Colorectal cancer occurs in either the colon or the rectum and begins as a polyp that forms along the lining. A polyp is often noncancerous in the beginning stages, but over time the cells change and the resulting cancer can spread to the wall of the colon or rectum and then onto the blood and lymph systems.

In the early stages, the polyp may provide no symptoms. However, when symptoms do appear, they include bloody stool, fatigue, abdominal cramps, constipation, stool that is narrow, gas and bloating. A colonoscopy can detect polyps and greatly minimise the likelihood of colorectal cancer development.

Diet modifications

Fibre-rich foods such as whole grains, legumes, fruit and vegetables help the colon function optimally to remove waste products from the body. Fibre is helpful to soften the stool and is thought to bind to cholesterol for removal. Soluble fibre absorbs water and slows down digestion and is found in oats, fruit, nuts and beans. Insoluble fibre acts as a bulking agent to speed up digestion and is found in seeds, grains and the skin of fruits and vegetables.

Lifestyle modifications

Chewing food properly is the first step to proper breakdown of foods. There are certain enzymes in your saliva that, along with mastication, reduce the size of food particles entering the digestive tract. Chewing food also signals digestive enzymes and stomach acid to be produced in the next step of digestion.

Proper water intake is essential to optimal digestive health. Water is important to keep the intestinal lining well lubricated and to prevent excess water reabsorption from waste material leading to dry and hard stool. With normal ageing, our thirst response decreases and dehydration is a risk. Sipping water throughout the day aids in digestive health and keeps all of your body processes well hydrated.

Tips for keeping the bowels moving

Supplements for bowel health