What are the symptoms of a bad digestive system?
Symptoms of a bad digestive system can include bloating, indigestion, constipation or diarrhoea, whilst some lesser-known symptoms of poor digestive health can also include skin complaints, food cravings, brain fog, allergies or mood symptoms. Tweaking digestive habits, plus introducing remedies such as herbal bitters or prebiotics could all help to improve digestion.
Signs and symptoms of an under-functioning digestive system
These are some common signs and symptoms which can indicate that our digestive health is in a bad state, and in need of some help. These include:
1. Indigestion
Indigestion or symptoms of acid reflux or heartburn are a set of common digestive problems that can often crop up soon after eating for those affected, or may also be worse whilst lying down.
Whilst a trip to your doctor for some of these symptoms may result in PPI or H2 blocker medications being prescribed, naturopathy recognises that low stomach acid is instead, often at the root of the cause.
Read our blog for some tips around home tests to help identify low stomach acid, to find out more.
Helpful suggestions:
Bitter herbs, such as those found in the remedy Digestisan, could help to support your stomach and protect against symptoms of indigestion.
2. Constipation
Arguably. if you aren't going to the loo at least once daily, you could be considered to be mildly constipated.
Constipation can often come about as a result of eating too little fibre, not drinking enough water, as a result of some other underlying conditions or as a side effect of medication. If left untreated, in some cases a sluggish gut could also give rise to other symptoms such as haemorrhoids or diverticulosis.
Helpful suggestions:
Be sure to include some fibre-rich fresh foods with every meal and drink at least 2l of plain, still water daily to help keep things moving along.
3. Diarrhoea
On the other hand, if you're going to the loo more often than you'd like, especially if 'urgency' is characteristic of your symptoms, you may be keen to find a solution.
This is often apparent in cases of IBS (IBS-D), and can often coincide with some of the other symptoms I'm also mentioning today, such as uncomfortable cramps or bloating.
Helpful suggestions:
Whether or not IBS is also apparent, when it comes to diarrhoea it can be helpful to consider what might be triggering your symptoms.
In some cases, it could be linked to food sensitivities so removing certain food triggers for a short length of time might be helpful. Whereas in other cases stress or anxiety can be linked. Finally, in more acute cases, food poisoning or an underlying imbalance in your gut bacteria may be at work.
Depending on the likely cause, this could then influence how you go about managing it.
4. Bloating
Bloating is arguably one of the most widespread digestive complaints and this is because it may crop up alone, or in combination with any of the other symptoms I'm mentioning throughout this blog. Bloating could happen as a one off, perhaps if we eat too quickly, don't chew our food properly, or if we eat too much; or more regularly if these unhelpful eating habits are more routine.
Bloating may also feel like a more permanent feature if we have another underlying digestive issue, such as too little stomach acid, irregular bowel habits such as in the case of constipation or diarrhoea, or if an imbalance in gut bacteria is driving the issue.
Remember, bacteria ferment and metabolise the indigestible portions of our diet which is normal. However, if the incorrect populations of bacteria exist or if the wrong metabolites become available as a result of consuming a more processed diet, this could create issues and some of these unwanted symptoms.
Helpful suggestions:
Once more, it helps to try and understand why you might be feeling bloated in the first place, in order to help guide your management of this symptom.
Also, it is helpful to consider where the issue lies. Bloating higher up around your stomach suggests that bitter helps may be more helpful, whereas lower down could signal towards an issue deeper within the gut, where all those bacteria tend to be populated.
5. Cramps
Cramps or uncomfortable twinges are readily associated with the symptoms of IBS and more specifically, changing bowel habits such as with constipation or diarrhoea.
In some cases, these may pass after going to the loo, or in other instances, they may be a little more persistent.
Helpful suggestions:
For cramps associated with diarrhoea, the herb tormentil can be especially calming. Silicol® Gel may be an option if the issue is more recurrent, for example in the case of IBS.
6. Food sensitivity
Food sensitivities are often linked with weakened digestive functions. Over time, especially as we age or during times of stress, our digestive secretions can become somewhat diminished, which means we can struggle to digest foods that we once tolerated just fine.
From there, your immune system can become a little unhappy if it starts to detect larger particles of food which haven't been properly dealt with and technically shouldn't be present in this state further along the digestive tract.
Helpful suggestions:
Simple steps like eating slower and chewing your food very thoroughly will help to put your digestive system off to the best start.
A herbal remedy such as yarrow may also be helpful in encouraging the proper digestive secretions along the full length of the digestive tract. Herbal bitter tinctures should always be taken in a small splash of water to help intensify the bitter taste, and ideally should be taken only 5-10 minutes before meals to help spur your digestive tract into action at exactly the right time.
7. Lesser-known symptoms of digestive malfunction
Whilst it isn't a given, in some cases, problem skin, a lack of energy, food cravings, brain fog, allergies, low mood or poor sleep could all have links to an under-par digestive system and/or an imbalance in your good gut bacteria.
These bacteria are thought to have close links with your immune system but there is also a well-established brain-gut axis to consider too.
Helpful suggestions:
If you have any unusual symptoms, especially if they are persistent, it is always best to chat this over with your doctor.
However, in some cases a good quality prebiotic such as Molkosan can be a lovely base for supporting the use of an additional probiotic remedy. The Optibac range have a wide selection of probiotic products to suit all different needs and target a variety of individual symptoms.
Know your warning signs
Even with the digestive symptoms I've mentioned here, if any have cropped up very suddenly (such as with changing bowel habits), or they are persistent or severe, you should always arrange to see your doctor straight away.
In addition to this, if you experience symptoms such as blood when you go to the loo (fresh blood being red in colour and older blood appearing black), sudden or extreme weight loss, problems swallowing or dental issues interfering with your ability to eat, you should always visit your doctor for advice.
