How to Treat and Prevent Stomach Gas

In today’s fast paced lifestyle many people have gotten into the habit of eating their food to quickly. This results in food being swallowed that has barely been chewed. Thoroughly chewing your food not only allows you to more fully experience the taste, but it breaks the food down adequately for proper digestion and absorption. Each mouthful of food should be chewed 20 to 30 times. This allows the brain time to trigger the release of the appropriate gastric juices, hormones and digestive enzymes needed for the specific food being chewed.

Properly chewing food also allows saliva to properly mix with food which prepares for transportation to the stomach for digestion. If food is dry when it is being transported to the stomach it tends to get stuck in the passage way. Meanwhile the highly acidic digestive juices have nothing to work on but the stomach. When the food finally does make it to the stomach it tends to sit causing fermentation and gas. Chewing food well speeds the absorption and increases the amount of nutrition that is delivered to the cells.

Digestive problems leading to stomach gas are often the result of an unhealthy lifestyle. Many digestive problems can be resolved through change in diet. Avoid foods that make your system acidic such as pop, coffee and chocolate. Eliminating fried foods will greatly decrease the workload for your stomach. Avoid drinking water during meals because it dilutes stomach acids. Other causes for digestive problems leading to stomach gas are lack of exercise, overeating, a low fiber diet and dehydration due to inadequate water intake.

An unhealthy diet will lead to premature aging of the digestive system, which causes a decrease in the output of enzymes necessary to break down food. The result is partially broken down food being transported through a sluggish digestive tract. As the stomach ages, hydrochloric acid begins to decline, increasing the chance of bacteria overgrowth.

To defend the stomach from premature aging limit intake of NSAID medications, alcohol and caffeine. DGL licorice is an supplement effective in increasing the number of protective cells throughout the digestive tract. Pancreatic enzymes, which are involved in the digestion of fats, starches and proteins, also decrease with age. The result is often gas and bloating. An effective solution is to supplement with pancreatic enzymes. The supplement should include all three types of pancreatic enzymes which are protease, lipase and amylase. Other enzymes that may be helpful are papain and bromelain.

Healthy intestines contain friendly bacteria which are essential for the health of the digestive system. They inhibit the growth of bacteria and reduces substances that can lead to constipation and diarrhea. Unfortunately, many people are deficient in these friendly bacteria due to poor diet and overuse of antibiotics. Foods that are rich in probiotics, such as yogurt should be eaten regularly. Often people will take probiotic supplements as a quick and effective means to restore healthy bacteria. Look for supplements that contain Lactobacillus acidophilus and/or Bifidobacterium bifidum.

A healthy diet that includes fiber rich foods such as fresh fruit, vegetables, whole grains and flax seed will help digestion to operate at optimum levels. Herbs that are effective at aiding digestion and eliminating gas are fennel seed tea, camomile tea, pepperment tea(avoid this one if you have acid reflux disease) and ginger. Drink at least eight glasses of water per day to ensure all aspects of digestion are working properly and to allow fiber intake to be effective at promoting regularity and effective elimination. Finally, get regular exercise to promote health throughout the body.