How to take care of your stomach if you have a bad stomach?

We often hear that some people have chronic gastritis and cannot sleep or eat well, and some people have excessive stomach acid and suffer unbearable pain. As the saying goes, "diseases come from the mouth", many diseases are related to daily diet, and gastrointestinal diseases are particularly closely related to diet. The main cause of spleen and stomach diseases is improper diet, excessive consumption of raw and cold food, cold accumulation in the body, which makes the yang of the spleen and stomach weak; the second is depression, anger, worry, liver qi disorder, and transverse attack on the stomach and spleen. To prevent spleen and stomach diseases, the key is to protect the normal function of the spleen and stomach. Therefore, we should pay attention to the maintenance of the spleen and stomach.

What factors can affect the stomach? First of all, emotional factors have a great impact on appetite, digestion, and absorption. Therefore, to maintain the spleen and stomach, we must first maintain a good mood. According to research, bad emotions can lead to decreased appetite, abdominal distension, belching, indigestion, etc., while good emotions are beneficial to the normal activities of the gastrointestinal system.

Secondly, diet is the key to maintaining the spleen and stomach. Start with your daily routine. At least three meals a day should be regular and quantitative. It is best to set a schedule for yourself and then strictly follow it. This will also affect your sleep time, because some people who go to bed late and get up late eat breakfast and lunch together. This habit must be changed. It does not mean that eating a midnight snack can make up for it, because although the human biological clock can move forward and backward, it is always within a certain range and cannot make a big difference.

The diet is mainly vegetarian, with a combination of meat and vegetables. Eat vegetables and fruits regularly to meet the body's needs and keep bowel movements smooth. Vegetables and fruit peels have more fiber, so you can eat them moderately, but not too much, as they are not easy to digest. Therefore, you can eat more fruits and vegetables. Papaya is suitable for the stomach and can be used as a stomach-nourishing food, but for people with more stomach acid, don't eat too much. Also, remember that the stomach likes dryness and hates coldness, so eat less ice, and other cold foods like mung bean paste. Eat less irritating and difficult-to-digest foods, such as sour and spicy, fried, dry, hard and sticky foods, and try to eat less raw and cold foods.

How should people with damaged stomachs take care of themselves? Then, how should people who are already suffering from gastrointestinal problems take care of themselves?

Generally, people with poor gastric digestion will feel full after eating a little bit, and will feel bloated after eating a little more. Especially if you eat more at night, it will affect your sleep due to stomach stagnation. Therefore, it is recommended to eat small meals frequently. If it is not time for a meal yet, you can supplement some food, but not too much. You must remember that this is not a meal, and you should still eat it normally. Food should be soft and loose. Some tough and refreshing things should not be eaten too much, because these things are the most difficult to digest. It is best to drink soup before meals, and drinking it after meals will increase digestion difficulties. It is best not to eat two or three hours before going to bed, otherwise it will easily affect your sleep.

People with stomach problems should give up smoking, drinking, coffee, strong tea, carbonated drinks (soda), spicy and sour foods, as these are the most damaging to the stomach. The stomach likes dryness and hates coldness, so cold drinks and ice cream must also be given up. Hot food is better. This is a test for everyone, especially in the hot summer season. There are two kinds of drinks that should be drunk more often: milk and hot water. Milk can form a protective film for the stomach. It is best to drink a glass of milk every morning before eating [1]. Drink more water, especially hot water, because people often mistake lack of water for hunger.

In non-acute cases, it is not recommended to take medicine, because long-term medication has side effects, and gastric disease is a chronic disease that cannot be cured in a short period of time. If necessary, it is recommended to see a Chinese medicine doctor, whose prescriptions are particularly effective for nourishing the stomach.

There is another rule that everyone knows but is difficult to do: insist on participating in appropriate physical activities, such as walking, jogging, practicing Tai Chi, and doing Qigong. Appropriate physical exercise can improve the gastrointestinal function of the human body, strengthen gastrointestinal motility, increase the secretion of digestive juices, promote food digestion and absorption of nutrients, and improve the blood circulation of the gastrointestinal tract itself, promote its metabolism, and delay the aging of the digestive system. You can also lie in bed and massage the upper and lower abdomen with both hands before going to bed at night, back and forth, which can help the spleen function, remove stagnation, and clear foul air, and has a good health care effect on the spleen and stomach [2]. However, people with stomach problems should not exercise after meals. It is best to rest and wait until the food in the stomach is almost digested before starting to work, or take a slow walk, which is also better for digestion. In short, it is not advisable to work after meals.

Gastric disease is a chronic disease that cannot be cured in a short period of time. The best way to cure it is to "nourish" it. It cannot be achieved in a hurry and can only be achieved through the improvement of living habits. We all need a good stomach, and these changes in habits are necessary.

References:

1. Lv Chuanbin. Fermented food: a good friend of the stomach and intestines[J]. PLA Health, 2021(03):39.

2. Tao Shixiu. Six tips for the Spring Festival to rejuvenate the stomach and intestines[J]. Health Care Medical Garden, 2021(02):12-13.