The best way to eliminate bloating is to make yourself aware of what you are putting in your body. This is not a quick fix but will work overtime, making the bloat disappear and improving your overall health.
It will be a change in your lifestyle, mainly your eating habits, but you will notice a difference in how you look and feel.
Start with simple carbohydrates.
Eliminating sugar, saturated fats, and simple carbohydrates like flour, pasta, bread, crackers, chips, etc., is a great place to start. Stick to the perimeters of the grocery stores where all the fresh produce, frozen items, and meat are. The items in the middle of the stores are the ones loaded with extra sugars, unhealthy fats, starches, and calories.
They may be more convenient, and you may have to prepare more meals from scratch, but that’s the best way of knowing exactly what you are consuming. You can also eliminate or reduce your alcohol consumption to speed up the process. Do this for several (at least six) months to see how your body responds. This may seem like it takes forever, but consider it an investment in your health as well as your future.
After all, the organs in your body do take a while to cleanse, especially if you have been feeding them unhealthy garbage for years. If simply eliminating the common culprits listed above does not give you the healthy body and lack of bloating you are striving for, you may have an allergy or sensitivity to one or more foods that are not on the list. There are multiple ways to determine what foods you are sensitive to or allergic to.
Food allergies, sensitivities, or intolerances
This is not an anaphylactic allergy, the kind that can kill you quickly, but more of a sensitivity, intolerance, or mild allergy involving your immune system.
Your body recognizes the offending food as a foreign intruder, creating an immune response in many organs. Antibodies formed in response to the immune system’s reaction to the intruder get deposited in many organs, causing a myriad of problems and symptoms. As well as bloating, you may suffer from skin rashes, achy joints, asthmatic lungs, and other issues within different body organs.
Celiac disease, IBS, Crohn’s, and ulcerative colitis
For example, people diagnosed with Celiac Disease have a severe intolerance of gluten. The small intestine is directly affected, while other organs can be indirectly affected. IBS or Irritable Bowel Disease, including Crohn’s and Ulcerative Colitis, are also aggravated by ingesting foods that inflame the digestive tract and other organs.
The conclusive diagnosis of these digestive conditions is determined by a biopsy (a medical procedure) of the affected portion of the digestive tract, but you may suspect you have one of them by analyzing your symptoms. All of these diseases and conditions can cause bloating, a symptom at the top of the list of patients’ complaints.
Wheat and dairy intolerances
Other common foods that people are intolerant of or sensitive to are wheat and dairy products. Both cause mild to severe digestive issues, including bloating, stomach cramps, diarrhea, and/or constipation, as well as non-digestion-related symptoms such as extreme fatigue and depression. Wheat, dairy, and other common intolerances can be detected by simple blood tests or elimination methods.
Blood tests are the fastest way to determine what it is your body is reacting to but can be expensive if not covered by a health plan. Blood tests can be carried out by many health practitioners, including naturopaths. Some pharmacies also offer food allergy testing. An elimination method is free of charge but is less convenient and takes much longer to accomplish since your body takes a while to recover from the damage caused by one or more allergens. Unlike the undisputable blood test results that you receive printed out on a sheet of paper, elimination results are less straightforward.
Food options for intolerances
Fortunately for those that suffer from the intolerances mentioned, the food industry has stepped up to help and make these conditions much more manageable. There are currently many food options to choose from that are gluten, wheat, or dairy-free. Some grocery stores have whole sections devoted to special diets, and online shopping is more common and easier than ever, with delivery right to your door.
Getting started
So, if you want to banish your ever-present or sporadic bloating, take the time and make an effort to discover what you may be overly sensitive to. The better your body feels and looks with the positive changes in your lifestyle, the easier it will be to continue adhering to them.
Fatigue and lack of energy should also be eliminated with this plan, leaving you feeling full of energy and motivation. The feelings you achieve with better general health are a vicious circle; the better you feel, the more you can do.
The more you do, the better you feel! Give the suggestions a try. What have you got to lose, other than the bloating? Oh, and a few other unpleasant and debilitating symptoms.
