Eating food should always be a relaxing and pleasurable experience, as well as nourishing to your body. Unfortunately, an increasing number of people eat on the run, swallow their food whole and consume unhealthy food, causing numerous digestion problems. In fact, it is quite likely that the majority of disease can be traced back to poor digestion. Good digestive health does not just mean breaking down your food properly; it also allows optimum nutrient absorption, immune function, detoxification, and chemical and hormone production. After all the substances in our body have to be made from something!



It is advised that food should be eaten without any distractions when you are in a calm state of mind and each bite chewed thoroughly. The digestion process actually begins when food becomes mixed with saliva. People tend to drink while they eat, however this is known to inhibit digestive juices, it is thought that you should actually not drink anything until 30 minutes after a meal.

People tend to mix too many food groups together at a meal, in particular people with weak digestive tracts can seriously benefit from eating their carbohydrates and proteins at different times during the day. Generally speaking most people eat the wrong types of food (non nutrious) and don’t consume an adequate amount of fresh vegetables and fruits. These fresh fruits and vegetables provide us with enzymes that aid digestion and allow us to absorb nutrients better. Raw fruits and vegetables are best, but filling your plate with fresh or frozen cooked vegetables is also benefical. Most people are guilty of over consumption of food, which can also be detrimental to digestion.



There are many problems associated with digestion and the intestinal tract, some can be as a result of the factors already described above, however some symptoms indicate a more serious problem. Below is a brief list of common symptoms that could indicate a serious problem:

 Abdominal pain, particularly radiating to the back
 Difficultly swallowing
 Pain on swallowing
 Blood in the stools
 Symptoms are affected by food
 Fever
 Constipation
 Diahorreoa
 Abdominal tenderness

Osteopaths are trained to screen for and treat digestion problems. Osteopathy may not appear to be the most obvious choice, however, the intestinal tract is made from muscle and therefore can be influenced by osteopathic techniques. For example many patients have reported a positive outcome with osteopathic treatment for their Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS). Indeed patients presenting with back pain, turn out to have problems within their intestinal tract and vica-versa, the nerves that supply and feedback from the intestinal tract are located in the spine. If the osteopath feels there is a more sinister cause to the symptoms then they will refer you to the appropriate health care practitioner.

If you feel that you have digestive trouble and you wish to consult an osteopath, please follow the link below:

Digestion Problems