I know trying to figure out “what to eat for bloat relief” can be confusing.
I totally get it – constipation and bloat are complicated and challenging. But, if there’s one thing I know you’ve learned from my page, it’s the importance of a non-restrictive, balanced diet.
The best diet for bloat relief is the one that provides you with the widest variety of nutrients and the least amount of stress (and symptoms).
Often time clients will end up in my gutTogether program having tried every elimination diet possible–they are confused, frustrated, stressed, and STILL bloated. Although temporary restriction of a FEW things may provide some bloat relief, long term restriction of A LOT of things will not.
One of my current clients, Amy, was sharing with me that she had such a BIG lightbulb moment a few weeks ago. She realized that even though she had continued to eliminate foods to reduce bloat she still felt the same as before all the food restrictions, if not worse. She would cut something out, find relief for 2 weeks and then start feeling bloated again. The cycle repeated until she found herself paralyzed by food, scared to eat and confused about what actually would help her bloat.
The restriction was leaving her social life in shambles which was adding even more stress. As she had this lightbulb moment she really started working on her mindset around food and WHY she was so scared to add foods back in. For her, having this lightbulb moment motivated her to understand the root cause of her bloat versus limiting herself and adding more stress. She slowly started adding foods back in, and actually felt BETTER!
We know from research that the gut THRIVES with variety, so cutting out food groups left and right could be the underlying reason WHY you are still bloated (even though you are only eating 5 foods). We also know how important blood sugar balance is for a happy gut, so the more restricted your diet gets, the harder it becomes to manage blood sugar. In addition to this, long term restriction can lead to nutrient deficiencies that further exacerbate your bloat (ex: magnesium deficiency can make constipation and low stomach acid worse!)
Here’s a few key things to remember:
- Less stress = balanced cortisol levels. If your restrictive diet is causing you stress this is impacting your cortisol levels. High cortisol slows your digestion, which can cause uncomfortable bloat; the more you can manage stress, the better!
- Your “good gut bugs” LOVE when you eat a wide variety of foods! The wider variety of food you eat, the wider variety of diversity in your gut – AKA, happier digestion!
- Back on the topic of cortisol… If your diet is SO restricted that you’re blood sugar isn’t balanced, this could be doing more harm than good. When blood sugar dips, cortisol spikes, so learning how to keep blood sugar balanced is another key to healthy digestion.
Clients often come to me having tried “everything,” but still feeling bad. They’ve spent more money than they wanted to on fad diets that claim to heal the gut, to no avail. They’re sick of feeling 6 months pregnant by the end of the day, and don’t want to fear foods anymore!
When we work together, we take a step back to evaluate your EVERYTHING contributing to your bloat, even beyond food, because it all works together to help or hurt your gut.
When we identify the underlying causes of the bloat (such as dysbiosis, low stomach acid, hypothyroidism or even a restricted diet) we can rebuild your gut, eliminate symptoms FOR GOOD and empower you with tools to manage bloat long term without having to restrict all the foods you love!
