7 Gut Health Foods That Eliminate Bloating Forever (No More Diets!)

- So scientifically what actually happens is, as you start to age and go through the different phases in life, your, your body actually produces less digestive enzymes than it would normally, hence then, you know, adding to your bloating, constipation, et cetera. So what we wanna do in this, this case is actually start to bringing some additional foods that can really help producing and giving their body those additional enzymes.

- Welcome or welcome back to my channel where I post videos every week, empowering you to biohack hormone balance in your thirties and forties. I'm Stephanie Holland, creator of The Body Brain. Reset the ultimate guide to resetting your body and brain and feeling like yourself again. Tap that subscribe button to stay up to date on all the latest tips and strategies that me and my guests have for you every single week. And watch your free masterclass on how to reset your body and brain in your thirties and forties over bodybrainreset.co/masterclass In this episode, we share seven ridiculously simple ways to take back control of your gut health and to get your glow back when bloating and her evil step-siblings constipation and diarrhea terrorize you in your thirties and forties. I know from personal experience how bad it can be. In fact, this was one of my most acute overnight onset symptoms two years ago. Not only can it be so bad that you can't stand up straight sometimes, sleep or breathe properly because it can literally push on your diaphragm, but it can leave you feeling fat, disgusting, unsexy, and a fragment of your former self, which has an impact on your life, work, and relationships. If this is you, hang tight, we have you covered. Christine Baxter is a woman walking her own talk who went from feeling drained and plagued with gut issues herself to taking back control and getting her glow back without diets or strong medications. And now she helps other women do the same. So hold tight. You are about to get your glow back. So Christine, our body talks to us in magical and sometimes uncomfortable ways, and part of its vocabulary is bloating, sometimes accompanied by its evil step siblings, constipation and diarrhea. So what's going on in our thirties and forties? What are these causes of bloating?

- You know, we very much look at the gut because that's where everything originates from. And you know, some of the main causes of what we experience when it comes to the bloating, constipation and one of the ones that come up is specifically gut dysbiosis, which is that imbalance in gut bacteria between the good and the bad bacteria. That can cause bloating as well as if you have a diet that is high in processed foods that is very limited in fiber, that adds to it, as well as you know, if there's any hidden or unknown food sensitivities. 'cause this also can contribute to gut issues along with chronic stress, which is something we will be dialing into a bit later. And dehydration. So dehydration often leads to constipation because there's not enough water in the colon to allow for that motility to happen. And then one of the other ones is your medication. So certain medications like antidepressants can actually slow gut motility and painkillers can actually cause constipation as well. But one of the main ones that we see specifically with perimenopausal women is that of slow gut motility because of those hormonal fluctuations that are taking place. Not a lot of people realize that it actually does have an influence on the GI tract. So let's zoom in on that big time because that's what The Body Brain Reset is all about. These hormonal fluctuations that start in our thirties and forties. It's a predestined biological event. It happens to all women. And that is that at some point in our thirties and forties, our levels of progesterone, estrogen and testosterone will start to fluctuate more dramatically than usual and eventually fall, which is a huge problem because every single cell tissue in organ in our body is waiting for adequate levels of these hormones in order to function optimally. And of course the same goes for digestion. Yes. So just explain to us, please, Christine, what role do progesterone and estrogen play specifically with regard to our digestion?

- It's a really interesting combination in terms of how it actually works, because progesterone's main purpose when it comes to the GI tract is actually, it relaxes the smooth muscles that assist in that peristaltic movement. Okay? So when a progesterone does that, and then what it does in almost in a tug of war concept, you look at estrogen where estrogen is then responsible for the function and tone of the small muscles in their peristaltic movement, which tends to actually speed up digestion. So here you've got progesterone, which relaxes the gut, the GI tract, and you've got estrogen that speeds it up. So they kind of work in a push and pull approach, okay? So when you start to have those levels of estrogen, progesterone that start to decline, you can see how you start landing up with a, a lot slower bowel trods at times. And as well as you know that that peristaltic movement doesn't become as potent as it would normally, and that there leads to, you know, that slower passing, which hence has an effect on bloating, constipation, and weight gain. And why, another mention of this, is specifically if you can imagine if food is left in the, the colon to, to ferment because of the slower motility, you've got the bacteria that's then working on this food that then ferments it, that creates that excess gas because it's sitting there for longer. And that then also contributes to a bloating effect. That is what's really important to consider with that. But progesterone's also known to have a natural diuretic capability, so it helps with water retention. So when you are having that decrease in progesterone, you, you're prone to have more water retention. So that's what we see as well when it comes to, to bloating. And then with regards to estrogen, you have a community of bacteria in the gut, specifically known as the estrobolome and the estrobolome is actually about the gut bacteria that modulates and regulates the, the estrogen in, in the gut. All right? So if that community of bacteria is really important, because if that is obviously declining and it's not a good balance, it's going to affect your weight, it's gonna affect your mood, all those things as well. So it's very diverse in terms of how those perimenopause declines and the fluctuations of the hormones that you go through in that state actually starts to affect digestion. Yes, It is really crazy, isn't it, that our three reproductive hormones are not just about reproduction. So in a way that, that even the name is misleading because yes, those three hormones have such a, an important role in every, again, like I said before, every single cell system, and organ in the body, and who would know that they had such an important role to play in digestion. So estrogen also plays an important role in stimulating the production of adrenaline and cortisol. So let's briefly touch on adrenaline before we dive deep into cortisol. Tell us all about that. Why it's really important to note these hormones is because adrenaline and cortisol are produced by the adrenal glands. And the adrenal glands actually take on a lot of the, the, the hormone production when the ovaries start to retire. So it's actually important to realize that they were a secondary source now become a primary source. So they're not only now producing adrenaline and cortisol, but that also now have it an an additional job in terms of that estrogen and progesterone. Okay, so touching on adrenaline. So adrenaline is very much there as part of your survival mechanism, okay? It is what allows the body to actually respond to that fight or flight response. All right? It's the, the, the hormone that allows the body to get into that space. So what that means is it's increased circulation, increased blood pressure, all those things that's gonna help you in that survival response, right? And then it works hand in hand with cortisol because cortisol is then, allows the body to stay in that space. And how it does that is it actually stimulates then the, the release of additional glucose into the system, which gives you that increase in energy to the brain, the muscles to actually keep you in that response. Adrenaline is the one that actually triggers it, the fight or flight response. But cortisol is what actually keeps you in that space. And why we need to mention this is because your stress hormones become really important to consider when when you're going through perimenopause, because of the fact that it's very much a case of you have 'healthy' stress, okay? Which is, like I said, to get the body out of a stressful situation, which is important and needed for survival. Alright? So, you know, healthy stress is good and it it can keep you alert and that's good and it's needed. But the problem is when it comes into chronic stress. So chronic stress is in that fight or flight mode, but it's in a constant state. So the body never actually has a chance to snap out of that. And in that space, the need for cortisol is then higher. And this actually, through something called 'pregnenolone steel' basically can then steal progesterone from the body to actually produce additional cortisol. And this is quite interesting to note because of the fact that if you're already sitting with low levels of progesterone, but now in a a chronic stress situation, it's actually stealing that progesterone further. So you're sitting with extra low levels of progesterone. Then in this fight or flight mode where your body's producing higher than usual and sustained levels of adrenaline and cortisol, it's actually putting the essential processes of both reproduction and fat burning, as well as digestion as secondary. So it's really important for us to start to learn to identify the difference between healthy stress and unhealthy stress. What is that delicate, fine line? How do we know, how do we start to recognize for ourselves when we're tipping over into unhealthy stress? What are those key identifiers? It's very much a case of when something is in a prolonged situation, okay? You know, if something causes you stress to get you out of that situation, it's needed. But the problem comes in when it is over a prolonged period of time. And a lot of modern day life almost gears us towards that because you're sitting in, you know, a stressful relationship, you're sitting in a, a stressful work environment and the body's actually not having that ability to snap out of it, if I can put it that way. And the problem is with that, you know, like we said, that it, it looks at putting certain things then at secondary. So the best example of this is very much a case of if you imagine yourself in nature and you being chased by a bear, okay, the body's gonna see this, okay: 'Survival!' it's gonna obviously kick in your adrenaline & cortisol to get you out of that situation, right? In order to do that, the body needs to refocus all its attention in terms of increasing circulation energy, brain function, muscle action to get you out of that situation, right? So that is what's gonna be the main focus. So the body's not gonna sit there and be like, okay, so this is the perfect time to eat a meal and digest. This is the perfect time to have a baby. Oh this is the perfect time to lose weight. So what this is analogy is basically showing you is that it's gonna put certain things as a primary response first, okay? And that is to get you outta that situation. So if you are trying to lose weight when the body is in a chronic state of stress, it's not going to work. It's the same as why people struggle with fertility or even with why it messes with your digestion. It's because the body is not going to put those things as primary. Whereas when you move into a rest and digest space, which is when the body is out of chronic stress, then you're gonna be able to, the body will reset, putting digestion primary, reproduction primary and obviously weight loss. A lot of the times I do see my clients are struggling with weight loss and it's, you know, you might be eating the right thing and exercising, but it can very well be, if you look you've got that chronic stress in your life and you've got those chronic raised cortisol levels, it is going to be a challenge to, to lose that weight. I found it really fascinating to discover that not only being chased by a bear or you know, having all these stressful life situations and chronic stress, you know, of our day to day can impact digestion, but also actually doing any activity while eating can actually deflect and derail those energy resources into other functions of our body. Particularly being on devices while we're eating, working while we're eating. Funnily, years ago I heard the, the term desk-a-manger, which I thought was hilarious 'cause so many people do eat at their desk at work because they do lunch hours are really frowned upon. And also watching TV, watching Netflix while you're eating, all of that sort of diverting vital resources for digestion to other parts of the body, other functions of the body. And this guides us really seamlessly into the solutions. So talk to us a little bit about the top solution, well the first one we're gonna talk about anyway, which is mindful eating. Tell us a little bit about that. Mindful eating has become really important in this day and age because of the fact that the link that is there between the brain and the vagus nerve and digestion, all right, which is basically where it says that digestion starts in the brain first. All right? And it's really important because that's where mindful eating comes into play. You know, getting the body ready, sending those messages about the digestive enzymes to be released, the stomach acid to to get ready for the meal that's coming. So mindful eating is very much a case of being present with your food, being present in that moment. Like you were saying, not eating in a distracted place or in a distracted, you know, distracted environment. So having a meal at the table opposed to sitting in front of the TV and eating where it's actually distracting you and you tend to actually consume more than you need. So mindfulness also talks about being present, present about you know, what you're eating, enjoying your meal and actually taking it slowly. And this actually links to one of the first steps in digestion, which is chewing. So don't underestimate the power of good quality chewing because that's actually where it all originates/ starts. And if you're sitting in a mindful space, taking that time away to eat, like you said, not eating at your desk, it really already starts the digestive process going. I'm gonna throw a little curve ball in here. I found out recently that I'm a Manifesting Generator in the Human Design School of thought and that manifesting generators actually digest better out of direct sunlight. And I cannot tell you what a huge difference this has made to my digestion, is actually not sitting in the sunshine on my balcony anymore to eat, actually sitting inside with the curtains closed. I am so much more relaxed and my just digestion is so much better. So, you know, it's not just about all these scientifically proven methods for relaxation, it's also about drawing the inspiration and insights from whatever school of thought aligns with your values and implementing those and seeing what impact they have on you. It's really powerful. Okay, so let's move on to exercise. I know this really helps digestion, talk to us about how movement really helps.

- Okay, so you can't deny the fact that the body is designed to move. Okay. And in saying that,

- Oh I love that. Yes.

- And in saying that it's very much a case of, because it's designed to move, it's also there to designed to support other processes. It's designed to help in bloating, with constipation, things like that. Because as we were talking about that, that gut motility being stagnant or slow, that movement actually physically causing the body to move can really help to push that along. Alright? So any movement can really help in terms of really helping with the constipation and the bloating. It's because it stimulates the movement and within the body it doesn't have to be extensive movement, it just needs to be something that's gonna help you to, you know, regulate the body better. And this becomes really, really important specifically when you move into perimenopause because of the fact that you are then sitting with these & more prone to to slower gut motility. But something I do wanna mention in terms of what a lot of women don't realize when it comes to exercise and perimenopause is just to make sure that you're getting a good balance between the cardio, the resistance training, the weight training and not to overdo the cardio. Because cardio actually causes, can cause additional stress on the body and it can actually spike your cortisol levels. Therefore I do find that, you know, sometimes women are, you know, eating properly but they're doing hectic workouts and they can't understand why they're not losing their weight and it's because you're stimulating that cortisol production. So you wanna make sure that there is a nice balance between, you know, the weight training, the cardio, and obviously that resistance training because that is what's actually gonna help you to work with the body and not against it in that phase of life

- That resonates so much. I actually quit cardio about four years ago. I used to jog every day on the beach for 20 minutes and I just got to a point where it started to feel like it was stealing my energy, whereas previously it used to energize me. Yeah, so I think as we go through various life stages, the type of movement, the type of movement that we benefit from changes as well, it does, as we do. And you know, something that helps us feel fitter and stronger and healthier in different decades is completely different to what we did in our twenties. So that really resonates. And I wanna mention stretch and Pilates as well. Yes. And yoga, poses can be so powerful, & stretch and yoga and in particular I found the happy baby pose really instantly created flow and movement in my body and gave such relief to acute experiences of bloating. So you mentioned digestive enzymes previously. Obviously our body produces those naturally as part of its natural function. How do we get more of those on purpose?

- Okay, so scientifically what actually happens is as you start to age and go through the different phases in life, your body actually produces less digestive enzymes than it would normally, hence then you know, adding to your bloating, constipation, et cetera. So what we wanna do in this, this case is actually start to bring in some additional foods that can really help producing, giving the body those additional enzymes. So one of the ones we look at is pineapple. So 'bromelain' is the enzyme there and it really helps in terms of just, you know, breaking that food down so that it allows nutrient absorption to actually take place. But a really good tip in addition to that is actually just eating something raw before your main meal. So for example, like a a green salad or you know, raw vegetables or anything along those lines. So it is the raw untouched vegetables that actually contain those digestive enzymes as well. That's gonna just help to break that food down further.

- My grandma's trick was a tablespoon of alfalfa actually. Before meals, which she said, you know, for the last 60 years apparently she did that. So you know, a lot of this knowledge, where did it go? It kind of just like, you know, got caught in the slipstream of Instagram or something. I dunno, I'm really excited to bring all this good stuff back. Now you mentioned Bromelain and pineapple. So for example, you start eating pineapple every day. How much pineapple would you need to eat for this to be helpful?

- So literally a simple slice is all you really need.

- All right, so let's get into the juicy topic of gut foods, right? So we have anti-inflammatory foods which are really helpful for digestion, but also avoiding pro-inflammatory foods is helpful 'cause then you get that nice balance. So first talk to us a little bit about anti-inflammatory foods, how they work and just give us two or three examples.

- Anti-inflammatory foods. You wanna look at things like, you know, your, your salmon, your oily fish 'cause they're really big in their omega threes. So your omega threes have an amazing anti-inflammatory effect on the system. All right, so the way that I always look at anti-inflammatory foods is if you look at inflammation in the body as fire, anti-inflammatory foods basically work in terms of putting sand on the fire. So if inflammation is seen as a fire in the body, these anti-inflammatory foods are really gonna work in terms of bringing that inflammation down. So some of my favorites are things like turmeric. You're gonna look at, like I said, your salmon 'cause of the omega threes. You're gonna look at your berries 'cause they're high antioxidants as well as you know, your ginger, things like that. So it's all your natural herbs that you can just bring in your natural spices, things like that. They're phenomenal in terms of dampering that inflammation in the system.

- So it's all very well and good adding anti-inflammatory foods to your diet. But if you're still eating pro-inflammatory foods, that doesn't really help, right? So what should we avoid?

- So this is very key because there's a lot of foods out there that do cause inflammation in the body. It's a lot of your fried foods. Things are your vegetable oils, okay? Your processed meats, red meat, as well. And sometimes you know, dairy, as well as wheat can also cause inflammation in the body. So you wanna reduce this as much as possible. Something else that'll add to this as well is anything that is white-flour based. So your refined foods, this is highly inflammatory in the body as well.

- That's interesting. We had Star Khechara on the show last week and she emphasized the importance of eating wholefood fats like the whole avocado, And whole olives, as opposed to oil. So that totally aligns with what you are saying there. Let's get onto the topic of prebiotics and probiotics. What's the difference? How do they help?

- When it comes to the gut, you gotta look at it as a community in terms of the bacteria that is there. I like to always refer to it as a rainforest because of the diversity that is prevalent/ present. So you wanna look into feeding it properly. Okay? So that's where we get the prebiotics. The prebiotics are basically the food that is going to feed your good bacteria in the gut. And this can be found in foods like artichokes, asparagus, garlic, onions, things like that. So including this in the diet can really, really help 'cause you wanna feed that good bacteria. So then you wanna look at bringing in probiotics, which is actually the good bacteria that you're bringing in. So the more diverse it is, the better your, your chances of weight loss and the better your health will be because your gut obviously is responsible for immune regulation and things like that. So the more diversity you can add in the better. So with your probiotic foods, you wanna look at things like kombucha, alfalfa, sauerkraut, things like that. And also, you know, yogurt works well as, but make sure that it's plain yogurt 'cause you don't wanna be bringing in that additional sugar. So using a good combination between your prebiotics and your probiotics, you're really gonna bring in that diversity for your your rainforest. And it's also gonna help in terms of just bringing in a good balance. So if you do struggle with gut dysbiosis, which is the imbalance of that bad bacteria, so the good bacteria, this is just gonna help to bring in some additional colonies to fight the bad guys.

- Amazing. We always need to fight the bad guys. So last but not least, one of my favorite, favorite solutions - and the reason I recommend to all my girlfriends to add figs and pears to their breakfast cereal or smoothies - and that is fiber. Tell us about how fiber helps.

- Okay, so fiber is one of those things that you cannot go without. You know, whether it's for your hormone balance, whether it's for your blood sugar stabilization, or whether it's for your gut fiber is the one thing that the body needs desperately, okay? And a lot of the times we don't get enough in, but the good sources are things like your fruit and vegetables, your nuts and seeds. I'm a big fan of flax seed powder that also works really nicely. Putting that in a smoothie and then, you know, also your legumes, things like that, that's gonna bring in enough fiber. So what's really important here as well is because fiber works in terms of brushing the colon out and it's gonna help with that, that gut motility as well. And that is why you can't not have it in your diet. And from a hormone balance point of view, why this is so important is because once the body has used the hormones that it needs, it actually packs it up. So we call them then dirty hormones and those dirty hormones get packed up into the colon to be evacuated, all right, along with the toxins and things like that. But now this is why it's so important to make sure that you're having regular bowel movements, because if you're not, what happens is that can actually get reabsorbed back into the system and therefore then adds to hormone imbalance. So you don't want that happening because then that can also start affecting, you know, toxin levels, things like that. And like I said, hormone balancing. So it's really important to have that fiber daily, make sure that you're going once a day, once or twice a day, that's what you wanna aim for. And obviously being really important with perimenopause because you are already prone to that slower gut motility. And why the fiber is also essential is it's gonna help you with that bloating, it's gonna help you with that constipation and it's gonna help in just terms of regulating your hormones as well.

- Yeah, and the irony is that a lot of people turn to cardboard type cereals and crackers to get more fiber in, which actually dehydrates the body takes so much water away from your cells, and just makes everything so dehydrated. And of course, as you mentioned, dehydration is one of the primary causes of bloating. So stick to the fruit and veg, the nuts and seeds, and the legumes. Okay, so you've given us a ton of solutions there. We don't have to add them all at the same time, we can add them all slowly over time. But what would be your advice to just take that one step today? How do you choose that one solution to just go out and start and and and buy or just start trying today?

- Okay, so what's really important when it comes to diet and lifestyle and wanting to make positive changes in your life is to actually just choose one small thing at a time. Because every small step is actually gonna make a change in your life and it's gonna help to move you forward. You don't need to try and change everything all at once because those two can be very overwhelming. So pick one thing that is manageable for you and start there,

- Christine, for me that would be pineapple because that is just the the most delicious thing. And if you squeeze a little bit of lime on it, it is the most, it is the best dessert. It is the best starter, it is the best meal. Pineapple all way! Christine, thank you so much.

- It's only a pleasure and thank you for having me on your show.