Sore Belly/Diarrhea Recovery Food Ideas and Practice Pearls
Basic recommendations and some favourite recipes to get you nourished and feeling better after diarrhea or if you have weak digestion/"digestive fire".
Everyone is unique but a couple general recommendations to start is to 1. really chew your food so your body gets it in a very broken down absorbable form 2. limit raw food (warm food time) and 3. soak nuts or grains overnight to - as with the chewing - decrease the work the digestive system needs to do at this time.
Here are some other favourites:
1. Ginger and high quality probiotics are my first line go to's. Keep some whole ginger root in your freezer at all times as this is so helpful to have at the start of digestive and immune symptoms. The HMF Intensive at the clinic is the probiotic has been a best seller for over 15 years so we recommend that as our first choice - with diarrhea I recommend avoiding probiotics tat have FOS (fructo-oligosaccharides) as part of it - it will say so on the label.
2. Slippery elm powder - as a tea or mixed with yoghurt or applesauce - very soothing. You can purchase this bulk at health food stores.
3. Congees - there are many 'congee' recipes out there - comes from traditional chinese medicine. A simple one is 1 cup of rice to 9 cups water. Add grated ginger to it and bring to a boil. Then turn it way low and let it simmer covered for a couple hours. This is as unfancy as you can get with cooking but your digestive system will more than likely love it! Adding some very finely cut up chicken or turkey in there is an easy protein variation excellent especially if you are Blood type O.
4. * KEY Soup for diarrhea: The Electrolyte Replacement Soup - zuccinni, potato peels. celery. Chop it all up, boil it for a bit till the water gets brothy looking. Strain, add a whole salt to taste (i.e. Celtic or Himalayan) and drink up. Warm beverages are excellent for the digestive system and this one is packed with the very nutrients you lose with diarrhea. This will help your brain come back online after repeated diarrhea. I've been there during my India trip and can attest to how important replenishing electrolytes are when you have diarrhea!
5. Miso soup - 1 tsp - 1 Tbsp miso paste in 1 cup hot water and boom you have a super digestible protein rich meal. You can find the containers of miso paste in the refrigerator section of most health food stores. It is made from soy so I would recommend sticking with nonGMO soy. As it is fermented it is the top soy product I recommend. Soooo easy!
6. Bone broth - our favourite is the Osso brand. We often have some in the freezer at the office at a special client rate because myself and the staff like to have some for backup when we haven't had time to make some from scratch ... it happens! Bone broth is packed with nutrients easily absorbed and utilized for healing by the digestive tract.
7. The unda drainage and repair medicines are what I find works best for chronic digestive issues that need a bit more than the basics above. These can be used even for very young children with good results and are thankfully easy to take.
"I love the undas!" Jill, mom of 3
8. Lastly, figure out your food sensitivities either by an elimination diet or blood test. Figuring out your food sensitivities is a simple way to decrease inflammation in the gut and body in general. We offer several kits at the office. The 120 food assessment is the most popular and it takes 10 days to receive results. This test is highly recommended if you have chronic inflammation of any kind or poor digestion. For more info click on the link below ...
