Can Mindfulness Help Your Digestion?

A few years back, I was experiencing what it felt like to be in my 20s. Fatigue and constant bloating are common.. I could tell my digestion was suffering, and after weeks of trying to take Google’s advice on how to fix it—cutting caffeine, adding probiotics, avoiding all carbohydrates ever—I finally decided to consult an expert. Enter: Jennie Miremadi, MS, CNS, LDN, a licensed functional medicine nutritionist and the person who gave me a path to “beat the bloat” without forcing me to forgo all the foods I love. Her first suggestion was mindfulness through mindful eating. ConceptIt completely changed my perception of nutrition.

Yes, nutrients are important. It is also important to have a healthy microbiome. But there’s another piece to the puzzle, and it’s largely absent in most conversations about gut health: our state of mind. Miremadi was kind enough to share her expert insight on how mindfulness can influence the way our bodies process foods. You will see your next meal differently.

What is mindful eating? And why should we be practicing it?

Mindful eating is at the core of mindful eating. It reconnects us with our hunger cues. Although our bodies have many built-in mechanisms that tell us when we need fuel, many people learn to overthink these systems and make decisions that are not in their best interest. This can be due to ingrained food rules or emotional eating. “I see this frequently with new clients who are completely disconnected from their innate hunger signals,” Miremadi explained. “They can’t tell when they are hungry or physically full.” 

Mindless eating is much more common than you might think. Miremadi says that the most common example she sees is something we all do on a daily basis. “If you’ve ever been watching TV and eating food at the same time, you might find yourself so immersed in your show that you look down and realize that all of your food is gone, and you don’t even know where it went,” she said. “In these kinds of situations where you aren’t paying attention to your natural hunger signals, you may have eaten more food than your body is hungry for, which can leave you feeling overly full, bloated, and unwell.”

Do you sound familiar? If you’re having an “I feel seen” moment, you’re not alone! Thankfully, there’s still hope. “Mindful eating is a tool to help you reconnect with your innate hunger mechanisms and, with some practice, you can get this ability back. When you master mindful eating, you are one step closer to ending emotional eating, overeating, and binge eating.”

How can mindful eating influence digestion?

Miremadi explained that there’s a major connection between the digestive tract and the nervous system. WWhen your nervous system is relaxed, digestion will be enhanced. (this is also called your gut being in its “flow” state). “This means that you must be in a relaxed state to properly digest your food. When you are stressed and in ‘fight or flight’ mode, your sympathetic nervous system is driving things. This causes your digestion to slow down. If you are stressed out, you’re going to have a much harder time digesting your food.”

“For clients whose digestive issues are being caused by eating in a stressed state or mindless overeating, mindful eating is the key to resolving their digestive issues,” Miremadi said. “I consider mindful eating just as important as diet, labs, and gut supplements. Without implementing it, many of my clients with gut issues cannot receive the complete digestive relief they are looking for.” However, mindless eating is not the sole cause of digestive issues, so if you’re dealing with bloating, stomach pain, etc., talk to your doctor about ways to heal the gut and digestion in addition to mindful eating. “I also see clients whose gut issues involve a multitude of factors. In these cases, eating slowly and mindfully is important for resolving their digestive issues, but it is only one of many necessary changes that they need to make.”

How to start a mindful eating program

While mindful eating comes down to being more present and intentional, Miremadi recommended a short deep-breathing “meditation” to try whenever you’re eating:

• Before you start to eat, ensure that you are comfortable. 
• Close your eyes. Breathe slowly and deeply. 
• For four seconds, hold your breath. 
• Breathe slowly and deeply. 
• Repeat this five times. 
• Open your eyes. You should be relaxed and ready to eat.

I can attest that mindful eating is a powerful tool. I still use the tools I learned many years ago. It may not feel accessible for every meal, but that’s OK. Start small when you’re eating meals alone or at home, and eventually you’ll even start to notice more connection to your food even when you’re out to dinner with friends.

It may take some time to really feel the effects, but don’t lose hope: After regularly practicing this meditation, limiting distractions during meals, and frequently checking in with my body before, during, and after eating, I crave the foods that feel better for my body and I’m able to finish a meal without falling into a food coma or blowing up like a balloon. It turned out, after years spent trying to find the right diet for me, I just needed the right mindset.