Alcohol and certain foods wreak havoc on the stomach and digestive system if taken in excess. If you plan to maintain a healthy gut, here is the bald truth about how we should temper our intake of food and drink!
• Alcoholic beverages – men should limit themselves to 21 units per week; women should consume no more that 14. That translates into 3 and 2 units per day respectively. Avoid binge drinking – your stomach may rebel, but your liver will suffer in silence until it is too late. Each of the following is a single unit:
• Spirits: single pub measure = 25ml
• Fortified wine: single pub measure = 50ml
• Wine: single pub measure = 125ml
• Ordinary beer or lager (3.5%): small can = 275ml
• Strong beer or lager (7%): ½ small can = 135ml
• Avoid foods that are too hot (temperature).
• Go easy on foods containing excessive quantities of hot peppers.
• Limit your caffeine intake. Experts suggest not drinking more than six caffeinated beverages a day (tea, coffee, cola). Drink less if you suffer from stomach ulcers, kidney disease, heart problems or high blood pressure. Caffeine is a mild stimulant commonly used to improve alertness and mental performance. Used in excess it causes insomnia, loss of calcium from bone, palpitations and tremors. In some people it triggers joint inflammation and migraines. Caffeine is addictive and can cause unpleasant withdrawal symptoms such as severe headaches and irritability.
If you want a healthy gut, live a healthy life!
How can we be surprised that diseases of the gut are on the increase when we know that our modern Western lifestyle is often less than healthy? Too much fat around the middle, smoking and lack of exercise set the stage for an unhealthy gut. Other habits that contribute towards gut problems are drinking excessive amounts of alcohol, using recreational drugs, running on the ragged edge of mental and physical exhaustion, caffeine addiction and consuming fatty takeaway foods as standard fare. Specific facts about how these lifestyle choices affect the gut are discussed in Chapter 5, ‘When Things Go Wrong’. Hundreds of self-help books and videos are available to help you overcome your personal lifestyle problems.
Passing years affect the way we look and feel. Our skin changes, we tend to feel less energetic, and we suffer more from niggling aches and pains due to wear and tear on joints and muscles. To fight off the years, we may try a new face cream, join a gym or start a diet designed to correct whatever we feel affects us most. We worry about our hearts, our brains, our muscles and our bones. And yet, as strange as it may seem, very few of us stop to worry about our ageing digestive system. We fail to recognize that caring for this part of our body can not only improve the way we feel, but – best of all – increase the likelihood we will live longer, healthier lives. Here are just a few ways ageing – and our behaviour as we age – affects our digestive system.
• Lost teeth and poorly fitted dentures can interfere with chewing. This makes it less likely that food will be crushed and mixed before reaching the stomach, thus slowing digestion.
• Many people avoid fresh fruits, such as apples, and nuts because they are hard to chew, missing out on needed vitamins, minerals and fibre.
• Meat may become difficult to chew – or prepare – and appears less frequently on the table, potentially reducing the intake of protein and vitamin B12 below healthy limits.
• Older people tend to drink too little water, thus failing to provide the watery environment needed for digestion. (Those worried about bladder control frequently suffer from this problem.)
• The stomach produces less acid with age, reducing the ability to digest proteins.
• Fewer digestive enzymes and secretions are produced by the pancreas and gut.
• Health problems may increase the need for regular medication that may have side-effects, altering the gut (see Appendix Two).
• A poor appetite and decreased activity are associated with ageing. A lowered food intake means that the body has less chance of getting the nutrients it needs.
• Smoking and drinking alcohol are habits that may become stronger with age. Smoking is sure to damage health. Consumed beyond moderation, alcohol can impair mental and physical health.
• Many older people may suffer from low levels of vitamin D because they tend to stay indoors, thus getting little exposure to sunlight.
• Preparing food becomes a bother and there is greater reliance on ready meals, thus reducing the intake of fresh fruit and vegetables.
All these factors lead to poor nutrition. Scientific studies have shown that it is not uncommon for older people to consume less than their daily requirement of calcium, magnesium, zinc, folate, and vitamins B6, B12 and D. There is only one word to describe the consequences: malnutrition! The cost is high. Consider one fact: low levels of just one of the nutrients listed, vitamin B12, can lead to poor balance and coordination and memory lapses.
What can be done about this? The simple basics are:
• Stay physically active to work up a good appetite.
• Make an effort to eat fresh foods that are a natural source of the nutrients you need.
• Find a pleasant place to sit in the sun and let your body build up valuable levels of vitamin D, the sunshine vitamin.
• Drink plenty of water.
• Choose simple-to-digest forms of protein, such as meaty soups and consommés.
• Enjoy live yoghurt whenever possible, and eat fresh fruits and vegetables every day.
If you feel that this is not enough, talk to your local chemist or doctor about taking vitamin supplements. If you wear dentures, see your dentist and make certain they fit properly. Later chapters explain how choosing the right foods can help you maintain a healthy body – no matter what your age!
Remember: Medical evidence shows that older people who eat plenty of fruits and vegetables live longer, healthier lives.
food allergies, intolerances and sensitivities
Not everything on your plate may be good for you. Eating the wrong foods can cause a variety of symptoms ranging in severity from mild headaches and constipation to life-threatening anaphylactic shock. Other symptoms are hives, skin rash, asthma and inflammation of the bowel. There is no agreement on how reactions to food should be classified, but in general, any reaction causing asthma, hives, swelling and potentially fatal anaphylactic shock is a food allergy. Migraine, nausea, gastro-intestinal distress and wind are most frequently referred to as symptoms of food intolerances. Less well-defined symptoms occurring when a food, or member of a group of foods, is consumed may be classified as food