Where Digestion Starts and Why It’s Important

Where digestion actually starts may surprise you.  Digestion is a north-to-south process, starting in the brain and ending with a bowel movement.¹  It starts the moment you see, smell, and start thinking about eating.  

Our bodies have a difficult time knowing the difference between running from a bear and a stressful meeting or phone call.  When in a stressed state, the body will prioritize fight or flight over other functions of the body, including digestion.  With ongoing stress, important secretions are decreased for digestion, and the gut doesn’t have proper blood flow and digestive enzymes to break down food and absorb important nutrients.  Without starting off relaxed in the northern part of digestion, we risk dysfunction downstream in the stomach, pancreas, liver, and intestines. 

Being in a parasympathetic, or relaxed state, is key for proper digestion. It’s our “rest and digest” mode. ² How can you avoid having your sympathetic nervous system run the show?

• Take 5-10 slow, deep breaths before a meal.  

• Focus on giving thanks or prayer before eating. 

• Sit down to eat, rather than standing or multi-tasking.

• Savor. Take time to smell your food and think about it.  This helps put the focus on the act of eating and helps to get the salivary glands releasing digestive enzymes in preparation for digestion.

• Remove distractions such as your cell phone, computer, evening news, etc. from the table while you are eating.

These are simple, tangible, and powerful places to start in supporting your digestion.  Eating a meal shouldn’t be an accessory activity, but the MAIN activity…..try to avoid multitasking.   When you get into a relaxed place of “rest and digest”, your food can be properly broken down and supply your cells with what they need for vitality and structure. 

Have you tried any of the above ideas to support your digestion? If so,  I’d love to hear which one(s)!

References:

1. Nutritional Therapy Association.  Digestion-Function. [PDF file]. 2020. Pg 4. 
2. Tindle J, Tadi P.  Neuroanatomy, Parasympathetic Nervous System.  StatPearls Publishing. 2022 Jan-. Retrieved from Pubmed Database.