By now, you’ve likely heard about the importance of gut health.
Numerous studies have demonstrated the links between your gut health and your immune system, mood, mental health, autoimmune diseases, fatigue, endocrine disorders, and skin conditions!
Read more about how your gut health affects your mental health here: https://kerriaxelrod.com/brain-food-how-gut-health-affects-mental-health/
Water and Gut Health
Staying hydrated is one of the simplest and easiest ways you can promote a healthy gut.
Yes, incorporating things like prebiotics and probiotics, eating more fiber, reducing stress, and getting enough sleep are all important to your gut health (I’ll talk about those in another post), but drinking enough water is at the foundation for building good gut health.
Water isn’t a miracle cure, but it is essential.
Drinking plenty of water has been shown to have a beneficial effect on the mucosal lining of the intestines, as well as on the balance of good bacteria in the gut.
Water supports your digestion, which makes sure minerals and nutrients are being absorbed properly in the body. Without enough water, you can’t efficiently digest your food, which can also alter your gut flora.
Water also helps to flush toxins from our bodies and keeps our digestive systems moving.
Toxins and slow digestion affect our gut bacteria and kill off good bacteria. Studies show that the gut flora of patients with chronic constipation is different than those with healthy digestion.
Simple Ways to Drink More Water
How much water you should drink each day really depends on your lifestyle. Those who exercise frequently generally require more water; regardless, staying hydrated can be difficult for a lot of us unless we make it a deliberate habit to incorporate into our daily routine. Once drinking water becomes a habit, it will become a natural part of your routine, but you will have to spend time initially making it a habit.
Here are my simple tips for drinking more water throughout your day.
- Start the day with a big mason jar of water to wake up your body. Fill up a 16 oz. mason jar with water at night before you go to sleep and place it on your night stand. Drink the water upon waking before eating or drinking anything.
- Sip hot water with lemon. After I drink my mason jar of water in the morning, I make myself a mug of hot water with lemon as I’m preparing my morning tea or coffee. Add the juice of one lemon to a mug of hot (not boiling) water and sip on it before drinking your morning caffeine. To simulate sluggish digestion, add fresh ginger to your lemon water.
- Keep a bottle or a measurement so that you can check your water intake throughout the day. I fill up my 32 oz. water bottle twice during the day, aiming to drink one before lunch and one in the afternoon.
- Bring a water bottle to your workout and finish the whole thing before getting home. Depending on your workout, sipping on water during your exercise way not be the best option, but you’ll want to make sure you rehydrate after your workout. Bring a water bottle with you and make a point to finish the bottle before you get home.
- Buy a reusable water bottle you love. While I don’t love to encourage you to buy more stuff, drinking from plastic water bottles is not only harmful to the environment, but to your health as well. The chemicals from the plastic can seep into the water. You’re also much more likely to drink water from a bottle that you love. Here are a few water bottle options that I love: Hydro Flask (white), que Bottle, and, Yeti.
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