Let’s talk about indigestion. That heavy, uncomfortably full feeling you get just following your meal. Feeling like you have a brick in your stomach and you just can’t digest your food. Maybe it leads to bloating, burping, nausea, or actually causes pain and a burning deep in your upper abdomen. You may feel sleepy and sluggish after the meal. Any one or all of these symptoms could be present. So not fun.
Things that can cause indigestion:
Low Agni (digestive fire)
Eating too much at one sitting
Eating a heavy, very liquid, and dense meal
Emotional eating
Wrong food combining
Wrong diet for your constitution
Fundamentally, effective digestion depends on the strength of your Agni, and all of these things listed above adversely affect your Agni, leading to indigestion.
Avoiding these contributing factors is the path to finding a resolution. Take an honest look at your food intake and habits around eating. If you need guidance here, consulting with an Ayurvedic Practitioner like myself is a great way to discover how to truly find balance in your unique digestive system.
First and foremost, when you have indigestion, DON’T EAT until it resolves. When your body is in this state, more food will just compound the issue and add more ama (toxins) to your system. Ama clogs the bodily channels and creates slow metabolism, fatigue, and malabsorption at the cellular level. Literally, avoid eating food until you find some relief. Then following this relief with a light meal is best.
There are several methods that can help boost your digestive fire to help avoid indigestion, but that is a whole other topic in itself. My Ayurveda 101 Series “Ground & Align” provides great detail on this. See the link for more information about this series and how to register. Also, see my blog on the digestive aid Ginger Pickle for a way to naturally boost your digestive fire.
In the meantime, here is a quick little remedy for Acute Indigestion. Three easy, readily available ingredients that can help provide instant relief.
~1 cup of warm Water
~Squeeze in ¼ fresh Lime Juice
~Add in ½ tsp of Baking Soda, stir
This will give an effervescent effect.
Drink it down slowly.
This should ultimately produce a relieving burp.
Although this remedy can give some on-the-spot relief, if there is chronic indigestion, it is in your best interest to investigate further with an Ayurvedic Practitioner.
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