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Digestive Symptoms: What Is Your Gut Trying to Tell You?
Bloating, Gas, Constipation, Reflux, and the Clues Your Digestive System May Be Giving You
If you have been living with digestive symptoms such as bloating, gas, constipation, diarrhea, acid reflux, heartburn, stomach discomfort, fatigue, or unpredictable trips to the bathroom, there is a good chance you have started organizing your life around your symptoms.
You know which pants feel comfortable by the end of the day.
You know which restaurants have accessible bathrooms.
You know how far you can travel before you need to stop.
You may turn down invitations because you do not know how your stomach is going to behave.
You may even have reached the point where you simply say:
“This is just how my body is.”
I hear that all the time.
And one of the most important things I teach my patients is that digestive symptoms give us information.
Your digestive system is communicating with you.
The goal is to better understand what it may be saying.
At Harmony with Food, my philosophy has always been:
Test, Don’t Guess
I have been a registered dietitian and functional nutritionist for more than 20 years, and I also dealt with my own gastrointestinal issues that were finally resolved more than 15 years ago.
That experience shaped the way I practice today.
When someone comes to me with digestive symptoms such as bloating, constipation, gas, diarrhea, reflux, heartburn, fatigue, stomach discomfort, or weight-loss resistance that have persisted for months or years, I want to understand the larger picture.
What are your symptoms?
When do they occur?
How long have they been happening?
What is happening in your microbiome?
Are there food sensitivities?
Are there bacterial imbalances?
What are your micronutrient levels?
Are you absorbing the nutrients from the foods you eat?
Is inflammation involved?
How are your bowel movements?
Are you sleeping?
Are you under chronic stress?
Are you taking medications that may be influencing digestion?
There are many possible pieces.
That is why randomly eliminating foods, purchasing another probiotic, or adding another supplement can become an exhausting cycle.
There is a more organized way to approach digestive health.
When Your Labs Are “Normal” but You Still Have Digestive Symptoms
One of the most common things people tell me is:
“My doctor says my labs are normal.”
Meanwhile, they are bloated every afternoon.
They are exhausted.
They are constipated for days.
They experience frequent or urgent bowel movements.
They have heartburn, indigestion, or reflux after meals.
Their stomach feels uncomfortable or unusually full.
They may be avoiding certain foods because they have no idea what will trigger their symptoms.
They are not imagining those digestive symptoms.
Standard laboratory testing provides one kind of information.
Functional nutrition can look at additional areas such as the microbiome, food sensitivities, micronutrient status, and other gastrointestinal markers that may provide more information about digestion and overall gut health.
I frequently work with people who have already seen their primary-care doctor or gastroenterologist.
Some have had extensive GI testing.
Some have been told they have irritable bowel syndrome, or IBS.
Some have been prescribed medication.
Some have been told to drink more water, eat more fiber, change their diet, or better manage stress.
Those recommendations may be appropriate pieces of the puzzle.
My work focuses on looking more deeply at the nutritional and functional patterns that may be contributing to ongoing digestive symptoms.
I do not diagnose.
I do not prescribe.
I work within my scope as a registered dietitian and functional nutritionist to help people investigate what may be happening nutritionally and within the gastrointestinal system.
And I believe strongly in collaboration with physicians and other healthcare providers.
Irritable Bowel Syndrome Can Be a Starting Point for More Questions
Irritable bowel syndrome, commonly called IBS, is common, and the symptoms can look very different from one person to another.
Some people struggle primarily with constipation.
Some struggle with diarrhea.
Some alternate between constipation and diarrhea.
Others experience abdominal pain, stomach cramps, bloating, gas, discomfort, urgency, or changes in their bowel movements.
When I work with someone who has been told they have irritable bowel syndrome, I want to learn more about their individual pattern of digestive symptoms.
When does the bloating happen?
Immediately after meals?
Several hours later?
At the end of every day?
Does constipation accompany it?
Is there diarrhea or urgency?
Is there stomach pain or cramping?
Does the person feel that food is not being properly digested?
What medications are they using?
What does their microbiome look like?
Are certain organisms overgrown?
Are beneficial organisms low?
Are there signs that additional testing would be useful?
The symptoms help us ask better questions.
And better questions give us a clearer direction.
That is one reason I am constantly telling people:
Test, don’t guess.
Your Bloating and Gas Pattern Can Tell Us Something
Gas and bloating are common digestive symptoms and are frequently connected to fermentation within the gastrointestinal tract.
Bacteria break down food and produce gases as byproducts.
The amount, location, and timing of that fermentation can influence how your stomach and gut feel.
That is one reason I ask patients to pay attention to timing.
If you become bloated very quickly after eating, that gives us one piece of information.
If the bloating, gas, fullness, or discomfort develops many hours later, that gives us another.
If you wake up feeling relatively comfortable and become progressively more bloated throughout the day, that pattern is useful too.
We can start looking at digestion, gut motility, microbial balance, meal patterns, food sensitivities, bowel movements, and the way the digestive tract is processing what you eat.
You are collecting data about your own body.
That can be incredibly empowering because you begin moving from frustration into investigation.
TRY THIS
For one week, write down:
What time you eat
What you eat and drink
When bloating begins
When gas begins
Any stomach pain or cramps
Bowel movement frequency
Stool consistency
Constipation or diarrhea
Heartburn, indigestion, or reflux symptoms
Feelings of unusual fullness
Energy levels
Sleep quality
Stress level
You are not trying to diagnose yourself.
You are creating a clearer health history that can help your healthcare providers understand the patterns behind your digestive symptoms.
Be Careful With the “Safe Food” List
People with chronic digestive symptoms often start creating a mental list of foods they believe they can and cannot eat.
I completely understand why.
You eat something.
A few hours later, your stomach hurts.
Maybe you feel bloated, gassy, overly full, or experience cramping or another kind of digestive discomfort.
You assume that food caused it.
So you stop eating it.
Then another meal seems to cause symptoms.
That goes on the list too.
Eventually, your list of “safe foods” becomes smaller and smaller.
You may begin avoiding entire food groups.
Some people become afraid to eat away from home.
Others feel like food has become a full-time job.
This is one of the reasons I prefer testing and a structured clinical approach whenever appropriate.
Digestive symptoms do not always occur immediately after the food, drink, supplement, or combination of factors that contributed to them.
Looking at the larger picture can help create a more accurate and individualized nutrition plan.
My goal is for people to gain clarity around food.
I want you to understand your body better.
I want eating to become easier again.
Heartburn and Acid Reflux Deserve Attention Too
Heartburn and acid reflux are extremely common digestive symptoms.
Some people experience burning after eating.
Others notice indigestion, belching, stomach discomfort, irritation in the throat, or symptoms that seem to worsen after certain foods or larger meals.
Many people manage heartburn or reflux for years with over-the-counter antacids or prescription acid-suppressing medications.
These medications can be very useful and medically appropriate.
If you are taking a prescribed medication such as a proton pump inhibitor, or PPI, you should never stop or change it without speaking with your prescriber.
Some medications need to be tapered.
There is also value in understanding the long-term picture.
If you have needed medication for acid reflux for months or years, talk openly with your physician.
Tell them how often your symptoms occur.
Tell them how long you have been taking the medication.
Ask whether additional evaluation is appropriate.
Ask what may be contributing to the reflux.
Stomach acid plays important roles in digestion, including protein digestion, nutrient absorption, and helping limit certain bacteria from moving farther into the digestive tract.
Long-term acid suppression has also been studied in connection with changes in the gut microbiome and small intestinal bacterial overgrowth, commonly called SIBO.
So when I work with someone who has chronic reflux or heartburn, I want to understand much more than whether those symptoms are present.
I want to understand what else may be happening throughout the digestive system.
What Could Be Contributing to Reflux and Heartburn?
Reflux can be influenced by several factors.
Depending upon the person, areas worth discussing with your healthcare team may include:
Meal timing
Portion size
Specific food triggers
Food sensitivities
H. pylori
Digestive function
Gastrointestinal inflammation
Microbial imbalance
Structural issues
Weight
Stress
Sleep
Medications
Your medical provider can help determine what evaluation is appropriate for your symptoms and health history.
Then functional nutrition can support the areas that fall within nutrition and lifestyle.
This is why I tell people to be their own healthcare advocate.
Write down your questions.
Bring your digestive symptom history.
Know how long you have been taking medications.
Know how often you experience reflux, heartburn, stomach pain, constipation, diarrhea, or other GI symptoms.
Pay attention to changes in your bowel movements.
The more complete the information, the better the conversation with your healthcare provider can become.
The Gut Microbiome Changes the Conversation
Your gastrointestinal tract contains trillions of microorganisms.
That includes hundreds of species of bacteria along with other organisms that interact with your digestion, immune system, metabolism, and the gut-brain axis.
This is one of the areas I find most fascinating about functional nutrition.
Instead of looking only at an individual digestive symptom such as bloating, constipation, gas, diarrhea, or stomach discomfort, we can begin asking:
What does the microbial environment look like?
Are beneficial bacteria present in healthy amounts?
Are certain bacteria overgrown?
Are there signs that further evaluation may be appropriate?
How well is the person digesting food?
What is happening with inflammation?
How is the immune system interacting with the gut?
What does the nutritional picture look like?
Is the body absorbing the nutrients it needs?
This is where testing can give us direction.
Why “I Tried a Probiotic” Does Not Tell Me Much
I hear this sentence constantly:
“I tried probiotics. They didn’t work.”
My next question is usually:
Which probiotic?
Different probiotic strains have different functions.
The number printed on the front of the bottle tells us very little about whether that product is appropriate for your particular digestive symptoms or gut health.
A bottle that says “50 billion” or “80 billion” can sound impressive.
I am much more interested in the strains.
What organisms are present?
Why are you taking them?
What did your testing show?
What are your symptoms?
Are you dealing with constipation, diarrhea, bloating, gas, discomfort, or another digestive issue?
What is happening in your microbiome?
When I work with patients, probiotics are selected intentionally.
There are cases where I may use more than one probiotic because we are working toward different goals within the microbiome.
The entire process is individualized.
That is also why supplementation works best within a larger nutrition and digestive health plan.
My Six-Step Methodology for Digestive Health
Over the years, I have developed a six-step methodology for addressing the types of digestive problems I see in my practice.
It grew from my own experience with GI issues, my training as a registered dietitian and functional nutritionist, and more than two decades of working with patients.
Every person is different.
The sequence gives us a framework.
Step 1: Remove
We start by looking for what may need to be removed or reduced.
That can include foods someone is reacting to, bacterial overgrowth, yeast, certain infections, or other factors identified through appropriate testing and health history.
The first step is about reducing the burden on the digestive system.
Step 2: Assess the Gut Environment
This is where testing can help us understand what may actually be happening.
Depending upon the case, I may use microbiome testing, stool testing, breath testing, food sensitivity testing, micronutrient testing, or other functional assessments.
I want data.
The testing helps guide the strategy rather than simply guessing at the cause of digestive symptoms.
Step 3: Support Beneficial Bacteria
Once we understand the microbial environment, we can begin selecting probiotic and prebiotic support based on the individual.
A healthy gut microbiome is not built through random supplementation.
It is cultivated intentionally.
Step 4: Reinoculate and Support the Intestinal Environment
Now we continue rebuilding.
We may be looking at bacterial balance, intestinal permeability, gastrointestinal markers, inflammation, and other findings from testing.
The goal is to create an environment where the gut and digestive system can function more effectively.
Step 5: Replace
Some people need additional digestive or nutritional support.
That may involve digestive enzymes, micronutrients, or other individualized nutrition strategies.
For example, the enzyme lactase helps digest lactose.
People produce different amounts of lactase, which helps explain why one person may tolerate dairy easily and another may not.
Nutrition is deeply individual.
The more we understand about the individual, the more precise the plan can become.
Step 6: Rebalance
This is one of the most important parts of the process.
Sleep affects the body.
Stress affects the gut.
Movement affects the body.
Your nervous system interacts with digestion.
Nutrition exists within a larger biological system.
So once we have addressed the microbial and nutritional pieces, we continue looking at how you live.
How are you sleeping?
How is your stress?
Are you moving regularly?
How is your energy?
How is your mood?
How sustainable is your current routine?
Long-term progress comes from supporting the person as a whole.
Fix the Gut, Fix the Brain. Fix the Brain, Fix the Gut.
I say this all the time on the Harmony with Food Show because the gut-brain connection is one of the most important areas of emerging nutrition science.
The gastrointestinal tract and the brain communicate constantly through neural, immune, hormonal, and microbial pathways.
Serotonin is heavily involved in gastrointestinal function, and much of the body's serotonin is produced within the gastrointestinal tract.
Researchers are also studying the relationship between the microbiome and neurotransmitter systems involving GABA, dopamine, tryptophan, and other compounds connected to neurological and psychological function.
This field continues to evolve.
For the person sitting in my office, though, the practical takeaway is very simple:
Your digestive health connects with the rest of you.
Energy.
Sleep.
Mood.
Immune function.
Nutrition.
Stress.
Movement.
Digestion.
They operate together.
That gives us many possible places to support the body.
And I find that hopeful.
Because when we identify areas that can be improved, we have something to work with.
Improvement in Digestive Symptoms Often Begins With Understanding
Many people come to me after dealing with digestive symptoms for years.
Bloating.
Gas.
Constipation.
Diarrhea.
Stomach discomfort.
Heartburn.
Reflux.
Changes in bowel movements.
Fatigue.
By that point, they are tired.
They are frustrated.
Some feel defeated.
Then we start collecting information.
We look at patterns.
We look at testing.
We look at nutrition, foods, stress, digestive function, and other factors that may be affecting the gut.
We identify areas that may need support.
We build a strategy.
And suddenly, their health feels less mysterious.
That shift can be powerful.
You begin understanding why we are making certain nutritional changes.
You begin recognizing patterns in your own body.
You begin making decisions from information.
You begin participating more actively in your healthcare.
For someone who has spent years feeling like their digestive system is unpredictable, knowledge can create a tremendous amount of hope.
There are steps you can take.
There are questions you can ask.
There are tests that may provide additional information.
There are nutritional strategies that can be personalized.
There are healthcare professionals who can help you put the pieces together.
You Deserve to Understand Your Digestive Symptoms
If you have been living with bloating, gas, constipation, diarrhea, reflux, heartburn, stomach discomfort, fatigue, or weight-loss resistance, begin by becoming curious about your body.
Track your digestive symptoms.
Pay attention to when they happen.
Notice changes in your bowel movements.
Talk with your healthcare providers.
Ask questions.
Learn about your medications.
Pay attention to your diet and foods that seem connected with symptoms.
Pay attention to your sleep.
Pay attention to your stress.
Pay attention to your digestive patterns.
And if you want to explore the functional nutrition side of your health, that is exactly what I do.
I help people investigate the nutritional, gastrointestinal, microbiome, food sensitivity, and micronutrient factors that may be contributing to how they feel.
You do not have to understand all of it before you begin.
That is what professionals are for.
My job is to help you take the information, organize it, and create a plan.
Ready to Stop Guessing?
A Functional Health Assessment is the first step in working with me.
During the assessment, we discuss your digestive symptoms, health history, goals, and the types of testing that may be appropriate for you.
Want to Learn First?
You can explore my free resources, blogs, podcasts, and radio segments at Harmony with Food.
And if you know someone who eats food, send them to HarmonyWithFood.com.
You know I had to say it.
Be proactive.
Be curious.
Be your own healthcare advocate.
And remember:
Test, don’t guess.
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