Why Green Vegetables Are Important for Good Digestion

Many centuries ago doctors in some countries used to determine a person’s health by the colour of their urine or faeces. Urine can change colour and odour depending on what you eat and drink, what supplements you take, what prescription medications, how much exercise you do or, on a more serious note, what illnesses you have in your body.

Faeces colour also changes if your diet is not healthy your bowel functions will suffer. If you eat a lot of high processed foods then your digestion will be poor and you could become constipated, or get diarrhoea. The refined products of sugar, white flour, lactose and many unnatural ingredients affect our digestion and the health of all our organs. A diet rich in fruit and vegetables however will ensure you get some of your vitamins, minerals, fibre and antioxidants even though it is advisable to take a multivitamin anyway just to cope with the denatured impact of our environment and tampering that occurs with genetically modified foods these days. Fibre and water are important to help your body eliminate waste and if you don’t go to the toilet to empty your bowels on a daily basis you need to drink lots of filtered, boiled, warm water to get your digestion working better.

You will find if you eat a lot of dark coloured, green vegetables like kale and spinach your faeces will turn a darker green colour. Whilst this is OK if you are eating a lot of greens it is not OK if you don’t eat greens at all. It can be a sign of Salmonella infection or the Giardia parasite. Watch out for symptoms such as diarrhoea, cramps and fever if you have green stools. Also it can mean there is too much iron in your diet. Beetroot on the other hand may turn your stools reddish and often medications affect stools by making them appear whitish in colour. However if you see black in your stools keep an eye out for blood and report this to your doctor or health practitioner.

A good diet involves at least two or three fruits a day and the equivalent also of vegetables or salads. Leafy green vegetables are important due to their vitamin, mineral and antioxidant content. Kale for example has over 45 different flavonoids such as quercetin and kaempferol. These guard against inflammation in the body and free radicals which cause many of our illnesses. Autoimmune diseases like arthritis, lupus, some cancers and even asthma. Kale’s high fibre is good for your digestive system and will keep your bowel regular and healthy. Kale also has a lot of prebiotic ‘good gut’ bacteria which help fight illness.

Spinach is another dark green vegetable that has a more pleasant taste than Kale and can be steamed. As well as lots of phytonutrients like carotenoids, lutein and beta carotene it helps to lessen oxidative stress in such illnesses as cancer and helps with good bone health. The chlorophyll it contains will keep you regular. Add to it some broccoli, brussel sprouts and alfalfa and you will find that your health will improve in many areas if you do this on a regular basis.

As a rule we don’t eat enough greens in our diet and another group often neglected are collards which are similar to Kale. These have more calcium in them than milk and vitamins K, C and A. They fight against bad cholesterol so they are helpful in lessening the threat of heart disease and stroke. Often they can make a delicious dish if you lightly sauté them in olive or rice bran oil with onion and garlic.

So paying attention to the number of times you go to the bathroom and what comes out your posterior can be quite an indication as to what is happening with your digestion, heath and quality of the organs inside your body. Remember that what you put in will grow and develop and affect your whole organism so as a rule eat pure, wholesome, organic foods free of genetically modified tampering and begin to compare how much energy you have to when you eat otherwise, less healthy foods. The proof is in how you look, feel and what illnesses you don’t develop as you get older. Only time will tell.