Bioavailability: Using the Food We Eat In the Body We Have (Part One)   
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Bioavailability: Using the Food We Eat In the Body We Have (Part One)

August 21, 2018

By Mary Brighton, M.S., RDN

Integrative Nutritionist

“Food is all those substances which, submitted to the action of the stomach, can be assimilated or changed into life by digestion, and can thus repair the losses which the human body suffers through the act of living.” Jean Brillat-Savarin

My last blog post ,“Tell Me What You Eat and I Will Tell You Who You Are”, focused on food and water and the importance of mindfulness and making meals a sacred part of your day.

But good nutrition isn’t only about taking time for meals and eating healthy foods. There are two critical next steps: digesting and absorbing the food you eat. This *bioavailability* of food depends on that delicate process to “use the food we eat in the body we have.”

You have to use the foods you eat efficiently with the biological needs of your body both in how your body uses foods but also how foods we eat are nutrient-available for the body it enters! In other words, we cannot assume just because we open our mouth to eat a healthy diet that we use all the nutrients present in those foods. Digestion and absorption of nutrients is incredibly complex but is so critical for good health and overall wellbeing.

How do we know if our bodies are *bioavailable* and using food efficiently? The main area where most digestion and absorption of nutrients takes place is the small intestine, so problems in this area of the body puts you at risk for nutrition-related and other health issues. Chronic constipation, diarrhea, bloating, gas or frothy stools are a body’s signal that something is going wrong in your gut.

Furthermore, a poor diet lacking fruits, vegetables and variety of whole foods, chronic stress, trauma, and overuse of certain medications can put the gut area at risk for dysbiosis, an imbalance of good and bad bacteria in the intestinal flora. This leads to increased risk of inflammation in the gut and other health problems.

Here at Hackensack Meridian Integrative Health & Medicine, we look at a whole body approach, and support a Five Pillar approach (Purpose, Activity, Nutrition, Sleep and Resilience) to improve and optimize your health. We realize that an imbalance in one of these pillars can influence digestion and absorption of nutrients. We address this in our nutrition and health assessments and support you to be the best health shape you can be, one bite at a time!

In Part Two of Bioavailability: Using the Food We Eat in the Body We Have—how preparation of food and combining certain nutrients can influence the bioavailability of that food.

To meet with one of our nutritionists and learn more, . We are currently taking appointments in our Jackson and Old Bridge offices.

Click here for more information about Hackensack Meridian Integrative Health & Medicine or call 732-263-7999.

Twitter: @HMIntegrativeHM

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