What does carbonation do for your digestive system?

What does carbonation do for your digestive system?

Good Question !!

Everywhere we look now we see carbonated beverages. They are a part of everyday life. Sodas, energy drinks, beer… So what are these fizzy drinks doing to our digestive systems?

The easiest way we can describe what’s happening is to think about a bathroom bubbling cleaner. You’ve seen the brand Scrubbing Bubbles TM? The cleaner fizzes and bubbles on the soap scum and it helps lift it away so the surface gets cleaner easier.

This is great for scrubbing bathrooms or even for carpet cleaners, but here’s the deal in your digestive system: You have a mucus coating along the interior of your digestive tract. This coating protects your intestinal wall, colon etc from being exposed to acid that your body can produce to digest your food. The carbonation in fizzy drinks can have this same cleansing action on your protective mucosal lining.

Drinking carbonated beverages over time has the potential to damage and remove that lining that we are trying so hard to replace.

We realize that nobody wants to hear you cant drink carbonation, we like it. But the fact is, if you have a digestive issue, carbonated drinks can increase the frequency of problems, including flare ups.

Just a few ideas to help you avoid carbonation… Instead of soda, consider ordering water, very healthy and most people don’t drink enough of it. OR… if you’re needing some caffeine, try tea. Most restaurants have sweet and unsweet tea to suit your taste (Rachel’s Tea is also a healthy alternative and helps digestion). If you don’t like tea, you can always do some kind of juice or flavored water as well.

Just a few ideas to help you avoid carbonation… Instead of soda, consider ordering water, very healthy and most people don’t drink enough of it. OR… if you’re needing some caffeine, try tea. Most restaurants have sweet and unsweet tea to suit your taste (Rachel’s Tea is also a healthy alternative and helps digestion). If you don’t like tea, you can always do some kind of juice or flavored water as well.

As a beer alternative, you could switch to wine or mixed drinks that don’t have carbonated mixers. Alcohol is generally acidic and while we don’t advise drinking it (especially when you’re having digestive troubles) if you choose to drink avoiding carbonation is very important.

When replacing energy drinks, try a tea for energy like Rachel’s Slim Tea or a green tea of some kind. The caffeine in a natural tea can give you a great energy boost without the crash energy drinks can deliver a few hours after consumption, or the jitters that you can get from chemical energy drinks.

If you struggle with digestive issues, please consider ditching the carbonation. Even if you don’t feel its effect immediately after drinking, its removing the protective armor that defends your gut from stomach acid and it’s not worth it. Trust us, we know from personal experience and coaching thousands of clients through difficult digestive disorders.