The Importance of Digestion

Welcome back to my blog my lovely followers! If you believe that your body can heal itself, then this post may interest you. In my previous post, we discussed the six foundations of health and some early symptoms of dysfunction and some ways to support each of the foundations. I cannot begin to stress the importance of working on these foundations continuously! At the heart of everything, following a nutrient dense diet seems quite basic and straightforward but the impacts of adhering to one and focusing on the foundations discussed in the previous post goes so far and beyond that at first, it felt unbelievable to me.

Many of us only reach out for help when symptoms have become hard to manage. We are told that some conditions are hereditary and there is nothing we can do prevent or solve it, but what if I told you that YOU are in charge of your own health outcome. The consequences on our endocrine, immune, cardiovascular, detoxification and nervous system all stem from dysregulation foundations. Allopathic medicine has made us believe that the systems in our body work in isolation and we can directly treat the symptom. However, that is far from being true. Treating the symptoms is like putting a band aid on the wound, whereas, addressing the root cause slowly heals the entire body. My previous post highlighted the importance of a nutrient-dense diet and a calm nervous system while eating because we are what we digest, not what we eat. Honing down on this phrase, I’d like to show you how important digest is for these 5 consequence.

Endocrine:

When we think of our endocrine system, we commonly think of our thyroid, pancreas an our reproductive organs. We often think of them in isolation and believe that the common diseases that such as Diabetes, Thyroid Issues, Menopausal issues, Infertility, PCOS, Osteoporosis, etc., all come from no where or bad genetics. We also say that our hormones have changed and that’s why we are facing certain issues but have we stopped to wonder why our hormones have changed?

Let us first begin by discussing the functions of hormones:

1. Hormones help regulate many functions in our bodies, such as metabolism, energy balance, sleep-wake cycles, contraction of muscle fibres, some immune activities and more

2. They control growth and development

3. They govern operation of reproductive system (Nutritional Therapy Association Australia New Zealand, 2020)

Seeing how big of a role hormones have in our body, the next question to as is how do we best support them?

Here is a lesser known fact about the endocrine system – our stomach, liver, kidneys and small intestines also produce hormones (Nutritional Therapy Association Australia New Zealand, 2020). These organs are not classified as endocrine glands but have cells that perform endocrine function. This is where we can start to connect the dots. The endocrine system is reliant on the nutrients absorbed of macro and micronutrients in the digestive tract. They are the building blocks and co-factors in the synthesis of hormones.

Hormones control many cell activities and it is important to understand that they do not work in isolation. Hormones are constantly communicating with cells and itself to regulate the body to keep the body in homeostasis (Nutritional Therapy Association Australia New Zealand, 2020). So, if digestion is not optimal, hormones are not able to do their job e^iciently and if ignored for a long period of time, that is when you start seeing consequences in the endocrine system.

Immune:

The system we all believe is in charge of our health! Not false but there is so much more to it. We tend to focus on allergies, catching a cold, or the extreme scenario of autoimmune diseases but we do not consider many other symptoms as an immune reactions. We have normalize headaches, brain fog, bloating, eczema, dark circles and so many others, not viewing them as our immune system asking for help! As you read this, I ask you to challenge your belief and symptoms that you may consider “normal”, do not just accept it.

Let’s take a deeper look of the immune system. It is made up of three main sub-systems (Nutritional Therapy Association, 2022):

1. The Lymphatic System – With the primary organs being bone marrow and thymus and the secondary organs being the lymph nodes, vessels, mucosal associated lymphoid tissue and spleen.

2. The Digestive System – surprise, surprise! Every organ in the digestive system acts as a barrier against bacteria or any foreign invaders we may consume.

3. The Integumentary system – which consist of our skin, our barrier against the world

This emphasizes that our immune system is not one that works in isolation and is a complex network working together to ensure our health. What we think, eat and lather on our skin all affect our overall health.

Normalising basic symptoms is doing us more harm, especially if they stem from food sensitivities as they are “a major source of inflammation and gut damage” (Nutritional Therapy Association, 2022). As a result, a lot of resources go towards handling this inflammation and this is something that we should be mindful about. Our digestive tract is a barrier against bacteria or pathogens we may consume through our food, so it needs the resources to fight them. If we continuously burden our immune system by eating foods that do not serve us, we are increasing the likelihood of other diseases. Tune into to your body, pay attention to the small details and more importantly, honour the signs your body is presenting to you.

Cardiovascular System:

“Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death in Western countries, representing almost 30% of all deaths worldwide” (Casas et al., 2018).That is a lot! “The probability of developing CVD is associated with unhealthy dietary patterns” (Casas et al., 2018). This makes a lot of sense considering that 20-25% of blood pumped goes to our digestive system (Nutritional Therapy Association Australia New Zealand, 2025). The blood is needed to pick up the incoming nutrients. This further shows us how the body also values the digestive system since so many resources go towards it.

So let us give the body what it needs. A crucial thing to note is that fatty acids are the predominant source of energy for the heart. The appropriate mix of fatty acid is critical for the management of inflammation. So don’t be scared of healthy fats because our heart needs it!

There is a two way or a feedback relationship – when the heart is not able to function at full capacity due to plaque buildup, or any other conditions, digestive difficulties can happen. When that occurs, we are not able to digest the food optimally leading to heart issues (Nutritional Therapy Association Australia New Zealand, 2025). This leads to a perpetual cycle and emphasizes that a healthy heart depends on a healthy body.

Detoxification:

How many of us have tried a detox diet because we overate for a period of time? I know I have. Paradoxically, a lot of detox programs out there stresses our body out instead of helping it. Detoxification occurs continuously but more importantly, occurs when we are calm and relaxed (Nutritional Therapy Association Australia New Zealand, 2020). Giving the body the nutrients and relaxed state it needs on a daily basis is beneficial for all the detox pathways it has. Let’s review our body’s detox system (Nutritional Therapy Association Australia New Zealand, 2020):

The Skin – the body’s largest organ and one of our main defence barrier. Additionally, our sweat glands act as our second kidneys

The respiratory system – we are constantly exhaling toxins!

Our heart – constantly pumping blood to provide cells with oxygen and critical nutrients while carrying away debris

The digestive tract – it is always scanning food for invaders, detoxifying matters when needed. Home to our liver which plays a very important role in detoxification

The Lymphatic System – Acts as a pre-filter for the liver

The urinary system – Filters the blood continuously and excretes it as urine

All these systems work together and optimally when it has the right inputs, which can be obtained from a nutrient-dense meal! The next time you think you’ve overeaten, just return to well sourced proteins, non-starchy vegetables, healthy fats and smart carbohydrates, and let the body do the rest!

Nervous System:

Follow your gut is such a common phrase and holds so much more than we realise. The gut is our second brand and is known as the enteric nervous system (ENS). There is “ two thin layers of more than 100 million nerve cells lining your gastrointestinal tract from oesophagus to rectum” (Tompa, 2025). While its primary role is control digestion, it is continually communicating with our brain.

Interesting fact: 10-20% of fibres send signals from the brain to the gut, while 80-90% of fibres sends signals from gut to brain (Nutritional Therapy Association Australia New Zealand, 2023b). Re-emphasizing the importance of digestion and it’s role on every system.

Source: (Fodmap Friendly, 2026) New research has shown that mental health issues, such as anxiety and depression, may start from the gut! There is evidence showing than an imbalance in the gut microbiome can “disrupt brain function and contribute to neurological and psychiatric disorders” (Petrut et al., 2025). Improving your diet and lifestyle, will positive a^ect your mental health and can “potentially prevent neuropsychiatric conditions” (Petrut et al., 2025).

Many of our neurotransmitters, such as serotonin and dopamine – our happy hormones, are produced by gut microbiomes. They regulate our mood, cognitive function and stress resilience. Additionally, the gut microbiome interact with immune cells, influences our body’s inflammatory response, which contribute to our mood too!

The importance of Digestion:

I hope the above has given you an in-depth understanding of each of these symptoms and how optimal digestion is the foundation of good health. Chronic stress has a lasting impact on all systems but begins with the fact that it disrupts digestion, a^ecting the gut microbiome and thus absorption of nutrients. If digestion is left unresolved for a long period of time, it could potentially lead to the consequences discussed above.

The more I learnt, the more I appreciated the body we have and the more I want to ground myself in the idea by Confucius “Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated” .

We have to protect this beautiful system! External stressors are not in our hands but choosing what and how we eat is! I hope this post has motivated you to prioritise your digestion.

Remember: Take a few breathes before eating, eat mindfully, stay hydrated, keep moving