The stomach is an organ that suffers a lot by our unhealthy eating and drinking habits. Indigestion is a very common stomach problem. Indigestion includes a variety of symptoms related to a specific stomach problem caused by unhealthy eating habits. These symptoms usually include fullness, bloating, abdominal pain, nausea, bad taste, sour stomach, belching, diarrhea, pain in legs, toxemia, weakness, debility and heartburn. Causes may include irregular eating, eating too fast or too much, eating certain foods or stress. Indigestion can be treated by changing these unhealthy habits. To prevent from indigestion or help the treatment, keep in mind the following advice.



1. Eat smaller portions several times a day. Meals should be smaller and with every 4 hours.

2. Eat slowly and chew carefully. Avoid eating in noise, while moving, reading or watching television.

3. Avoid irritating foods, such as coffee, alcohol, soft drinks, sweets, fried foods, spicy foods and fat.

4. Avoid misuse of medicine, such as antibiotics, painkillers, steroids, etc.

5. Avoid eating fast food, food cooked in microwave or canned food.

6. Reduce or, if possible, quit smoking.

7. Maintain a healthy body weight. Excess weight increases pressure on the abdomen and pushes the stomach contents back to the esophagus causing heartburn.

8. Regular exercise benefits the digestive system.

9. Try to manage stress. Every day stress is hard to avoid but learning stress management can protect us from many health problems, including indigestion.



Several herbs can help the treatment, depending on the specific case. Meadowsweet soothes the stomach and reduces excess acidity. Emollient herbs can also be helpful, for example comfrey root, hop, marshmallow and oat. If the digestion process is very slow, try bitter herbs such as gentiana, goldenseal and wormwood. In case of flatulence, herbs like anise, lemon balm, cress, fennel, peppermint can benefit. In case of nerve tension, suitable herbs are chamomile, hop, lavender, rosemary and valerian.



*Sakis Kouvatsos, “Haniotika nea"