For nighttime digestion, warm water, herbal teas (like chamomile, ginger, or fennel), or turmeric milk are excellent choices, offering calming, anti-inflammatory, and gas-reducing benefits to soothe your gut without disrupting sleep. These options help relax digestive muscles, ease bloating, and support gut health, with plain warm water also aiding in flushing toxins and promoting bowel movements.
Below are gentle, warming drinks that support digestion without overloading your stomach.
Chamomile tea has mild calming, antispasmodic and anti-inflammatory effects. It can be a great nighttime gut health drink if your digestion is linked to stress or poor sleep. Fennel tea is traditionally used to relieve gas and bloating thanks to its carminative (gas-reducing) and antispasmodic properties.
A cleansing way to encourage bowel movements is to try taking a glass of water mixed with the juice of half a lemon before bed and when you wake up. You may want to drink with a straw due to the acidic nature of lemons, as you could find your teeth becoming sensitive after a regular course of lemon water.
Here are some tips to help digestion before going to bed:
The 3-2-1 bedtime method is a simple sleep hygiene strategy: stop eating 3 hours before bed, stop working 2 hours before bed, and stop using screens (phones, tablets, TVs) 1 hour before sleep, helping your body transition to rest by reducing stimulants and digestive load for better sleep quality. A more detailed version adds 10 hours (no caffeine) and 0 (no snoozing) for a 10-3-2-1-0 rule.
Consume lots of bone broth — Bone broth is one of those liquids that can be quickly digested through the digestive system while also providing a myriad of nutrients and electrolytes, making it an optimal way to speed up digestion.
To empty your bowels quickly, try drinking warm coffee or water, using a squatting position with a footstool for better posture, gently massaging your abdomen in a downward motion, or using a suppository or enema for faster results; these methods stimulate the digestive system or physically help clear the colon.
Whether you prefer a cold drink or a warm bedtime drink, here's our list of the best drinks before bed to help you drift off.
Prune juice – Prunes and prune juice contain a naturally occurring sugar called sorbitol, which can have a mild laxative effect. Hot beverages – Heating a drink, especially caffeinated ones like tea or coffee, can help with gut motility and the caffeine can stimulate your bowels.
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Vegetables high in water are the quickest to digest. Cucumbers, peppers, and tomatoes, for example, will only take about 30 minutes to leave the stomach and continue through the digestive tract.
Signs of bad gut health include digestive issues like bloating, gas, diarrhea, constipation, and heartburn; skin problems such as acne or eczema; mood changes like anxiety or depression; fatigue; sugar cravings; and unintentional weight changes, all stemming from an imbalance in your gut microbiome (dysbiosis). These symptoms can signal that your gut isn't processing food and eliminating waste effectively, impacting overall well-being, notes Healthdirect and GoodRx.
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The best habits to help digestion at night
Studies show that some of the best natural remedies for sleep include cannabidiol (CBD) extract, lavender, magnesium, melatonin, and passionflower. Your health care practitioner can help you sort through the options, including any potential medication interactions to be aware of.
Below are some of the best beverages you should drink before bed.
Keep your room cool, dark and quiet. Exposure to light in the evenings might make it more challenging to fall asleep. Avoid prolonged use of light-emitting screens just before bedtime. Consider using room-darkening shades, earplugs, a fan or other devices to create an environment that suits your needs.
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The 7-second poop method involves drinking a glass of room-temperature water when you wake up each morning, stretching, doing a wind-relieving yoga pose, and breathing deeply.
The "3 poop rule," or "three-and-three rule," is a guideline for normal bowel habits, suggesting that pooping anywhere from three times a day to three times a week is considered healthy, with individual patterns varying widely. It helps identify issues: fewer than three times a week may signal constipation, while more than three times a day (especially with loose stools) might indicate diarrhea, prompting a doctor visit for persistent problems, notes Symprove UK.
Laxatives: You can drink a polyethylene glycol (PEG) solution or use an over-the counter (OTC) laxative to cleanse your colon. Surgery: If you have severe fecal impaction, your healthcare provider will perform surgery, especially to target symptoms of bleeding due to a tear in your bowel (bowel perforation).
Symptoms
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Lean animal proteins (like chicken breast or fish), egg protein and milk proteins like whey protein are all easily digestible protein.