Digestion Basics

Even though our digestive system does a great deal of work on a daily basis, outside of recognizing when we are hungry or full,  some occasional  minor gas, and a sense of when we have to have a bowel movement, we shouldn't directly feel too much going on, digestive wise.  
Balanced digestion involves little to no digestive discomfort, no painful gas or bloating, and at least 1, but no more than 3, bowel movements per day.  Our bowel movements should be formed and remain together in the toilet bowl and should contain no blood or mucous.  
Our bodies do a great job of normalizing any concern that we experience for an extended period of time and this especially occurs for any digestive symptoms.  For many of us, our digestive function doesn't match up with the above list, but we come to accept discomfort, bloating, disrupted bowel movements as normal because we can't remember having felt any differently.  
It is a good idea for all of us to track how we feel digestively for a few days and note if any of these concerns are occurring for us.  If so, it is good idea to then further explore potential causes for our symptoms.    Digestive concerns can be linked to the foods we are eating (doing a cleanse provides a great insight into whether any of the foods we are eating are contributing to different symptoms we are experiencing), imbalances in gut flora/digestive mucous membranes/digestive enzyme functioning (all of which can be addressed through different supplements), and emotional concerns or stress (which can be supported through counselling and stress management techniques such as journalling, deep breathing, meditation).  
Our digestive system does tend to be pretty flexible and responsive to positive changes, so pinpointing a concern and working on addressing/supporting it has great potential to help us to feel better on a digestive level.