About.com: " Basic 1: Chew, Chew, Chew, Take smaller bites. Put your fork down in between meals, Try using chopsticks - it forces you to slow down, Thoroughly chew each bite of food. Carbohydrate digestion begins in the mouth - chewing grains thoroughly allows amylase, the digestive enzyme present in saliva, to digest the grains. Basic 2: Get Enough Water Insufficient water intake is a primary cause of constipation. Constipation then causes an imbalance in bacteria, promotes inflammation of the intestinal lining, and can even lead to the absorption of larger molecules, a condition known as intestinal permeability."  (2)

Digestional.biz: "To avoid Poor Digestion : Eat acids and starches at separate meals. Eat protein foods and carbohydrate foods (grains, bread, pasta) at separate meals. Eat but one concentrated protein food at a meal. Eat proteins and acids at separate meals.

Here are some digesting times for a few common foods:

* Fat - 12 hours * Green Vegetables - 5 hours * Fruit - 2 hours * Starch - 5 hours * Milk - 12 hours * Protein - 12 hours * Raw Juices - 15 minutes * Mild Starch - 5 hours * Syrup - 2 hours

Here Are Some Facts About Poor Digestion:

* An inadequate digestive system will "steal" enzymes from the immune system to operate therefore weakening immune function. Poor digestive capability increases the body's toxic load. * Poor digestion leaves the body and the immune system in the same predicament that poor nutrition does - a lack of nutritional factors that support immune functioning and the function of the entire body. This is because a poor functioning digestive system has lost some of the ability to turn what's consumed into a form the body can use. * We're using up pancreatic enzymes (digestive enzymes) faster than we used to and we have a limited amount of them. Processed food is a contributing factor. There are numerous symptoms like gas, bloating, belching, muscle pain, skin disorders, insomnia, constipation, diarrhea, and heartburn. * Some areas of potential inadequacy are low pancreatic enzymes and poor bacterial balance in the intestines. Too low or too high hydrochloric acid in the stomach can also be a factor.

Poor Digestion Can Lead to Disease In The Body ! Here are some of the reasons :

* Poor digestion leads to fermentation/decomposition (rotting food). * Poor digestion causes nutritional deficiencies. * Poor digestion may lead to leaky-gut syndrome/food allergies. * Poor digestion eventually leads to self-toxification /colon problems. * Poor digestion creates a good environment for parasites/yeast infections. * Poor digestion causes liver/kidney stress & often leads to skin conditions.

Many have overlooked the main underlying cause of many or most nutritional disorders- faulty digestion. Instead of continuously treating the symptoms of poor digestion (gas, heartburn, nausea, burping, bloating, upset stomach, acid indigestion, diarrhea), the logical remedy for actually correcting this problem is to improve the person's ability to digest and assimilate the nutrients from their food." (3)

World Village.com: " It has been said, that poor digestion is akin to poor nutrition, where with poor digestion you might be getting the proper nutrients into your body, but your system isn’t able to absorb it. There are many contributing factors to a poor digestive system, but it has been found that processed foods can be one of the biggest factors." (4)

About.com: "Yellow dock has been used traditionally as an "alterative" herb, a herb that has general tonic effects. Yellow dock specifically helps the digestive tract, liver, and skin. One of its primary uses is for skin conditions caused by poor digestion, poor liver function, or toxic accumulations. Yellow dock has a mild laxative effect, due to constituents called anthraquinone glycosides. It stimulates bile and digestive enzymes." (5)

Two prominant factors "enzymes" and "stress" are often listed as either the cause or the result of poor digestion.

How to Be Fit.com: "Proper digestion can't occur without the necessary enzymes. If they aren't present in foods, they must be synthesized by the body, a process that requires tremendous metabolic energy and machinery. When we evaluate the healthfulness of any diet, we must consider the magnitude of the burden that it will place on the body through the digestive process. This burden is what's known as digestive stress. The issue of stress figures prominently in our current understanding of health and disease. Stress involves the gradual depletion of the reserve capacity to respond and adapt to challenges to the body's systems. The more reserve capacity the body has, the better able it is to cope with stressors that it encounters. By the same token, depleted reserve capacity means that the body is highly vulnerable to the damage that stress can cause." (6)