Digestive Bitters Before a Meal

Why take bitters before a meal?

Digestion starts before you swallow. The taste of food signals your body to get ready for a meal. In functional medicine, some practitioners use digestive bitters before eating with the aim of encouraging that early response, including the release of gastric juices. Gentian root, an ingredient in All The Bitter’s Old Fashioned Aromatic Bitters, is a classic botanical in this tradition.

How stomach acid and enzymes work together

Stomach acid helps unfold proteins and activates pepsin, an enzyme that starts breaking them down. It also helps release vitamin B12 from food so it can be absorbed later. Farther along, enzymes from the pancreas continue breaking down proteins, fats, and carbohydrates in the small intestine. That’s why stomach acid and enzymes come up together when we talk about getting nutrients from food.

Sources include the European Medicines Agency’s gentian root assessment, the NIDDK overview of digestion, and the NIH vitamin B12 fact sheet.

Start with your choice

Pick whichever of these seven alcohol-free recipes sounds good to you.

• Ginger–Orange Bitters & Soda · Old Fashioned Aromatic
• Blood Orange & Rosemary Spritz · Orange Cardamom
• Tart Cherry–Lime Fizz · New Orleans Spiced Cherry
• Pear & Chamomile Cooler · Lavender Chamomile
• Cucumber–Basil Lemonade · Herb Garden
• Cherry Espresso Tonic · Coffee & Cherry
• Fig–Apple Cider Spritz · Fig & Walnut

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