Yoga provides a lot of important health benefits for those who participate in it. It isn't just a system of mild poses that people can use to decrease stress, tone the body, mitigate body pain, and achieve a sense of balance.

Doing yoga asanas (poses) can help many find noticeable improvements in the health of their digestion. While most people can get plenty of these benefits from improved nutrition and other modes of exercise and fitness, being able to conform to the physical forms of certain yoga poses can offer a lot of unique health benefits.

Here are eight classic yoga asanas that enhance your health and specifically benefit your digestion:

8. Seated Forward Bend

This pose has the advantage of being fairly simple to understand, which is one reason why it is a good pose for beginners to try. People actually might remember poses that are similar to this one from gym class as kids (in some parts of the world, anyway).

The pose involves sitting on the floor with the legs stretched out in front, and leaning forward with your hands in order to grab the soles of your feet.

The pose requires making the soles of your feet very flat as well. This is a classic pose that is capable of stimulating the digestive processes overall by applying healthy pressure within your abdomen and gut.

The Seated Forward Ben is a fantastic warm-up and exercises your intestinal tract with a good stretch.

7. Child's Pose

This is one of the most relaxing yoga poses that people can try. It's something that people will often do at various points throughout the yoga class in order to unwind following some of the more challenging poses. It's also a pose that is great for digestion.

Many gastric problems will go away fairly readily for the people who try child's pose. It's particularly beneficial for your intestinal flow. The Child's Pose is simple and it just involves people getting into position on their folded legs, and then resting their heads on their upper thighs in what appears to be an almost fetal position for a length of time.

6. Big Toe Pose

This is a pose that can have a lot of benefits for the body in general, especially for the people who have really tight hamstrings. This is a pose that can also stimulate the kidneys and liver in a way that could ultimately lead to health improvements.

People who try this pose should experience improvements in digestion by adding it to their stretching routine. This pose involves bending over all of the way and folding your body while in a standing position and touching one's big toes while in position.

5. Modified Locust Pose

People can get rid of multiple symptoms of constipation with the Locust Pose and its variants. It also helps alleviate indigestion in general.

Some people find that the Lotus Pose really helps them get rid of flatulence problems. Since it makes people less tired and helps to alleviate back pain as well, they feel healthier in general from this pose.

It involves getting onto one's abdomen and stretching out with the palms clasped together in back and the legs slightly elevated, but with either the feet firmly planted on the floor, or elevated with the rest of the legs. No matter which version you try, your gut will thank you.

4. Bridge Pose

This is a classic pose that has a tendency to work very well for beginners in yoga. It involves lying back with the legs bent in an upward position as the person completing the pose rests on his or her upper back and stretched arms.

People will tend to clench their abdominal muscles during this pose, so this is one of many yoga poses that has a distinct tendency to strengthen a person's abdominal muscles. This is very much a pose that helps improve a person's digestion. The pose helps to stimulate a lot of organs that are directly involved with the digestion process in general, including the stomach.

People may be able to eliminate some problems that are associated with their abdominal issues. Bridge pose is a simple yet effective pose that helps a lot of practitioners, with noticeable digestive support to boot.

3. Marichi Twist

Like many yoga asanas, this one has many names. However, regardless of what people call it, it's certainly one of the best poses that anyone can try in order to promote good digestion.

This pose involves sitting, stretching out one leg and pulling the other one towards one's torso while twisting the entire torso to the side. The other arm is typically used for balance.

This is a pose that many believe is able to specifically counteract constipation and more generalized digestive problems.

People should not try this pose if they already have diarrhea. However, this is a pose that can help people when it comes to preventing diarrhea in the first place. The motion promotes healthy digestive functioning.

2. Boat Pose

This is a pose that involves balancing on the coccyx with your legs and arms up in the air. Most people will have to rely on their abdominal muscles for support in this instance. As such, this is a pose that is very effective at strengthening the abdominal muscles. However, it is also a pose that is very good at helping a person's digestive function.

Practitioners might be able to improve their kidney function, intestinal function, and the functioning of their prostate and thyroid glands by practicing this pose. It helps maintain alignment in the body while balancing, as it simultaneously strengthens your core.

1. Downward-Facing Dog Pose

This is one of the most famous of all yoga poses, and certainly the most popular. Even many people who know nothing else about yoga will usually be familiar with the downward-facing dog pose.

This is a pose that involves people bending over while balancing in a V-shaped position with your palms on the floor, backsides in the air, and feet planted firmly on the floor.

This is a pose that is definitely able to improve a person's digestion while also helping a lot with flexibility and the functioning of many of your other internal organs.

It's a very popular yoga pose for a reason. It supports your digestive health.

The Takeaway

There are a myriad of various and individually unique yoga poses that can help improve and defend your digestion. While these are just eight of them, they are some of the most important. They don't simply support your digestive health, they also lay a foundation for comfortable, regular digestion.

These are only some of the different yoga asanas that will get the job done in many cases. However, this is just the sort of list that will help a lot of people get started on their journey to new and improved lifestyles. Yoga has a lot of health benefits, but the digestive benefits are some of the most exceptional.

By trying these classic poses and exercising your body, you give your digestion every reason to thrive.