What To Eat In A Day For A Healthy Gut | Nourished With Tish

I want to talk about the sexiest thing I know: gut health. Seriously, when it comes to feeling great and sexy in your own skin, proper gut health is crucial. I suffered from bloating for the longest time–not to mention all sorts of digestive issues that made me feel uncomfortable, frumpy and self-conscious. All things that could’ve been entirely avoided (and now are!) by eating a healthy, gut-supportive diet.

Before we get into this, I get that it’s not realistic to eat like this every single day. The hope here is that you’ll incorporate key elements and foods into your daily diet as much as possible. That way, when you have a fun day of pizza and beer, your body will be able to better handle it, and you can get right on track the next day (no guilt or shame required!).

Key Foods To Avoid For A Healthy Gut

So let’s start off what we should not in a day for good gut health. These are the foods that often stress out our digestive system, and can lead to bloating, gas, constipation or diarrhea. Basically, nothing fun.

1.Dairy

You might be thinking, “but I thought yogurt was great for your gut and full of probiotics!”. To be honest, it’s kind of complicated. While dairy in the form of yogurt or kefir does have a lot of health benefits, it can also create havoc on peoples digestive systems. One study found that a diet high in dairy (as well as meat and sugar) actually made gut health worse, while vegetables, healthy fats and fibre all improved overall gut health.

This is because a lot of people are sensitive to the proteins in dairy (like casein and whey) or lack the digestive enzyme lactase needed to break down lactose–which can lead to tummy troubles. If you’re not one of these people, then organic, full-fat yogurt can be a great option for gut health!

So should you avoid dairy? If you’re not feeling great, cut it out for two weeks and notice how you feel. You can also take this test to help see if your symptoms may be dairy related.

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Should You Go Dairy Free?
Beginner’s Guide To Plant-Based Eating

2.Gluten

You probably saw this one coming, but gluten can be a really hard thing for people to digest. It’s estimated that about 30% of the American population can’t digest gluten, with an overlap between IBS and non-celiac gluten sensitivity. Similar to dairy, if you don’t have a problem digesting it, you don’t have to avoid it. But for some people, the body recognizes gliadin (a peptide that partially makes up gluten) as a foreign substance, and so the body releases antibodies to protect itself, which can cause leaky gut and other digestive issues.

Even if you decide not to go gluten-free, a low-gluten diet may still be the way to go: one study found that a low-gluten diet (2g of gluten a day) was more beneficial than a high-gluten diet in terms of gut health. Participants on a low-gluten diet experienced less bloating, digestive issues and even had some weight loss! The key to either diet, is making sure you’re getting enough fibre (we’ll talk about that later).

3. Sugar

It’s not just your teeth sugar wreaks havoc on–it’s also your gut! A diet high in sugar (including high fructose corn syrup–which is found in soda, processed foods, refined carbohydrates and baked goods) feeds the bad bacteria, causing dysbiosis in the gut.

Key Foods To Eat For A Healthy Gut

Okay, so now that we know what to avoid, what foods should we be eating daily for good gut health?

1. Fermented Foods

These foods are loaded with probiotics, which feed the good gut bacteria and help balance your gut flora. Probiotics have been shown to help with inflammatory bowel diseases, Crohn’s and h.pylori , all of which can cause painful and uncomfortable digestive distress.

Foods that are naturally high in probiotics include:

yogurt/coconut yogurt
kombucha
tempeh
kimchi
sauerkraut
miso
probiotic supplements

GUT HEALTHY RECIPES

Energy-Boosting Spirulina + Blueberry Chia Pudding

Cherry Almond Overnight Oats

Beet, Fennel + Apple Soup

2. Prebiotics

These are the foods that feed the probiotics! Prebiotics are types of dietary fibre, and are found in all sorts of vegetables. Foods like leeks, onions, jerusalem artichokes, dandelion greens, garlic, apples and asparagus are all sources of prebiotics.

3. Fibre

Well, duh, of course we need to talk about fibre! Fibre not only helps with improving our digestive health, it also promotes longevity and reduces the risks of all sorts of diseases. The average person only gets 14g of fibre a day, but we need between 25-40g for optimal health! You want to make sure you’re consuming both soluble and insoluble fibre, and getting fibre from a variety of different food sources.

Foods high in fibre include flax, chia, hemp, artichokes, legumes, brussel’s sprouts, peas and avocados!