18 Ways To Improve Gut Health
Your gut microbial ecosystem must be healthy for you to be healthy. Here are 18 ways to improve your gut health.
1. Eat a diverse diet
The more diverse your diet is, the more diverse your gut microbial composition will be. This means it’s a good idea to avoid eating the same thing every day. Different types of gut bacteria, help to cultivate a diverse microbiome. The greater the diversity of your microbiome, the greater number of various health benefits you will reap, such as a stronger and more resilient immune system. Plus, low microbial diversity is associated with many different chronic autoimmune diseases, cardiometabolic conditions, and obesity. Eat at least 8 to 10 servings of colorful fruits and vegetables a day, which contain disease-fighting vitamins, minerals, fiber, phytonutrients, antioxidants, and anti-inflammatory molecules.
2. Eat more cooked foods
Raw foods are packed full of nutrients, but they can also be difficult to digest. Cooked foods decrease the amount of work your digestive system needs to do to break down food because some of that has been done for you through the cooking process. Even easier to digest are pureed foods like smoothies and pureed soup. Going easy on your digestion can help reduce bloat and lead to a healthier gut. As you heal, you will be able to tolerate raw foods better.
3. Only use medications when needed
Most medications are taken by mouth, which means your gut has to break them down and process them so they can get absorbed into your bloodstream. And unfortunately, some medications can damage your microbiome when they’re in the gut. You probably already know this is true for antibiotics—which, while they’re doing the important job of killing bacteria that threaten your health, can also wipe out many of the beneficial bacteria living in your gut—but it can also be true for other common medications like steroids, hormonal birth control, and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, which include over-the-counter pain relievers like Advil.
For this reason (and others), medications should only be used when they’re absolutely necessary.
4. Eat more fiber
Fiber is one of the most commonly ignored super ingredients, but it is incredibly important to improving your gut health and overall health (it even protects your lungs). Aim for 30 to 50 grams of fiber intake per day. You can reach this goal by filling your plates with colorful vegetables, fruit, legumes, and gluten-free whole grains, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and fruit which all contain beneficial fiber that feeds the good gut bacteria. If you’re still struggling to make it to 30 grams a day, try adding 2 tablespoons of concentrated fiber like chia seeds, psyllium husk, acacia fiber, or ground flaxseed to a smoothie.
5. Watch your stress levels
Reduce stress. Believe it or not, stress affects our gut bacteria. Chronic stress can suppress the immune system, decrease blood and oxygen flow to the intestines, and contribute to gut lining permeability. If you’ve ever gotten a stomach ache when you’re stressed, you’ve already experienced the gut-brain connection in action. Scientists have been studying the link between these two systems for years and have found that stress is toxic to the body, and the gut is no exception. The good news is that there are plenty of effective ways to mitigate stress. Try a stress-reduction technique like meditation, deep breathing, or yoga.
6. PRIORITIZE Sleep
Try to sleep 7-8 hours a night. Studies show that even one night’s sleep deprivation can cause inflammation and disrupt the immune system and gut bacteria.
7. PRIORITIZE exercise
Exercise is great for all areas of your health, but it can also increase beneficial bacteria in your gut and overall bacterial diversity.
8. Avoid gut irritants
Certain foods are known to sabotage gut health, so reducing your intake of these foods is critical for the long-term health of your gut. The most common gut health offenders are sugar, processed foods, gluten, alcohol, and pesticide-treated crops. These inflammatory foods can decrease the number of beneficial bacteria, allow “bad” bacteria and yeasts to overgrow, damage the gut barrier, and contribute to inflammation and leaky gut. If you want to improve your gut health, avoiding these foods as much as possible is a great place to start.
9. Stay hydrated
Drinking water will benefit your health in almost endless ways, but one of the most important ones is its ability to keep things “moving along” in your digestive tract. So how do you know if you’re drinking enough water? If you’re drinking enough, your pee will be clear or light yellow. If you get headaches, have dry skin and lips, or frequently get dizzy, you may be dehydrated.
10. Eat protein
To avoid the blood sugar imbalances that feed bad gut bacteria, eat protein with every meal, even at breakfast. This will help you to avoid sudden increases in your blood sugar. Eat clean and sustainably raised animal protein, like fish, turkey, chicken, and lean cuts of lamb, and plenty of vegetable protein, such as nuts, beans, seeds, and non-GMO organic tofu.
11. Eat more healthy fats
Increase omega-3 fatty acids to help reduce inflammation and maintain healthy blood vessels. DHA may even reverse the harmful effects of sugar, which we know to feed the bad bacteria in your gut and wreak havoc on your digestive system, potentially leading to the growth of candida and yeast. Try eating cold-water wild salmon, sardines, herring, flaxseeds, and even seaweed, along with grass-fed and organic animal products.
12. Drink bone broth regularly
This superfood brims with collagen and minerals that can soothe and repair a damaged gut. Sip it alone as a warm drink or use it as the base for soups and in other recipes. I recommend making bone broth yourself at home in a slow cooker or pressure cooker (it’s easy), using bones from grass-fed cattle or organic chickens. If you don’t want to make it yourself, Kettle & Fire is a great option.
13. Consume Digestive bitters
Digestive bitters are herbs that have a bitter taste, including burdock root, bitter melon, and dandelion. Digestive bitters are taken with meals and work to stimulate the production of digestive enzymes that help break down food and make the digestion process easier on your gut. You can find digestive bitters in herbal tincture form; I personally love adding bitter greens to soups, salads, and stir-fries.
14. Consume Ginger
Ginger has been used for thousands of years to soothe stomach problems due to its anti-inflammatory properties. It also helps to alleviate heartburn and acid reflux, as well as stimulate the production of stomach acid. Try adding ginger to more recipes or cut up fresh ginger root to make a gut-soothing tea to sip on.
15. Drink Lemon Water
Lemons contain ample amounts of phytonutrients, vitamin C, and fiber which are all needed for supporting gut health. Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant that helps to lower inflammation in the gut and boost the immune system. It also works as a natural antimicrobial to bring balance to the bacteria in the microbiome.
Lemons are also high in a type of fiber called pectin. This is good for your gut bugs and helps to promote healthy gut bacteria balance and encourage the growth of beneficial bacteria. Multiple studies have shown that these particular fibers, like the ones in lemons, stimulate the growth of important probiotics in the microbiome, like bifidobacterium. (25)
Also, make sure the water is either warm or cold, not hot, as the hotter water denatures Vitamin C.
16. Drink Apple Cider Vinegar in water
Research has shown that vinegar can mildly lower the growth of gram-negative bacteria like Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus. (26) These bacterial colonies are higher in bacterial endotoxins called lipopolysaccharides (LPS). Higher LPS levels are implicated with a whole slew of inflammatory health problems as well as leaky gut syndrome.
ACV has also been shown to have anti-yeast, anti-fungal, and antiviral benefits, which are all helpful at supporting the microbiome and immune balance. (27)
Another potential benefit of apple cider vinegar is its ability to prove indigestion and heartburn. One of the most common causes of heartburn I find in my patients is low stomach acid or hypochlorhydria. I have found that many patients see improvement in their heartburn, acid reflux, and overall digestion when they take a small amount of apple cider vinegar with their meals.
Overall, I usually always see the best results when using ACV in its raw, unfiltered form with the “mother” included. You’ll be able to see the mother as a sediment in the bottle, but it usually always also says so on the label. Since ACV is very acidic, drink it in water.
17. Consider taking Digestive enzymes
Digestive enzymes are proteins that break down the food you eat into smaller pieces that are easier for your body to absorb, utilize, and turn into energy. Some people have food intolerances (like lactose) where they lack the enzymes to break down this specific protein or don’t make enough digestive enzymes which can slow digestion and lead to uncomfortable symptoms like bloating, cramping, and gas. This is not uncommon, especially in people who are over 50, have low stomach acid, or you have IBS or IBD.
While digestive enzymes aren’t the go-to solution for those with specific intolerances, they can be helpful to have on hand for when you come in contact with a food you weren’t expecting to eat or if you need a little help with enzyme production.
18. targeted natural supplements
Nobody wants to take a giant fistful of vitamins daily, but there are a handful of gut-healing supplements to help with digestive distress. These can help speed healing and make a big difference in symptoms:
Slippery elm: This natural botanical works as a demulcent to reduce inflammation in the gut. You can find this in tea or supplement form.
Deglycyrrhizinated licorice: Sip on licorice tea to soothe and heal your gut lining and ease digestive trouble.
Marshmallow root: This root supports the repair of a damaged gut lining by coating the stomach to protect it against increased inflammation. You can find this in tea or supplement form as well.
Probiotics: Probiotics infuse your gut with a healthy dose of beneficial bacteria, which can help rebalance the microbiome and create a gut environment that is more conducive to overall health.
Prebiotics: Prebiotics are often forgotten, but they’re extremely important because they are, essentially, the food that probiotics like to eat. Probiotics and prebiotics work synergistically together to help bring the microbiome into balance. When you take probiotics and prebiotics together, it also produces a short-chain fatty acid called butyric acid. Butyric acid is essential to our gut health by providing our colon cells with energy and reducing inflammation in the digestive tract (along with many other benefits).
L-glutamine: L-glutamine is an amino acid found in the body and in certain foods. L-glutamine is the primary fuel source for cells lining the intestinal wall and plays a large role in maintaining the integrity of our intestinal lining and mucosa. For this reason, it’s often used for supporting gut health and helping repair leaky gut, a gut health condition characterized by increased intestinal permeability. If you decide to start supplementing, anywhere between 2 and 5 grams per day between meals is typically a good dose for most people. You may also want to look for an l-glutamine powder rather than capsules since it can be easier for your gut to digest.
Turkey tail: This adaptogenic mushroom works wonders against gut overgrowths like SIBO and candida overgrowth. Try it in a warm drink.
Colostrum: The lactoferrin in colostrum works as a prebiotic to feed good bacteria and fuel it’s growth. It also promotes cell growth in the intestines to repair a damaged gut.
Before starting any new supplements, talk to your healthcare provider.
Written & Edited by: Gretchen Lidicker, Dr. Cole & Cameron Gildea, INHC
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