Steps to Take for Good Gut Health
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Write a health lifestyle diary for a week.
Jot down what you eat, activity, excess stress and fun you have and how you feel both physically and mentally. Then analyses it to see if you can find any obvious patterns. For example – do you get feel worse at the same time each day or after a particular meal. Are problems more likely when you feel anxious or do they happen only when you've sat at your desk all day. Your diary will help you target key areas of your lifestyle that need to be addressed and relate to your digestive patterns.
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Estimate your prebiotic and probiotic value.
From a days diet how much of it is processed food, refined carbohydrates such as white flour and sugar and protein? Do you drink alcohol regularly, smoke or lead a stressful lifestyle? Do you exercise regularly? If the answer is yes you may need to make lifestyle and diet changes.
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Do the veggie test.
Do coloured vegetables (i.e. not including potatoes) and fruit account for 50% of your diet? Do you eat a balance of pulses, nuts and seeds? If the answer is no then rebalancing your diet to include more vegetables with a balance of other plant based foods. A quick test is to look at your dinner plate, aim to make more than half of it coloured vegetables. Onions and garlic are particularly prebiotic rich but a wide variety of all coloured veg is recommended for good digestive health.
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Be varied.
A healthy diet is often perceived as boring and repetitive but the key to healthy eating is variety. We should enjoy a whole range of foods but actually many of us eat the same small range of foods without realising it. Look at what you normally eat for each meal and see how similar the foods are. A typical example could be breakfast – cereal and yogurt, lunch – cheese sandwich and a latte, supper – pasta and garlic bread. Initially they may seem very different food items but if you look at the basic ingredient your diet is actually 90% wheat and milk. Now try changing a few items to extend the range of foods at each meal. For example breakfast – yogurt and fruit, lunch - tuna salad and baked potato, supper - chicken and vegetable risotto.Also aim to eat fresh food and try and stick to what's local and in season.
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Eat regularly
Give your gut a break by eating regularly instead of on the go or when you have a moment. Plan these to include what you will eat, when and where so you can prepare and organize them into your day. Giving yourself time to eat will help you digest your food more effectively and recharge your energy levels, making you less likely to crave stressful stimulants. You may think you haven't got time but actually taking a break will help your health so you can manage both time and stress more effectively.
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Keep it moving.
Slow and sluggish digestion is not the sign of a happy system, leaving you feeling tired and bloated. To speed things up make sure you chew food properly and try increasing the amount of fibre in your diet. Dehydration can also be a problem so sip water throughout the day, about 1-2 litres is about average but if it is hot or you are exercising keep up your fluid intake. Also try a few deep breathing exercises before and after you eat to lower stress levels and give your gut time to let things go down.
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Don't overdo the booze.
Alcohol in excess generates a list of negative health issues including reduced absorption, increased oxidative stress, irritation of the intestinal lining and damage to the protective mucosal layer of the gut. Calculate your weekly intake to see if your levels have become unhealthy by following the unit guidelines set by the department of health. Even if your units are acceptable, avoid drinking everyday but on the other hand it's not ok to drink all your units on one night.