For the overall well-being and health of an individual, the gut plays a very important role. It plays various roles in the body related to weight, immune function, Serotonin production (the happy feel-hormone which is produced by the gut), etc. Often the factors like excessive stress, extensive use of antibiotics, drinking excess amounts of alcohol, poor diet, and overuse of medicines like ibuprofen can cause the guts to get out of balance. Thus, one needs to maintain a proper diet and eat a good amount of fiber, and fermented foods to maintain gut health. If loved ones are suffering from a gut problem and looking for ways how to improve gut health naturally, then follow this article. Here we will discuss the best foods for gut health and foods that damage gut health.

Best Foods To Improve Gut Health

Yogurt

Yogurt is one of the best foods for gut health. It is a popular pro-biotic because it comprises a large number of good bacteria. Usually, packaged yogurt consists of nearly 100 million probiotic cultures per gram. Even if you are lactose intolerant can easily include a yogurt diet plan to improve gut health.

Onion

Onions comprise a good amount of fructans, fructooligosaccharides, and inulin. They are prebiotics that helps to enhance the gut’s health as well as provide relief from constipation and also help to reduce the cholesterol level in the body. You can either add the onions to your soup or salad or add them as an ingredient in your meal and also prefer to eat them as a side dish.

Watermelon

Among other best foods for digestive health, we see watermelon. It contains a good amount of prebiotics. Similarly, watermelon also has a 14% daily value of vitamin C, which is an antioxidant that helps the body to fight inflammation. Similarly, it also helps in a significant increase in the absorption of iron in the human body and also the building block of collagen. During the summer months, one can get plenty of watermelon in the market. One can either consume them as juice or cut them into pieces and enjoy the tasty summer fruit.

Banana

Banana is another efficient best food for digestive health. Especially green bananas are more beneficial to increase gut health as they comprise resistant starch which is an indigestible fiber that produces more amount of good bugs when the microbes present in the body feed on them. Similarly, ripe bananas are also beneficial to increase gut health as they have a large quantity of fiber. To get more fiber, healthy fat, and protein should include ripe bananas, almonds, or peanut butter in a healthy gut diet plan.

Legumes And Beans

One should consume beans and legumes without having any fear of suffering from gas problems. As discussed earlier importance of gut health lies in maintaining the health of an individual. Therefore, one must consume the beans like chickpeas, white beans, black beans, peas, etc. When these foods reach the large intestine, the gut bacteria tend to feed on them, and due to the process of fermentation, gas is produced. Thus, the gas is normal and it is actually a good sign for health.

Also Read: How to improve gut health?

Worst Food For Gut Health

If we’re looking for ways how to restore gut health naturally and want to avoid the worst foods for gut health.  Then need to avoid the below-mentioned foods:

Artificial Sweetener

Artificial sweeteners are the worsts foods for gut health. different artificial sweeteners like sucralose, saccharin, and aspartame have no sugar or calories. When someone consumes them they pass through the body without being digested and they cause negatively changing composition in the gut when they in contact with the microflora present in the gut. Therefore, one must exclude artificial sweeteners from the healthy gut diet plan.

Alcohol

The importance of gut health lies in enhancing the health as well as the well-being of an individual. And as we all know alcohol hurts the health of an individual as well as gut health. When someone drinks alcohol it enters the body and changes the microbiome present in the intestine. To ensure good gut health one must drink alcohol within moderate limits.

Refined And Processed Foods

One should avoid ensuring good gut health for both processed and refined foods do not have fiber. And often they consist of artificial sweeteners, added salt, sugar, and other preservatives which tend to be harmful to gut health.

Red Meat

Red meat is also another food that is harmful to gut health. It consists of a compound known as carnitine that mixes with the bacteria present that produces TMAO (trimethylamine-N-oxide). This compound formed can cause a build-up of plaque in the arteries of the heart. To have good gut health one should prefer to eat red meat within moderate limits. And instead of red meat, one can prefer non-vegetarian items like chicken, white fish, fatty fish, etc.

Therefore, if we’re looking for methods how to improve gut health naturally, then this article is of immense help.  As discussed above good foods for gut health and avoiding harmful foods for gut health to have a healthy gut.