10 Foods That Soothe Your Gut

** In collaboration** 

Food is amazing. It doesn’t matter whether you are a sorcerer of steak, a lover of legumes or a fiend for fruit, food has something that brings people together. It’s not just a key to bring family and friends together around the dining table, but it’s what we need for survival. Thankfully, most of the population has come a long way from the diet of the caveman – though some do prefer the Paleo way of life today – and food is a source of nutrition, health and enjoyment all rolled into one.
Food plays a very important role in health, because you are what you eat. If you prefer a diet filled with processed foods and refined sugars, you’re not going to necessarily be unhealthy, but you’re going to feel sluggish and lacking in energy much of the time. It’s not because any food is inherently ‘bad’ for you, but because all food plays a role in the way your body performs. For example, without regular water, your body will feel tired, dehydrated and you can develop headaches because your brain isn’t as hydrated as it should be. Similarly, the digestive tract has a vital role in your health, and because it’s responsible for absorbing the nutrients that you consume and eliminates waste, you have to ensure your digestive tract stays as healthy as possible.
By not looking after your health, you can end up developing conditions such as:

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)
Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)
Crohn’s disease
Diverticulitis
Severe heartburn
Now, you can pop Zantac to combat the heartburn and make the symptoms go away, but some people prefer to go back to basics and look at the food that they are eating and do better with their diet to reverse the reason behind the heartburn in the first place. Even a healthy person can experience digestive issues, because it’s trial and error for what is a fibre-rich diet or not.
Below, you’ll find 10 of the best foods that you can eat to soothe your gut and improve your digestion.

1. Yoghurt. Packed to the brim with friendly bacteria that is known as probiotics, yoghurt contains the friendly bacteria that lives in your digestive tract and can help you to improve your digestion. Probiotics will help with digestive bloating, constipation and diarrhea.
2. Apples. A very rich source of soluble fiber, the pectin in the apples increases the stool bulk and movement through your digestive tract, helping to keep your gut moving. Apples increase stool volume, which is why they relieve the constipation and diarrhea symptoms that you’ve been experiencing.
3. Fennel. A fiber-rich food that can prevent and improve constipation, fennel has antispasmodic properties that can relax the smooth muscles in the digestive tract, reducing bloating and flatulence.
4. Chia Seeds. Add them to porridge for a healthy breakfast, chia seeds work like a prebiotic, supporting healthy bacteria in the gut. Chia seeds can also keep you regular and aid in the health of moving your food through the body.
5. Papaya. Tropical fruit, delicious in taste, it breaks down protein fibers and eases the symptoms of IBS, bloating and constipation. The papaya you eat contains enzymes to digest proteins – well worth adding to the weekly grocery shop!
6. Whole Grains. Oats, quinoa and farro are all products that are made from whole wheat. They’ll add bulk to your stool and reduce constipation symptoms.
7. Beetroot. An amazing source of fiber, helping you to bypass digestion and feed healthy gut bacteria and adds bulk. Have them in salads or even cakes!
8. Miso. Commonly used as a soup, miso is packed with probiotics and increases healthy gut bacteria. You can overcome intestinal illness like diarrhea with miso in your diet.
9. Ginger. A traditional cure for morning sickness, ginger improves digestion and prevents nausea. It can accelerate gastric emptying and reduce heartburn and stomach discomfort.
10. Dark Green Vegetables. An excellent source of insoluble fiber and magnesium, dark green veggies like spinach, broccoli and leafy greens are all perfect for helping to keep your digestive tract healthy.

It can be really difficult to deal with digestive issues, especially as some can be rather embarrassing to cope with. If you know which foods to eliminate from your diet, you can reduce the symptoms upsetting your system and start to reverse the difficulties you’re having. Your health is important so, research the foods above and decide whether you could afford to introduce these foods into your diet on a more regular basis.