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What you eat has a huge impact on your gut health. And your gut health, in turn, has a drastic effect on your overall health. Your gut is an immense powerhouse: it contains 70% of your immune system, digests and absorbs all your food, promotes detoxification, and if spread out would be larger than a basketball court. As a clinical nutritionist and pharmacist, I am always in awe regarding how much addressing gut health affects the overall health of my clients in my practice.

Below are 5 food recommendations I always give my clients who need help with their gut.

Probiotics have become all the rage over the past decade. You’ve seen them in advertisements for yogurt, fermented foods, and pills.

There’s a good reason for that.

The bacteria in your gut, called your microbiome, live in harmony with you. A healthy microbiome acts like a well-oiled machine. It helps digest your food, support your gut tissue, promote healthy bowel habits, enhance your immune system, prevent obesity, support your mental health, and create certain vitamins. When it comes to gut health, probiotics are king.

Since probiotics are bacteria, fermented foods are great sources such as unsweetened yogurt, sauerkraut, miso, kimchi, and kombucha

Prebiotics act as food for your trillions of friendly gut bacteria. Your bacteria live in your gut because it’s where they find their food source, and there are certain foods that help them flourish. Foods, like junk food and preservatives, can also harm your good gut bacteria, so it’s important to boost them as well as you can.

Good sources of prebiotic foods include beans, oats, bananas, berries, flax seed, garlic, onions, asparagus, and leaks.

Fiber is famous for its uses for bathroom regularity, but it does so much more. We actually can’t digest fiber. Because of this, it helps to exercise your gut and move things along. But while we can’t digest fiber, our little bacteria friends can. When they’re done, what’s left are called

short-chain fatty acids. These fatty acids then boost your gut health.

There are two types of fiber: soluble and insoluble. Soluble absorbs water and is the type used in bathroom regularity supplements, but you’ll find great sources in oatmeal, chia seeds, flax seeds, berries, nuts, and beans. Insoluble fiber does not absorb water and moves quickly through your digestive system. You can find insoluble fiber in whole wheat or bran, fruits with edible skin, and potatoes.

4. Healthy fats and omega-3s

Healthy fats and omega-3 fatty acids aren’t just important for heart health. Your gut needs them too. A diet focused on consuming more unsaturated fats than saturated fats helps reduce inflammation in your gut and provides food for your good bacteria. A good rule of thumb when trying to decipher whether a fat is saturated or unsaturated: is it solid at room temperature? If yes, then odds are it’s saturated. If it’s liquid at room temperature, then it’s most likely unsaturated.

Good sources of unsaturated fats and omega-3s include fatty fish, flax seeds, chia seeds, olive oil, avocado, and nut butters.

Turmeric, or its active ingredient curcumin, is a spice used especially in southeast Asian and Indian cuisines. But beyond being a delicious addition to your recipes, it acts as a potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory and helps your gut stay healthy. There’s a great many dishes that include turmeric, but if you don’t like adding it in food, there are supplements containing tumeric, usually under the name curcumin.

Martin Donovan is a nutritional pharmacist and owner of the Natural Wellness Corner. He is a combined registered pharmacist, clinical nutritionist, and herbalist, and has run his private practice for over 25 years. You can follow him at @naturalwellnesscorner on Instagram and Facebook, and @lena_nwc on TikTok

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