What is your gut?
‘It’s another term for our gastrointestinal tract: the 9-metre long ‘tube’ that delivers your food from entry to exit,’ explains Dr Megan. ‘This involves digestion and absorption of food, and a whole host of other functions that happen without you knowing.'
Why is gut health so important?
'When we think of gut health, we think of digestive health. But your gut influences all your organs and pretty much every bodily function, from hormonal health to your skin and brain too', says Dr Megan. 'You see, your gut is home to trillions of powerful microbes, including the bacteria, called your gut microbiome. These microbes don’t just impact your digestion but are in constant communication with your other systems, including immune system. In fact, 70% of our immune cells are found along our gut lining, explaining why people with a healthier gut also tend to have a more resilient immune system. It’s also worth knowing that if you don't have a healthy gut lining, no matter how many good things you're putting into your body, you’re unlikely to digest food and absorb nutrients properly.'
The gut is a really powerful thing. Trillions of bacteria live in it and they do so much for us. Humans couldn't survive without them!
Dr Megan Rossi, @theguthealthdoctor
How can I increase my gut health?
It's empowering to know we can change the bacteria in our gut, simply by the way we treat them and what we eat, and therefore feed them’, says Dr Megan. ‘That in turn can reduce our risk of many health conditions – by nourishing this community of bacteria that is capable of thousands of functions and is essential to good health.
So, what is a good gut health diet and how can you improve gut health naturally? Well, one of the easiest ways is to diversify your diet, which increases the diversity of your gut microbes. Here are five simple, affordable ideas from Dr Megan to embrace diet diversity, along with some delicious gut-friendly recipes:
Aim for 30 gut health foods
To keep your diet varied, it’s good to have a specific goal. Try aiming for 30 different plant-based foods a week, across fruits, vegetables, wholegrains, legumes, nuts and seeds, (and herbs and spices count too – find out more about how to count your plant points here). Make it fun by creating a checklist for the family and seeing how many ingredients you can tick off each day. Try adding sliced fruit and nuts to porridge or pancakes, a cupful of peas to Bolognese and diced squash to your favourite curry – it’ll soon add up!
Go with the grain
Be experimental with different types of grains, such as quinoa and barley. The mixed packs are perfect for adding to soups, stews and salads – they’re quick to cook and affordable.
Eat the rainbow
Eating a rainbow of fruit and veg is a nutritious and interesting way to get your 5-a-day. And each colour of fruit or vegetable counts as another diversity hit, so if you like peppers, for example, go for red, yellow and green. Whizz up this Zesty citrus chicken with slaw, containing a colourful variety of veg and herbs, or these Baked samosas served with a fruity and fragrant salad.
Love the legumes
Beans and pulses are one of the most cost-efficient, good gut health foods that are also packed with prebiotics, certain types of fibre that act as a fertiliser for your gut microbiome. Plus, you can get them in handy mixed cans of four different types in one. Add a can or two to stews and pies, or blitz into a dip with kefir yogurt.
Pack in the herbs: discover delicious gut health recipes
Fresh herbs are an easy way to add flavour and gut-loving plant chemicals (known as phytochemicals) to your diet. Grow basil, mint and coriander on your windowsill and you’ll have three of your 30 different plant-based foods per week to hand. Knock up a classic pesto, add some fresh herbs to scrambled eggs on toast or make herbs a feature – this Lemon and herb crunchy crumbed salmon proves gut-health recipes can be fast, fresh and delicious!
Fibre – an essential part of a gut health diet
Fibre is key to a gut-healthy diet, in fact the NHS recommends we eat 30g a day. ‘Dietary fibre can’t be digested by human cells, essentially making it food solely for your gut bacteria instead,’ explains Dr Megan. ‘It comes from all the main plant-based foods, such as fruit, vegetables, wholegrains, nuts, seeds, beans and other pulses. And getting fibre from all those food groups is important, because they each contain different types of fibre. Did you know there are close to 100 different types of fibre? And thousands of different chemicals that feed different gut bacteria.’
‘Eating 30g of fibre daily might sound like a lot, but when you break it down it’s very achievable. High-fibre foods for a healthy gut could be: a bowl of porridge for breakfast made with 40g oats, topped with a banana and mixed seeds (8g fibre) or these Wholemeal pancakes with yogurt and fruit (6.7g fibre). For lunch, ½ tin of baked beans on a slice of multigrain bread with a handful of spinach is 10g. For dinner, spaghetti Bolognese, with ½ tin of mixed beans and 200g of frozen vegetables, served with 75g of wholemeal pasta would be about 10g fibre. Having 30g of almonds and an apple as a snack will add about 6g of fibre, taking you over the 30g recommendation.’ If you're looking for vegan gut-health recipes, try this Tiger bowl, filled with stir-fried tofu, veggies, lentils and wholegrain rice, and providing over 16g of fibre per serving.
Fermented foods for good gut health
‘Fermented foods have boomed recently in the UK, but they’ve been around for thousands of years in Asia and Eastern Europe,’ explains Dr Megan. ‘As well as preserving fresh ingredients for long periods, these foods are linked to many potential benefits, which science is only just starting to explore. In fact, one study from Stanford University showed that a diet high in fermented foods lead to great gut bacteria diversity and decrease in inflammatory markers.’
‘Fermentation is when ‘friendly’ bacteria and often yeast pre-digest food and drink, changing its taste, texture, bioactive compounds and shelf life. Therefore, anything that uses microbes to transform ingredients fits the ‘fermented food’ bill. The bacteria present in these foods may help restore balance to our gut microbiome, but they’re also associated with a whole host of other potential benefits, including increasing vitamin concentrations (such as folate and vitamin B12), lowering blood pressure, and supporting our immunity.’
Fermented foods often have a sour flavour because the chemical reaction produces lactic acid (known as lacto-fermentation). This may sound scientific, but this distinctive tart taste is totally delicious and can give a new dimension to so many dishes, drinks and condiments. While there are expensive fermented foods for gut health and digestive health on the market, there are lots of budget-friendly ways to enjoy these gut-friendly foods too – why not try making your own?
Here’s Dr Megan’s lowdown on all things fermented:
Kefir
A form of fermented milk, and a cousin to yoghurt, with a slight tart taste. It can be bought as a drink or thickened into kefir yogurt. Add gut-healthy kefir to a salad dressing, blended with honey and mustard, or replace your regular milk with kefir in overnight oats or smoothies.
Kimchi
Hailing from Korea, this is made from fermented cabbage. It has a strong umami flavour with sharp acidity. Follow Dr Megan’s step-by-step recipe to learn how to make kimchi. Try gut-healthy kimchi with fried rice, mushrooms and soy sauce, folded through scrambled eggs at the end of cooking, or layered into cheese toasties with wholegrain bread. It can be high in salt, so check labels and enjoy in moderation.
Kombucha
A type of fermented tea, made using sugar, bacteria and yeast. It’s refreshing and slightly fizzy. Always check the label as some flavours can be high in sugar or artificial sweetener. Try gut-healthy kombucha as a lower-caffeine swap for coffee or as an alcohol-free tin to take to picnics.
Live yogurt
All yogurt is fermented, but look for ‘live active cultures’ on the label for gut-friendly bacteria or try making your own with our homemade yogurt recipe. Remember that cooking yogurt kills the bacteria, although it still offers other health benefits such as being a good source of calcium and iodine. One of the most versatile of gut health foods, try it layered onto a baking sheet with berries and frozen into bark, mixed with muesli, or as a swap for soured cream when topping soups or tacos.
Miso
A Japanese paste made from fermented soya beans, miso is one of the most exciting gut health diet foods, thanks to its complex flavour. Its umami punch brings depth to many dishes, but it can be high in salt, so check labels and enjoy in moderation. Try in gravy-based pie fillings, as a glaze for fish, or stirred into brothy soups. It’s the star ingredient in this speedy Miso mushroom pasta recipe.
Sauerkraut
A type of fermented cabbage. Select raw, unpasteurised or homemade versions, as some store-bought sauerkrauts can be pasteurised, which strips it of the live microbes. Try layering gut-healthy sauerkraut into sandwiches, mixing into mash, adding to potato salad or serving with sausages.
Some cheeses
Swiss, Edam, Gouda, Parmesan and blue cheese may contain live microbes due to how they’re made, but cheese can be high in salt and certain types of saturated fat, so enjoy in moderation. Simple tips for creating gut-friendly recipes include sprinkling Parmesan over popcorn, swapping the regular cheese in your burger for Edam, or experimenting with sandwiches like this Pear, blue cheese and walnut open sandwich.
If you're new to fermented foods, introduce them slowly to avoid bloating and gas and choose a variety of sources for extra gut goodness, advises Dr Megan.
Did you know?
Not all fermented foods contain live cultures? Bread, beer and even chocolate are all technically fermented foods because they rely on microbes to make them.
Need more recipe inspiration?
We've stacks of healthy recipes to help you enjoy a balanced diet, from clever 5-a-day recipes to easy ways to eat better.
The views expressed in this article are not necessarily those of Tesco. If you are experiencing any health problems, please contact your GP.