Are you dealing with symptoms of poor digestion such as occasional constipation, bloating, or heartburn? Or are you having more severe issues such as IBS, ulcerative colitis, candida overgrowth, SIBO, or leaky gut syndrome? These issues can show up because of a diet filled with excess sugar and processed foods, stress, repeated antibiotic use, or a viral or bacterial infection.
But there is good news! Our gut flora changes quickly when we change our diet, and the cells lining our gut rapidly regenerate meaning that we essentially have a new gut lining every two-three weeks! Get on a quality prebiotic and probiotic (Dr. Hutsell recommends Prosynbiotic by Standard Process – click on this link to order: Standard Process/ MediHerb – Hutsell Chiropractic) and begin adding the healing gut foods into your daily meals and routine.
- Fermented foods like sauerkraut, kimchi, miso, and pickles are gut-health rockstars.
- Healthy fats including wild caught salmon, oysters, scallops, cod, trout, olive oil, avocados and grass-fed butter.
- Bone Broth. This healing food can help soothe the digestive system and provides important nutrients and amino acids that can help heal the lining of the gut. Homemade is best! There are many recipes online.
- Coconut Products. MCTs, help reduce inflammation and improve the integrity of the gut lining. Try coconut butter, coconut oil, coconut flour, coconut milk and MCT oil.
- Apple Cider Vinager or ACV offers so many benefits when it comes to digestive health. The acid in the vinegar helps boost the production of stomach acid. This allows us to properly break down and absorb nutrients such as protein, iron, calcium, zinc, and B-Vitamins. Try this recipe about 20 minutes before a meal to boost digestive juices and improve digestion: 16 oz water, 1-2 TBS Apple Cider Vinegar, and 5 or so drops of stevia for a sweeter, less tart taste. Serve over ice or hot.
- Ginger. Well known for its ability to soothe an upset stomach and prevent motion sickness, ginger is a must when it comes to gut health. This healing root contains compounds that have antiviral, anti-parasitic, and anti-fungal properties. In addition to being able to kill off the bad guys in our gut that can harm us, ginger is a powerful inflammation fighter and immune booster. Some ways to enjoy ginger including sipping on ginger tea either before or after a meal or grating ginger root into a mug of bone broth. Or try it as a shot! ¼ cup orange juice (no sugar added) and 1 tsp ginger.