When this happens, one of thebest ways to restore balanceis increasing the good bacteria in your gut.
The TL;DR?
The more diverse your diet is, the more diverse your gut microbiome will be.
make a run at switch up the types of foods you eat weekly.
Make plants a priority.
When thinking about diet diversity, you also want to consider the amount of plant foods you’re eating.
Plants contain fibers (includingprebiotic fibers), phytochemicals, and an array of macro- and micronutrients.
Don’t get into a rut where you only eat broccoli and sweet potatoes.
Add fermented foods.
Fermented foodsare made with the help of bacteria and yeasts.
Here are somefermented foodsyou can try:
Take a science-backed probiotic.
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There are a lot of probiotic supplements out there, but you better find one that actually works.
Pedre recommends selecting a probiotic that hasmultiple strainsand 5 to 100 billion colony-forming units (CFUs) per dose.
To be clear, more isn’t more necessarily.
The dose of each strain should be informed by clinical science.
Psst: mindbodygreen’sadvanced probiotic+ with bloat supportchecks all of these boxes.
Have plenty of fiber-rich foods.
“They are the currency of gut health,” he says.
“And we get them exclusively from prebiotic fiber.”
This gives your gut time to adjust to the change.
Eat foods with polyphenols.
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Some polyphenol-rich foods (and drinks) include:
Watch your sugar intake.
When it comes to maintaining gut balance, Vincent Pedre dubs sugar the worst offender.
He advises avoiding all kinds of added sugar as much as possible.
Pay extra close attention to packaged items that often have hidden sugars, and liquid forms.
Get enough quality sleep.
A healthy gut is also associated withbetter sleep quality7.
attempt to manage stress.
In its acute stages, stress can cause digestive upset (bubble guts, anyone?
Move your body.
Exercise is a no-brainer.
Take the stairs, walk the dog, dance while you cook.
Fitness doesn’t always have to be a structured workout.
The bottom line.
Your health is dependent on having plentywe’re talking trillionsof good bacteria in your gut.
And don’t forget your daily probiotic.
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