Cleaning the Gut – What Do You Need to Know?
Healthful Vitality | 09/29/2021 | By NP Contributor | Cleaning the Gut
Although the gut is quite good at keeping itself clean, the evidence is mounting regarding the need to clean the gut from time to time to prevent obesity and metabolic disorders.
Wrong food choices lead to so-called “leaky gut syndrome.” It is a condition when the intestinal tract becomes inflamed. It is a low-grade inflammation that produces symptoms like dull gastric pain, bloating, and irritation. Indeed, it prevents adequate absorption of nutrients and increases the risk of infections.
Doctors have long negated the need to clean gut with diet. But things are changing now. New studies show that gut cleaning may even help prevent diabetes, heart diseases, and perhaps dementia. In addition, new research shows that binge eating and eating the wrong foods alters intestinal wall, making it thicker and yet leaky in places.
It appears that there is a reason why our ancestors developed a tradition of intermittent fasting, cleaning the gut. Cleaning the gut also helps get rid of body toxins. Apart from fasting, some foods may also help clean the gut and prevent the leaky gut syndrome.
Intermittent fasting
Before considering any foods for cleaning the gut, it is essential to know that taking a break from food is the best known and traditional way to clean the gut. Intermittent fasting has no hard and fast rules. For example, one may not just fast for a day in a week. Or one may practice 5:2 fasting, in which one eats the usual diet for five days and restrictive or very low-calorie diet on rest of the two days of a week.
Learn what not to eat much
Reducing gluten (not essentially excluding) intake may help with leaky gut in many instances. Even more prevalent is the FODMAP (fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides, and polyols) intolerance. Thus, reduce intake of high FODMAP foods like beans, lentils, dairy, wheat, and rye.
Eat these vegetables
Eat these vegetables as they are rich in dietary fiber, micronutrients and have do not cause gut inflammation like cabbage, carrots, beetroot, and mushrooms.
Probiotics-rich foods
Probiotics-rich foods could be fermented foods like miso, kimchi, or cultured dairy products like Greek yogurt and kefir.
Fruits
Fruits like coconuts, bananas, berries, pineapples, lemon, oranges, papaya are all good for cleaning the gut and preventing leaky gut.
Seafood
Most seafood items are generally suitable for gut health and provide omega-3 fatty acids like tuna, salmon, and so on.
Lean meat and eggs
Indeed, include chicken and eggs in the diet. Consuming red meat in small amounts is fine.
Sprouted seeds
Sprouted seeds have many beneficial compounds that are not present in the seeds. Thus, they have some unique health benefits. Therefore, consider sprouted chia seeds, flax seeds, sunflower seeds.
Healthy fats
Healthy fats are low in saturated fats, moderately rich in polyunsaturated fats, and rich in omega-2 fatty acids like avocado, extra virgin olive oil. Infrequent consumption of coconut oil is permitted, as it is rich in saturated fats but low in inflammation-causing omega-6 fatty acids.
Needless to say, that one should minimize intake of alcohol, sugary drinks, and artificial sweeteners. Furthermore, consuming freshly cooked food items must be preferred over the processed foods.
Related Article: Best Supplements for Healing Leaky Gut