Fix bloating, heartburn or gas with these 4 easy-to-digest foods

 

Click HERE to Discover these 80 Keto-Friendly and Healthy Slow Cooker Recipes

Give Your Gut a Break with These Easy-To-Digest Foods

Whether you’re dealing with GERD, Crohn’s disease, or indigestion, your condition can be improved by eating foods that require less digestive effort from your body.

The following foods are easy on your digestive system and are packed with nourishing ingredients too. Here’s what to eat when you’re experiencing tummy trouble – and the gas-causing foods to avoid.

Easy-to-Digest Foods

Cooked Fruits

Raw fruits contain significantly more enzymes and nutrients than cooked fruits. While that’s typically a good thing, raw foods can be harder to digest when you have a digestive issue since they require further breakdown. When eating cooked foods, you get a head start on digestion by making the food easier to break down.

Cooked fruits that are gentle on digestion include:

• Applesauce
• Bananas
• Berries
• Any fruits without skins or seeds included

When cooking fruits to increase their digestion, it’s best to peel them and cook them over low to medium heat. High heat will cause them to boil and increase their sugar content.

Most fruits can be cooked on low to medium heat for 5 to 10 minutes, or until they start to break down. Apples require longer cook time than berries, for example.

Cooked Veggies

Raw veggies are ultra-healthy for you, so why do they cause tummy aches for some people? Raw vegetables are higher in fiber content than cooked alternatives. This is partly because cooking breaks down some of the fiber found in foods, making them easier to digest.

Cooked vegetables are milder on the digestive system. The best ones to eat are:

• Squash
• Pumpkin
• Zucchini
• Sweet potatoes
• Carrots
• Parsnips

Roasting, sautéing, and steaming are all excellent ways to prepare vegetables to make them easier on the gut.

Poultry and Seafood

Some who struggle to digest foods might have a hard time breaking down red meat but poultry, seafood, and even eggs all digest more rapidly and require fewer enzymes. This can mean less gas or intestinal pains, and less trouble processing the fattier cuts of meat.

The best easy-to-digest meats and proteins include:

• Chicken and turkey
• Eggs
• Shrimp and scallops
• Salmon, cod, trout, and tuna
• Bone broth

Activated Nuts and Seeds

While nuts and seeds (and grains, for that matter) contain anti-nutrients that can make digestion problematic for many, there’s a way to deactivate these gut-harming nutrients. 

When nuts and seeds are “activated”, aka soaked, the anti-nutrients found in the skins of these foods are broken down and rinsed away, leaving behind a more gut-friendly product.

The best nuts and seeds for soaking include:

• Almonds
• Cashews
• Hazelnuts
• Pecans
• Pumpkin seeds
• Sunflower seeds
• Macadamia nuts
• Walnuts

Foods to Avoid

If you’re feeling gassy or bloated, you should avoid foods that might make your condition worse. The following foods can be harder to break down than the average meal, especially if you have any health condition prone to worsened digestion.

Unripe Fruits

While fruits are loaded with antioxidants and vitamins, sometimes the ability to digest them is hindered when the fruit isn’t fully ripe or it contains skin. This can make it harder for the body to thoroughly digest.

Unripe fruits to avoid include:

• Bananas
• Citrus fruits
• Tomatoes
• Pineapple
• Dried or canned fruits of any kind
• Coconut

Cruciferous Vegetables

While cruciferous vegetables are rich in vitamins and minerals, they also have a sulfuric quality that can create major digestive problems, even if they are cooked.

The benefits don’t outweigh the physical downsides for some people, and they’re better avoiding vegetables like:

• Broccoli
• Cauliflower
• Cabbage
• Asparagus

Unsoaked Nuts and Seeds

Nuts and seeds contain anti-nutrients, which are proteins that are designed to protect the plants from being destroyed in the wild. But these anti-nutrients don’t automatically go away when they’re harvested for food consumption. In order to neutralize them, most nuts and seeds need to be soaked for a few hours up to a day.

Note: Grains and beans also contain anti-nutrients and can be extremely painful for some people to digest.

If you’re not soaking seeds and nuts, the following can be problematic and painful for digestion:

• Tree nuts
• Seeds
• Grains
• Beans

Fatty Meats

Saturated fat has been debunked as the cause of heart disease, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy for everyone to digest. It requires more enzymes and breakdown than poultry, and the higher fat content can create discomfort with gallbladder issues or other low enzyme levels.

If you’re struggling with sensitive digestion, eliminating the following might help relieve pain:

• Beef
• Lamb
• Bison
• Pork and bacon

Artificial Ingredients

Artificial sweeteners and other additives can significantly alter gut bacteria, which in turn can change the way that nutrients are able to absorb within the intestines.

Avoiding anything that isn’t a whole, natural food is an essential step toward better digestion. This would include:

• Artificial sweeteners or “zero calorie” products
• Preservatives and additives
• Food dyes and colorings

Sugar

Sugar is often the most difficult food item to quit, but most people don’t tie it to their digestive discomfort. It’s especially problematic when it comes to chronic diarrhea or intestinal cramping.

Even Paleo forms of sugar can result in digestive problems, so it’s best to avoid the following if you have gut issues:

• White sugar
• Coconut sugar
• Honey
• Maple syrup
• Stevia

The Bottom Line

While it might feel like you’re on a restrictive diet if you have to focus on easy-to-digest foods, the benefits far outweigh the momentary sacrifice.

Choosing to eat foods that help relieve the burden of the digestive system can go a long way in improving quality of life and getting your digestive problems into remission. A diet that helps ease digestive discomfort may change over time. 

Note: For some people, the foods that are hardest to break down might be easy for other people, and vice versa. Learning to pay attention to the cues that your digestive system gives you is key to successfully addressing your digestive health.

Watch this video to fix bloating, heartburn or gas –  What To Eat When You’re Having Tummy Troubles (B.R.A.T. Diet)

Written by Aimee McNew

Author Bio:

Aimee McNew is a Certified Nutritionist who specializes in women’s health, thyroid problems, infertility, and digestive wellness. She ate her way back to health using a Paleo diet, lost 80 pounds, and had a healthy baby after numerous miscarriages. She focuses on simple nutrition practices that promote long-lasting results.

A lot of people have gotten results from the Keto diet, and enjoyed the foods that it has to offer. However, many of the people who are following this diet have a hard time finding the recipes that they need, especially ones that are quick and easy to complete.

Fortunately, Kelsey Ale, noticed this problem, and decided to do something about it. She’s found that making recipes in a slow cooker gives you meals which are not only delicious, but also take very little time to make. Mostly you just put a few simple ingredients in the slow cooker, and let it do the rest.

To find out more, click on – Keto Slow Cooker Cookbook

8 Fantastic Foods to Heal Your Leaky Gut

 

Click HERE to Discover these 80 Keto-Friendly and Healthy Slow Cooker Recipes

If you’re struggling with chronic digestive problems, autoimmune disease, or chronic inflammation, then it is very likely your gut is damaged. All disease begins in the gut and spreads to other areas of the body.

So, whether you’re suffering from chronic headaches, skin conditions, depression, joint pain, or digestive issues, you must first put out the fire in your gut.

The good news is that you can start doing this immediately with the foods you eat. You might be thinking that I’m going to talk about bone broth, but I’m going to provide some other options for you.

Adding anti-inflammatory foods is the first step towards improving your digestion.

It’s critical that you remove the inflammatory foods such as grains, sugar, dairy, and processed foods and instead focus on consuming healing, anti-inflammatory foods.

If you’re following a Paleo diet, I imagine you’ve taken many of these inflammatory foods out. However, there are some specific Paleo-friendly foods that you can focus on consuming on a regular basis to promote healing.

Below are just a few foods that can aid greatly in reducing inflammation, soothing your digestive system, and healing your gut.

Animal Protein

Animal protein, preferably organic, grass-fed, pasture-raised or wild-caught, is extremely healing to the gut. It’s a fantastic source for dietary amino acids such as glutamine, glutamate, and arginine, which optimize the immune functions of the intestine. It also promotes acid production in the stomach, which is critical for healthy digestion.

Lemon

Bitter, astringent foods like lemon are great for stimulating bile production, which aids in digestion. Lemon also helps to detoxify the body. Try drinking a glass of warm water with lemon first thing in the morning.

Pineapple

Pineapple is an excellent source of the proteolytic enzyme bromelain. Bromelain supports digestion by breaking down and digesting protein. Pineapple helps your body break down protein, making digestion easier.

Coconut

Coconut is a true superfood and has so many health benefits. One important characteristic is that it has antibacterial and anti-fungal properties. Coconut can really support gut healing by fighting potential pathogens. Try cooking with coconut oil, adding it to your smoothies, or eating a tablespoon by itself.

Turmeric

Turmeric is a powerful, anti-inflammatory food. Its health benefits are numerous. Adding turmeric to your food or taking it in capsule form can help reduce the inflammation in your gut and promote healing.

Aromatic Herbs

Aromatic herbs like oregano, ginger, cloves and rosemary are great for digestive health because they possess antibacterial properties. Cooking with these delicious herbs not only provides flavor to your meals, but helps heal and protect your gut too.

Fermented Foods

Fermented foods are great for gut health because they are a fantastic source of good bacteria, or probiotics. Probiotics are known to support the immune system and promote motility in the GI tract. Examples of fermented foods are apple cider vinegar, kefir (coconut, dairy, or water versions), yogurt, kimchi, and sauerkraut.

Prebiotics

Prebiotics are food for the good bacteria in your body. Supporting and feeding your good bacteria is essential for gut health.

Examples of foods rich in prebiotics are sweet potatoes, winter squash, pumpkin, cantaloupe, honeydew, honey, zucchini, and artichokes. Eat lots of sweet potatoes and zucchini to get your dose of healthy prebiotics.

NOTE: if you suffer from SIBO (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth) prebiotics might worsen symptoms.

Now that you have an extensive list of gut-healing foods, try incorporating these options on a consistent basis. For me, I’ve found it to be pretty easy to get most of these foods into my diet on a regular basis.

For example, I cook with coconut oil. I consume clean animal protein daily. I use ACV to make my salad dressing. I eat winter squash or sweet potatoes almost daily. I use different herbs and lemon to flavor my food.

Give it a try! Your gut will thank you for it.

Watch this video – HOW TO HEAL YOUR GUT ON A VEGAN DIET | best probiotic foods to heal your leaky gut

Written by Jen Broyles

Author Bio:

Jen Broyles is a Certified Integrative Nutrition Health Coach and is on a mission to help people regain their health naturally, specifically in the area of digestive wellness. Her personal story is what inspired her to educate and guide others. She dealt with chronic digestive issues for over 10 years, and it was significantly affecting her quality of life. She returned to school to study nutrition, started doing her own research, and trained with functional medicine practitioners.

She now helps clients restore their health naturally through diet and lifestyle changes and necessary diagnostic testing to uncover the root cause. She is a firm believer in the role that real food, a balanced lifestyle, and a positive attitude plays on overall health.

You can visit her website and blog for FREE digestive wellness tips, recipes, and healthy living advice. Jen offers private health coaching to individuals who are struggling with chronic digestive problems as well as an exclusive online program designed to Heal Your Digestion.

A lot of people have gotten results from the Keto diet, and enjoyed the foods that it has to offer. However, many of the people who are following this diet have a hard time finding the recipes that they need, especially ones that are quick and easy to complete.

Fortunately, Kelsey Ale, noticed this problem, and decided to do something about it. She’s found that making recipes in a slow cooker gives you meals which are not only delicious, but also take very little time to make. Mostly you just put a few simple ingredients in the slow cooker, and let it do the rest.

To find out more, click on – Keto Slow Cooker Cookbook

Gut Thyroid Connection – Does Gut Health Affect Thyroid?

 

Click HERE to Discover these 80 Keto-Friendly and Healthy Slow Cooker Recipes

Your Thyroid-Gut Connection

You might think of thyroid issues and stomach complications as independent problems. But have you considered the actual close connection between gut health and your thyroid?

It’s not intuitive to consider that your digestive system and your thyroid gland are intimately connected, and that the function of one feeds back on the function of the other. But the thyroid-gut connection runs deeper than you may expect.

Rather than a set of linear, isolated systems acting independently of one another, the body is an interconnected web. When one strand of the web is pulled, reverberations are created throughout the body. Hioppocrates was correct when he said “all disease begins in the gut.”

Hippocrates said “all disease begins in the gut.” Indeed, gut health is foundational for the health and well-being of the rest of the body and its systems, including the hormonal system.

Your digestive system is not only the avenue through which you absorb nutrition, the gut: plays roles in the cycling, activation and recycling of hormones; is one of the Big 5 organs of detoxification; houses the immune system and is a key player in defense; holds the microbiome, the colony of beneficial bacteria that does innumerable functions for us; and even impacts our mood.

When discussing the gut thyroid connection, things get interesting.

The Rise of Autoimmune Thyroid Disease and the Gut

One of the most important things to know about thyroid function and the gut is that autoimmune thyroid disease— Hashimoto’s and Graves’ disease—is strongly driven, created and exacerbated through gastrointestinal dysfunction.

Autoimmune activity arises from unchecked intestinal irritation, leading to increased permeability and a provocation of the immune system. The end game is loss of the immune system’s ability to tolerate food particles, friendly bacteria and your own human cells.

In a process known as molecular mimicry, the switch is flipped—your immune system makes antibodies against your thyroid cells and autoimmune thyroid disease manifests. Treatment of autoimmune thyroid disease (and any autoimmune dysfunction) begins in the gut.

Thyroid Hormones Protect the Small Intestine

The lining of the small intestine is the interface between the immune system, the foods that you eat, and everything else that comes through the digestive system. Appropriate integrity is key for a balanced, non-reactive immune system.

Thyroid hormones T3 and T4 help maintain the integrity of the lining by ensuring that the desmosomes (the button-like structures that keep the cells that line the small intestine) intact.

When desmosomes become unbuttoned, the immune system can become inappropriately provoked and set the stage for leaky gut and autoimmunity. Your thyroid hormones are responsible for keeping the small intestine intact.

Thyroid Hormones Hone and Mature the Immune System

The vast majority of the immune system is found within the digestive system—about two thirds to three quarters of it. It is primarily found in specialized tissue called GALT (gut associated lymphoid tissue) and MALT (mucosa associated lymphoid tissue).

Two hormones—TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) and TRH (thyrotropin releasing hormone)—help with the building up and fortification of excellent immune function.

The levels for great function are on a bell curve—you want neither too much nor too little, but just right amounts. This is partly why those with abnormal numbers of TSH can have immune issues.

Thyroid Hormones Help Keep the Immune System Balanced

There are many different types of immune cells in the body, all of which have a variety of different functions and jobs. One in particular, called an IEL (intraepithelial lymphocyte), is one that is on a rather short, reactive leash. When activated, IELs rapidly create inflammation in the gut.

Inflammation, left unchecked, increases the permeability of the small intestine and can thus contribute to the development of autoimmune disease.

T4 helps blunt IEL activation, which confers an overall anti-inflammatory effect on the gut and immune system. Certain immune cells create gut inflammation, which can lead to leaky gut syndrome.

Thyroid Hormone Activation and Your Gut Flora

There are 2 main thyroid hormones, T3 and T4, both of which have metabolic activity and function. Thyroid hormones help set the pace for your metabolism and the rate at which you burn fuel for specific activities. Those with low thyroid hormones burn much less fuel at a slower pace, often resulting in weight gain.

T3 is more metabolically active than T4, has a shorter half-life than T4, and is found at lower levels in the body than T4. It also has to be converted from T4 to do its thing, continuously. This conversion happens at multiple sites in the body.

The action of your microbiome—the one-trillion-to-hundred-trillion-cell strong colony of beneficial bacteria that resides in your gut—converts a whopping 20% of thyroid hormone into active form.

Thyroid Function and Dysbiosis

Since your healthy, good bacteria do a lot of converting of thyroid hormone into its active form, an imbalance in the microbiome can slow it down. An imbalance in the ratio of good bacteria to bad or less-than-good bacteria, frank infection with pathogenic bacteria, yeast or parasites, and small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) are all forms of dysbiosis and can slow down conversion big time.

Many people with dysbiosis and dysbiotic conditions, including IBS, IBD, Celiac disease and SIBO, have low thyroid symptoms, but their lab numbers tend to look “perfect.” This is a direct consequence of the reduced functional power of the microbiome. An imbalance in your gut bacteria can be the cause of IBS and Celiac disease.

Even more disconcerting, a dysbiotic microbiome releases a lot of LPS. LPS (lipopolysaccharides) are compounds found within the walls of bacterial bad guys. As these guys die and replace themselves, LPS is released.

LPS has been shown to blunt thyroid function by impairing thyroid hormone receptor sites. LPS is also provocative to the immune system and stimulates the release of the inflammatory molecules and immune cells that are responsible for autoimmune activity.

Thyroid Hormone Activity is Depressed from Inflammation

Increased inflammation, from elevated LPS and dysbiosis in general, over time and unmanaged, will increase cortisol. High levels of cortisol, over time, increase TSH and depress levels of T3, the active thyroid hormone. This confers a pseudo hypothyroid state on the body.

Folks who need ever-increasing amounts of medication or who do not respond well to medication would be prudent to have their salivary cortisol checked throughout the day (an adrenal stress index/ASI test).

Thyroid Function and Constipation

The large intestine is one of the Big Five organs of detoxification, in addition to the skin, lungs, kidneys and liver. The hormone estrogen is cleared from the body through the large intestine—you poop it out.

When you are constipated, you don’t poop out as much estrogen. Your hormonal clearance is compromised, which leads to increased hormones circulating in your blood.

Estrogen elevates a protein called thyroid binding globulin (TBG). TBG grabs up thyroid hormone, rendering it useless to the body. Not what you want!

Constipation and slow transit time promote dysbiosis, which reduces thyroid hormone conversion and leads to less active thyroid hormone being produced, as well as lower thyroid function.

Lower thyroid function, in turn, slows down bile flow; ironically, it is bile that is used by the body to bind estrogen before it is sent to the large intestine to be pooped out.

Constipation and thyroid dysfunction often go hand in hand in a self-perpetuating cycle that impacts many other organs and systems of your body.

The push and pull of thyroid and digestive system function and dysfunction can be greatly improved through taking care of the many aspects that promote gut health and supporting thyroid function.

Those with thyroid disease or symptoms would do well to embrace gut health and restoration, for this is a pivotal step towards feeling better.

Watch this video – Gut Thyroid Connection

Written by Jillion Sarno, Teta, ND

Author Bio:

Jillian Sarno Teta, ND, is the author of the best-selling book Natural Solutions for Digestive Health and the creator of Fix Your Digestion. Internationally recognized for her work in digestive health and wellness, Jillian writes, speaks and blogs extensively on the subject, traveling near and far.

A lot of people have gotten results from the Keto diet, and enjoyed the foods that it has to offer. However, many of the people who are following this diet have a hard time finding the recipes that they need, especially ones that are quick and easy to complete.

Fortunately, Kelsey Ale, noticed this problem, and decided to do something about it. She’s found that making recipes in a slow cooker gives you meals which are not only delicious, but also take very little time to make. Mostly you just put a few simple ingredients in the slow cooker, and let it do the rest.

To find out more, click on – Keto Slow Cooker Cookbook