Foods For Your Christmas Gut Health
The festive season is all about celebrating with your family and friends, and showing them how much they mean to you. Usually, we take our gut for granted and Christmas day is no exception, if anything we're even less caring about our poor gut microbiome.
Healthy food is usually associated with boring, not cheery meals, but we're here to tell you that isn't the case. You can still have a great holiday season whilst looking after your gut. Read this article for a gut healthy Christmas!
Foods to avoid this Christmas
First of all, we’re going to cover some foods to avoid this Christmas, as we’ve all been there. The Christmas festive period is a time of celebration and spending time with the family, and with that, we tend to lose track of what we eat, leading to us feeling a bit bloated.
That dreaded bloated feeling you get after Christmas is typically from overeating and not eating well. Looking to keep your gut healthy and happy over the Christmas period? These are a few foods often found around the Christmas table you should try to limit intake or avoid altogether.
Excess Sugar
Candy canes are a staple Christmas sweet? Unfortunately, whilst they taste great, they aren't doing you any good. Sugars, especially high-fructose sugars like corn syrup, can irritate the gut and damage the bacteria culture found in your stomach. This can lead to issues like inflammation and a weaker immune system.
Processed Foods
Processed food, that is food you find in packaging, should be avoided at all costs. A diet with processed foods in it can lead to unwanted weight gain, negatively affect your immune system, and add to stress levels.
Processed foods include sugary soft drinks, frozen pizza, chips, and cookies. Why? Well, part of the processing includes removing essential fibres and nutrients, and adding calories in order to increase their shelf life and "enhance" flavour. Though, if you ask us, making your own food always tastes better.
Red Meat
Red meat isn't very good for the human body, as it contains high saturations of fat which can lead to heart disease-related issues. On top of that, toxins contained within the meat have been found to damage the lining of the bowel, increasing the risks of fever and bad digestion.
Gut responsible foods and drinks
So the festive season is nearing and you don't know what foods will be good for your gut. The good news is that there are a number of wonderful foods and ingredients to put into your Christmas dishes to ensure you're having a fun and gut healthy Christmas!
Carrots
Carrots are a great choice to add to any meal, as they contain high amounts of fibre, microbes and vitamins. They work well in a roast, soups, and are even great as a healthy snack. Why not have little carrot sticks and a hummus dip for a tasty Christmas snack?
Ginger
One of the superfoods to improve your gut health is ginger. They contain anti-inflammatory and digestive aid properties that help your gut digest food properly.
Ginger works with almost any dish as a great spice or ingredient, great in curries, and homemade cookies. Another thing ginger is great for is if you ate too many sugary foods and are feeling unwell. Then ginger tea is perfect for settling an upset tummy.
Fermented Foods
If you're looking to keep your stomach feeling healthy and well, look at getting some probiotics in you with fermented foods such as kombucha, yogurt, and kefir milk.
Fermented foods contain beneficial bacteria that are then added to your gut microbiome. Your stomach relies on this microbiome to fight off infections and bad toxins. Think of it as topping up the tank to keep your stomach strong and healthy.
We heartily recommend kombucha as an alternative to alcoholic and soft drinks. They have a crisp, sharp flavour that can be enhanced with the use of fruits, and are great as a social drink.
Garlic
Garlic is another superfood that's just so good for your gut health. Much in the same way as ginger, garlic helps to keep you feeling healthy and strong. Plus, they add a distinct and loved taste to any dinner dish you make. So there are only good things that come out of adding some garlic to a dish.
Onions
Who doesn't include onions in their meals right? These little layered bulbs of goodness contain good sources of fibre and nutrients. You will want to keep up your fibre intake as fibrous foods are prebiotics that feed your gut microbes. Ensure that you keep on adding those onions to your meals for a healthy gut and digestive system even on Christmas day.
Cinnamon
Looking to add a little something to your dessert? Maybe you're making a carrot cake or some cookies. To keep up that Christmas spirit add some cinnamon to them. Along with its distinct flavour, cinnamon contains many benefits for your digestive health. It's another probiotic that helps your microbiome thrive and deter any bad and toxic bacteria.
Stock up for Christmas at our gut health Superstore!
The Christmas holiday season is about having a good time and fun, and there isn't any reason to compromise with food. To get your Christmas gut health ingredients come to NourishMe Organics for a superstores worth of gut health foods. We have everything you need, from kefir milk to gut health supplements, and even kombucha kits so you can have your own scoby farm.
