A healthy digestive tract is one of the keystones to overall health and wellness. Yet, due to the enormous scale and complexity of most gut issues, it's easy to feel overwhelmed. Gut and digestion issues tend to eclipse lifestyle, challenging one of our most important (and all too often neglected) relationships—that with food.

Researching and improving gut health can be overwhelming. We've taken the guesswork out of nourishing the digestive tract with these bite-sized, actionable steps. Suspecting you have a compromised gut is a prime opportunity, however challenging, to revamp your diet, reconnect with your body, and nourish yourself at one of the most fundamental levels.

How Gut Health Impacts Your Overall Well-Being

Disruption of proper gut function can affect the body in many ways, some of which don't seem directly related to the gut at all. Poor gut health can be associated with numerous symptoms, and not all of them are obvious. Further, diseases of the gut normally arise in wildly different ways for each individual.

While it's folly to automatically attribute one or even several of the symptoms below to G.I. tract issues (as most have multiple potential causes), your gut health is well worth scrutiny if you're experiencing a handful of the following:

• Diarrhea, constipation, indigestion, bloating, cramps, or any other sign of upset stomach
• Chronic inflammation (potentially experienced as abdominal pain, inconsistent stool patterns, fever, anemia, malnutrition, and even psychological issues)
• Heartburn and ulcers
• Skin conditions like psoriasis, rashes, acne, eczema, and overall dry skin
• Low immunity and susceptibility to other diseases, including autoimmune disease
• New food intolerances
• Poor sleep quality and a general feeling of fatigue or malaise
• Hormone dysregulation
• Mood problems (e.g., mood swings, anxiety, depression)
• Cravings, often intense, for unhealthy foods and drinks
• Chronic dehydration
• Failure to grow (in children)

Understandably, not everyone considers the digestive tract when what they're experiencing is a rash or feelings of thirst (to cite just two counterintuitive examples). Yet it's the gut that determines how well we convert what we bring in from the outer environment into nourishing constituent products that allow our internal worlds to thrive.

For the sake of argument, consider it in reverse: if you wanted to disrupt as much of the human body as possible but by targeting only a single bodily system, that target would be your gut. Of course, this also means that improving your gut health could lead to a near-endless cascade of health benefits overall.

Ancient Wisdom for Modern Maladies

 

Until recent times, it was hard to correctly identify a dysregulated gut as the main driving force behind a host of modern ailments—but it's also nothing new, at least conceptually. Hypocrites, regarded as the father of modern medicine, was even more unequivocal on the subject:

"All diseases begin in the gut."

Moreover, he stressed the importance of facilitating our own internal power to heal our bodies, claiming:

"Everyone has a doctor in him or her; we just have to help it in its work. The natural healing force within each of us is the greatest force in getting well."

Naturally, it raises a single overarching question: just how do we tap into that internal healing force?

"Our food should be our medicine. Our medicine should be our food."

We're here to play a small role in helping people tap into their own latent power to heal. As we discuss actionable steps to restoring gut health in this comprehensive guide, we think you'll agree that solutions to many digestive disorders are far from impossible.

What Causes Gut Issues?

Researchers still aren't entirely sure what causes some of the most common diseases of the gut, such as irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

Potentially more serious issues, like ulcerative colitis (a type of ulcer) and gastritis (inflammation normally caused by the Helicobacter pylori bacteria or certain pain medications), may have clearer causes—but they still don't have one-size-fits-all solutions.

Essentially, there's rarely a single cause for most diseases of the gut. While a single issue may act as the main catalyst, a compromised gut is usually the culmination of countless interrelated factors. Like the symptoms of poor gut health, the list of potential causes is broad and varied:

• Infections and poor immunity
• High stress and poor coping skills
• Antibiotics (both via prescriptions and, indirectly, livestock)
• Acidifying and dehydrating foods or drinks (including alcohol, soda, certain dehydrated foods, etc.)
• Nutrient-poor, industrialized foods
• An unhealthy gut microbiome, i.e., overgrowth of harmful bacteria

These latter few points deserve particular attention—both because of their overall importance to gut health/digestion and the r­elative ease with which almost anyone can start improving their condition.

How Gut Issues Affect the Rest of the Body

If left unaddressed, gut and microbiome issues are bound to disrupt other systems of the body. It's now clear that gut issues extend well beyond expected GI tract disorders like irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), leaky gut, Crohn's disease, celiac, and SIBO (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth).

Thus, it should come as no surprise that researchers have linked gut issues to a wide range of other health problems and conditions. A compromised gut has been linked to many other disorders that affect the whole body, such as:

• Aberrant hormone levels
• Unexplained weight fluctuations (in either direction)
• Higher susceptibility to infection and disease
• Poor nutrition, seemingly no matter what you consume
• Mental disorders
• Various cancers
• Allergies
• Psoriatic arthritis
• Diabetes
• Chronic heart disease

Effects on the Gut Microbiome

Whenever the GI tract's balance between good and bad bacteria goes awry, the advantage goes to the latter—creating a slippery slope that could be hard to recover from. If you suspect gut microbiome imbalance, it's likely much less arduous and stressful to focus on reversing the trends rather than waiting for a disease to force your hand.

Courtesy of our industrialized food supply, the standard modern diet creates an internal environment more conducive to harmful gut bacteria. Uncontested, these harmful bacteria proliferate and overwhelm what little beneficial gut bacteria we may have.

Once the gut microbiome reaches a tipping point, harmful bacterial overgrowth occurs. Yet even then, it's important to remember that the G.I. tract's condition is constantly in flux. Good, bad, or somewhere in between—what we put into our bodies changes our bodies.

Just how we facilitate that change is, as with all things health, up to us.

How a Healthy Diet Can Alleviate Symptoms and Improve Gut Health

Think of the digestive tract as the point highest upstream from practically all other bodily systems. That's because the body's overall function depends on:

1. The compounds it receives
2. How well the G.I. tract assimilates those compounds

That's why a diet rich in pre- and probiotics, fermented ingredients, and nutrient-dense whole foods is one of the most effective means of improving gut health. Even better, these foods are affordable and readily available to the general population.

While adopting the following tips in any order should be helpful for most people—pending a trusted dietitian's advice—you might consider clearing out any adverse dietary/lifestyle habits first.

Removing Obstacles to Gut Health

Rather than attempting to build on shaky foundations, it's essential to mitigate those dietary and lifestyle factors that damage the gut in the first place. The following have been variously associated with poor gut health and should be mitigated as well as possible as you take steps to enhance gut function:

• Very high- or low-carbohydrate diets
• Foods and drinks with an acidifying effect on the body—though not always caused by acidic foods/drinks (like citrus)!
• Chronic and mismanaged stress
• Insufficient/poor sleep
• Poor nutrition and hydration quality
• A sedentary lifestyle

Fueling the Gut Microbiome

By now, most people know that there are astonishingly more bacterial cells in the human body than of strictly human origin.

It means that, as far as nutrition goes, we might be better off placing more thought into how diet can support the microbiome than the entire rest of the body. After all, anything you eat must contend with the bacteria in the G.I. tract before it even gets to our native cells.

Further on, we'll break down each category of gut-friendly nutrition so you can choose the best foods for you and your family—but first, what sort of expectations should you have when making a concerted effort to condition your gut?

How Long Does Improving Gut Health Take?

Modern insights into gut health have demystified a multitude of long-held questions. However, it seems the more we learn, the more questions it raises than answers.

Don't be surprised if your individual condition is as unique as any particular methodology for improving gut health (in fact, count on it). That said, stories mount by the day of those with severely compromised guts healing within a year or even months.

As impressive as that sounds, it shouldn't be too hard to believe. Modern researchers have seen fit to consider the gut "one of the most regenerative organs" of the human body—lending a certain level of credence to Hypocrites' concept of the "inner doctor."

Practical Tips to Start Improving Your Gut Health Today

Just as gut health strongly determines many (only seemingly) separate facets of health, restoring the G.I. tract often requires a multifaceted approach. Fortunately, there are many proactive steps available to those dedicated to repairing their gut, microbiome, and all.

1. Improve Hydration

The digestive system depends on more than good nutrition. Hydration is necessary to rid the gut of harmful bacteria and other waste products, improving the balance between good and bad bacteria. It also facilitates the movement of nutrients from food particles into the bloodstream and the elimination of waste products.

When most people talk about proper hydration, the conversation usually stops at what constitutes "adequate" hydration (i.e., how much water to drink each day). Yet quality hydration is every bit as important as diet, and in some ways more—meaning both improved water quality and hydration habits are in order.

Of course, this raises many questions regarding how to best hydrate for gut health in particular:

Should you drink water with or between meals? What time of day is best for consuming the most water? Can drinking supplements simultaneously support hydration and measures of gut health? What about water quality, electrolyte balance, and the effects it all has on digestion?

Hydration Tips for Gut Health

While hydration, in general, is a huge topic worth your concerted attention, we can offer several important tips in the context of gut health specifically:

• Research shows water quality may be one of the key contributing factors affecting gut microbiota variation.
• Drinking water in the morning helps prepare the gut for digestion and metabolism (and you'll likely be somewhat dehydrated after sleep).
• Depending on activity and dehydration levels, drinking large amounts of water is usually best done between meals.
• Certain aspects of gut health can affect one's hydration/electrolyte balance, and vice versa—be sure to bolster stronger hydration habits with a ready-made electrolyte mix powder.
• We generally need a consistent supply of water throughout the day, and the digestive system is actively cleaning house between meals.
• A glass of water 30 minutes before eating can stimulate the production of saliva, gastric juices, and digestive enzymes (not to mention increase feelings of satiety).
• Small sips of water throughout and after meals are generally okay, but be careful not to disrupt the delicate pH balance required for digestion.
• Many foods can also improve hydration levels, especially those with over 90% water content (including cucumber, lettuce, celery, radishes, tomato, mushrooms, peppers, berries, watermelon, cabbage, zucchini/summer squash, asparagus, cauliflower, and spinach).
• A powdered prebiotic drink mix made from whole food sources can simultaneously hydrate and nourish the body with important nutrients and micronutrients often lacking in modern diets.

2. Prioritize Sleep

As mentioned, poor gut health can lead to poor sleep quality, but the relationship goes the other way as well. Research shows microbiome diversity is positively associated with both sleep quality and quantity.

Also, pay attention to how your eating and sleeping habits overlap. The following sleep hygiene tips, as they relate to diet, can help optimize gut health—and even better, these lifestyle habit tweaks are completely free!

• Don't immediately lie down after eating, which can increase the risk of acid reflux and heartburn, as well as disrupt the digestive process overall
• A heavy meal within an hour before bed may delay the onset of sleep
• Eating even two or more hours before bed can contribute to wakefulness in the middle of the night
• Lower-carbohydrate diets have been associated with more time spent in slow-wave sleep, meaning greater detox and restoration

3. Exercise

Movement is vital to keeping your gut functioning properly. Astonishingly, regular exercise has even been associated with greater microbiome diversity and increased numbers of beneficial microbes—prompting researchers to conclude that "exercise manifested a unique microbiome independent of diet." Exercise also seemed to contribute to greater intestinal integrity.

Note that research into the connections between exercise and gut physiology studied the effects of low-intensity cardiovascular/endurance exercise and team sports (rugby), measuring fitness levels via peak oxygen uptake. Be advised that exercise in conjunction with food restriction can disrupt the gut mucosal barrier.

There was also a marked difference in the composition of gut microbiota between forced and voluntary exercise (at least in rats). We now have hard data suggesting that it's actually important for physical markers of health to plan an exercise regimen around things you love and enjoy.

4. Plan Your Grocery Runs

We'll cover just what foods tend to have a positive effect on gut health next—but before you dash out (or log in!) to your favorite health food stores, get into the habit of planning your meals. It will help you know exactly which foods to look for and compare, cutting down on time and costs.

Not having a game plan is likely to leave you susceptible to impulse buys and off-diet purchases. Conversely, building out your shopping list alongside your hard-won nutrition research helps strengthen your resolve and gives a much greater sense of control over your dietary destiny.

5. Adopt a More Gut-Friendly Diet

While everyone's nutritional needs will vary (and all the more among the gastrointestinally compromised), the following should serve as a good launching pad for most people contending with gut issues. As always, if you have a particularly severe case (or just want the straightest custom-tailored answers), be sure to consult with a trusted nutritionist or dietician.

Pre- and Probiotics

Perhaps little else bolsters gut health more than foods that directly nourish the gut microbiome. Taking a full-spectrum approach to nourishing your beneficial gut bacterial requires a two-pronged approach:

1. Probiotics, to directly populate the intestines with large quantities of gut-friendly bacteria
2. Prebiotics, which serve as food for your microbiome's newest guests

Once you've established a much healthier gut microbiome, it's important to capitalize on your progress. That means incorporating more pre- and probiotic-rich food into your overall diet—not treating it like a one-time fix.

Fortunately, whole-food prebiotic drinks are more affordable and effective (not to mention tasty) than ever. They're also jam-packed with a multitude of micronutrients, functional mushrooms, adaptogenic superfoods, and other nutritional compounds aimed at providing full-body support.

Fermented Foods

Fermented foods are an excellent way to increase your probiotic intake while filling your diet with nutrient-rich foods and beverages. They're called "living foods" for a reason, as they're full of constituent products researchers are only starting to understand, such as bioactive peptides and microbial metabolites—which fermentation makes available by breaking open the proteins they're housed in.

These and other important compounds in fermented foods have been associated with the following benefits to gut health and overall wellness:

• Antimicrobial properties
• Lower blood pressure
• Antioxidant activity
• Lower blood lipids
• Pain reduction via quasi-opioid effects
• Reduced risk of obesity
• Mineral-binding properties
• Blood sugar control
• Slowed aging
• Anti-cancer effects

Adaptogenic Superfoods

We've mentioned the connection between stress and gut health. Both before and after gut issues arise, it's likely that chronic stress, poor coping skills, or a combination of both may be at play. While a huge topic in its own right, there are many ways to defuse the harmful effects of stress right there at the kitchen table.

That includes a multitude of adaptogens and superfoods that adapt to the body's varied needs in its never-ending quest to maintain homeostasis:

• Tulsi (aka Holy Basil) helps mitigate the negative effects of cortisol, released in large amounts when stressed
• Reishi mushrooms can also modulate cortisol and boost white blood cell count—and the gut serves as the veritable headquarters for most of the immune system
• Cordyceps is another functional mushroom that can regulate cortisol in response to physiological stress
• Maitake mushrooms, which nourish the gut flora and help the body recover from stress
• Astragalus, another potential mediator of the effects of stress, thanks to a suite of protective compounds
• Rhodiola, to help reduce fatigue related particularly to high stress levels
• Ashwagandha, shown in numerous studies to help reduce stress and anxiety—including both physical, measurable stress and one's perception of stress

This last point exemplifies a key concept in handling stress as it relates to the mind-body connection.

6. Lower/Manage Stress Levels

Tempting though it is to vilify our daily stressors, the only realistic option is to take stock of what stress actually is and how we can better relate to it. When the body experiences temporary difficulty, it prompts a cascade of biochemical processes to protect and repair the body—both at a system-wide and cellular level.

It's important to understand that these are the same processes that strengthen and improve the body. Exercise is quite literally a form of stress that we deliberately inflict onto our bodies. Of course, we experience it willingly and (if we're doing it right!) with a sense of fun and adventure.

So, what's the difference between the stress we experience at the gym or going for a jog in nature and the stress we lambast after a hard day doing difficult things that don't bring us joy? Quite simply (though it may be easier said than done), it's all in the mind.

Said otherwise: the effects that stress has on the body, in some ways, relate more to the way we respond to it than the stress itself.

7. Eat and Drink Mindfully

Eating should be more than just supplying our bodies with dead, inanimate fuel.

The gut microbiome is alive, and it will serve you as well as any other relationship you take the time to nourish on its own terms. That's why the way we focus on our eating habits (or don't!) can bear a surprisingly high impact on the quality of digestion—and, by extension, our overall health.

By now, almost everyone has heard the term "mindfulness," presented as a veritable panacea to a broad range of psychological difficulties. Of course, terms like mindfulness are often prone to vagaries, which can be less than helpful. To be specific, we encourage taking a more thoughtful and intentional approach to all of the following:

• Food and drink selection
• Comparing ingredients and nutrition content between brands
• Prioritizing nutrient density over taste and enjoyment (though with the right products, it's a non-issue!)
• Eating/drinking slowly and deliberately

Enjoy Your Food

Set aside quality time to enjoy your food. Chew it fully (to reduce work for your gut), and deepen that ever-important psychosomatic side of health—i.e., a conviction that your thoughts and feelings about food deeply affect the physical outcome.

Don't take this concept lightly. Even modern research is increasingly uncovering tangible evidence for the power of the placebo effect in shaping health outcomes. Of course, tapping into one's latent mind-over-matter prowess also implies that we must take tangible action aligned with our core beliefs to truly tap into the "inner doctor/healing force" Hippocrates described thousands of years ago.

But what does the hard data say? Research into mindful eating has found a significant correlation with two important measures of good digestion:

• Parasympathetic nervous system dominance
• Homeostasis of the autonomic nervous system

Think about that the next time you rush to fit a meal or a snack into your busy day. It just may be the thing to help you slow down, chew, and enjoy your food. Even if you're eating on the run, you might actually get more done by adapting to a greater sense of calm and focus while you eat.

8. Galvanize Your Commitment to Better Gut Health

Given the amount of work and dedication required to reverse many gut diseases, it stands to reason that taking a preventative approach is much more helpful than constantly playing defense. Once you embark on your journey toward greater gut health, seal in your new habits with equally healthy self-messages.

It won't happen overnight, but it can happen reasonably quickly if you give yourself the same patience and care as a loved one. No journey toward greater health is without some sort of psychological investment. Especially when it's hard, find ways to double down on your goals and take stock of your progress.

More research than ever is showing the power of tapping into the psychosomatic (literally "mental" + "pertaining to the material body") side of health. For support with the emotional and mental aspects of altering your eating and lifestyle habits, you may find the following helpful in your journey toward a healthier gut:

• Research into the "psychogenic pain process" (vis a vis the late Dr. John Sarno, chronic pain specialist) suggests that physical manifestations of emotional distress may be the rule rather than the exception.
• Modern research lends more credence than ever to the placebo effect, and there is growing hard data to back it up.
• Conversely, the so-called "nocebo effect" suggests that whatever latent mind-over-matter talents our inner doctor might possess goes both ways. As you treat your gut microbiome to nourishing compounds, be sure to also fuel your mind with positive messages.
• It's important to tap into the social aspects of health, both broadly and in relation to specific conditions. Research shows that a robust social network is critical to maximizing health and wellness.

9. Find Support

Here at Laird Superfood, we like to think that much of our efforts to promote greater health and well-being are social in nature. Given that so many people today are experiencing preventable gut issues, why not connect with others in your community contending with the same challenges?

It could go a long way to strengthening your resolve and sealing in those all-important lifestyle habits. After all, nothing brings together like-minded individuals better than good food and good company!

Taking a Full-Spectrum Approach to Gut Health—One Fork or Glass at a Time

While improving gut health can seem like an enormous undertaking, the work is in direct proportion to the benefits. Instead of viewing the tips and information contained in this guide as a massive to-do list, treat it more like a sample platter. While it's true you only get what you put into it, your efforts are more likely to pay off if they're taken from a position of strength and clarity.

Why not begin your journey to improved gut function by enhancing your diet with Laird Superfood's assortment of:

• Nutrient-rich drink mixes and blends
• Whole-food-based supplements
• Adaptogen-infused creamers and organic coffee
• Healthy and delicious snacks, made with peak sports performance and nutrition in mind—so you can keep your G.I. tract (and the rest of you!) moving confidently toward your health goals

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Sources:

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https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4425030/

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Acidifying diet: https://www.paeats.org/feature/acidic-foods-gut-health-chester-county-hospital/

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https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/other/should-you-drink-water-before-during-or-after-the-meals-how-it-impacts-your-digestion/ar-AA1o5irh

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Hydrating in the morning: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/health/2020/01/23/water-every-morning-first-thing-has-health-benefits-experts-say/4530408002/

Hydration and drink mixes: https://health.clevelandclinic.org/do-powdered-greens-work

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Reishi: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10480226/

Cordyceps: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4553310/

Maitake: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8617840/

Astragalus: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2766712/

Rhodiola: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9228580/

Ashwaganda: https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Ashwagandha-HealthProfessional/#:~:text=Overall%2C%20the%20studies%20found%20that,)%20levels%2C%20compared%20with%20placebo.

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Social effects on health and wellbeing: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35021021/