Poor gut health can have a huge impact on both your physical and emotional health. An unhealthy gut can put your whole body out of balance, which can lead to a number of health issues including anxiety, depression, lowered immune function, weight gain, digestive issues and an increased risk of autoimmune diseases.
The gut, or gastrointestinal system, is made up of vital digestive organs that are responsible for many essential tasks. The gut breaks down food and absorbs nutrients to provide energy, and to build, repair and nourish the body. It plays the important role of removing waste and toxins and it's the body's first line of defence against harmful bacteria and pathogens. A large percentage of our neurotransmitters and immune cells are also produced in the gut.
Here are six superfoods your gut will love to add into your daily diet.
Whole oats
Having whole oats for breakfast is a great way to add more resistant starch into your diet. This important type of dietary fibre moves through the small intestine undigested, and instead it's fermented in the large intestine by your gut microbiota. The by-product of this fermentation process is the production of short-chain fatty acids (SCFA), called postbiotics. These postbiotics play the very important role of providing fuel for your beneficial gut microbiota, along with reducing inflammation and ensuring the integrity of the gut lining.
Resistant starch is considered a prebiotic food as it encourages your beneficial gut microbiota to grow and flourish in the digestive tract. For optimal gut health you should be aiming to include a variety of fibre-rich sources in your daily diet, including resistant starch found in whole oats.
This story is from the Issue #42 edition of Eat Well.
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This story is from the Issue #42 edition of Eat Well.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
ARE YOU TO FU enough?
Love it or hate it, everyone has an opinion about tofu. Tofu is a very popular plant-based protein for vegans and vegetarians, but now this humble bean curd is starting to shine for meat lovers too as an alternative source of protein.
Sweet TRAYBAKES
Whether you want to feed a group of people or make a batch of treats for the week, traybaking is a no-fuss way to cook up something sweet and easy that will please everyone. Your family and friends will love you when you offer them some of our: cinnamon scrolls; fruity chocolate; espresso brownies; lemon & coconut slice; or ginger cake with brown butter frosting.
ROLL UP
When you roll food, whether in Lebanese bread, a thin pancake or whatever you choose, you can create a parcel of nutrition that is perfectly suited to your own tastes and needs. Here are some roll-up recipes that will suit every occasion including: mango, snow pea, & sprout rice paper rolls; oat crepes with coconut yoghurt & mixed berries; or beef meatball & tzatziki flatbreads.
RICE BOWL Lunches
If you are working from home, or even enjoying your weekend, and lunchtime rolls around but you have no plans for lunch, then a rice bowl is an ideal saviour.
PLANT-BASED PIES
Pies are a piece of gastronomic brilliance: a filling with a case and lid you can eat is food genius. The first pies date back to Egyptian times and there is a recipe for chicken pie that was carved into stone more than 4000 years ago. For millennia, however, the pie casing was mostly used to cook the filling, but for around 500 years or more we have been eating the pie crust too.
20 FOOD CRAVING HACKS
Decipher the deeper causes of your cravings and discover tricks to curtail them.
Eggplant (Solanum melongena L)
Eggplant is a wonderful option for vegans and vegetarians, extremely nutritious and highly versatile in the kitchen.
5 PANTRY SAVIOURS
Whether you're cooking a simple breakfast or something more exotic, here are five pantry food staples you should have on hand to cook plenty of delicious meals in the comfort of your own home.
Cucumber (Cucumis sativus)
Cucumbers are delicious fresh but they also offer plenty more options in the kitchen.
Our Chefs
Meet the chefs who bring this issue's recipes to you: Lisa Guy, Georgia Harding, Lee Holmes, Sammy Jones, Raquel Neofit, Naomi Sherman and Ames Starr.
