Our gut plays a much more crucial role than we would imagine. From breaking down the food and converting it into nutrients, balancing hormones, removing toxins to mental health, our gut almost defines our overall health and not just digestion. Many researchers are studying the gut microbiota nowadays. There is a wide range of bacteria – almost 40 trillion – that resides in our body, mostly in gut and provide different health benefits to us by taking care of important body functions. Unhealthy gut microbiome, on the other hand, could cause inflammation and change the way our immune system works; it also makes us susceptible to various diseases like diabetes, cancer, depression, and also autoimmune diseases like arthritis. (Also read: 5 tips to keep your gut healthy this monsoon)
What we are eating now can make a huge difference in our probability of getting certain diseases later in our life. The right diet swaps are thus important to immediately improve gut health to stay healthy and disease-free in a long run.
Processed foods, sugar, red meat among others must be avoided for better gut health while fibre-rich foods, fermented foods, organic foods, probiotics must be added to the diet for better functioning of gut. In case your food choices do not favor your gut health, there are always healthy swaps that could turn around your health.
Nutritionist Bhakti Kapoor in her recent post discussed healthy choices for gut health. Take a look.
LEMON AND GINGER TEA VS COLD WATER
One of the primary reasons to avoid drinking chilly water is that it has a negative impact on your digestion. Cold beverages, such as chilled water, constrict blood vessels and impair digestion.
When you drink chilly water, the natural process of absorbing nutrients during digestion is blocked.
While the amount of limonene in a cup of lemon-ginger tea varies, the combination of lemon, ginger, and water in lemon-ginger tea may help with indigestion. Lemon and ginger both include plant chemicals that may help relieve minor stomach aches caused by digestion.
COLD PRESSED OIL VS INFLAMMATORY (REFINED OIL)
Cold-pressed oils are high in important fatty acids, antioxidants, vitamin E, vitamin K, vitamin C, and other beneficial fats because they retain the potency of their components and keep them in their natural form.
VEGETABLE NOODLES VS PASTA OR REFINED GRAINS
Finding healthy alternatives to replace some of your carb-heavy meals is a fantastic approach to actually improve your diet without the yoyo effects of extreme fad diets.
Veggie noodles are a good gluten-free option for reducing carbs found in pasta, but they also provide a more complete set of nutrients, such as vitamin A (good for vision and the immune and inflammatory systems), C (an antioxidant that is good for skin and bones), E (good for heart health), K (good for blood and bone health), and fiber (good for digestion and cardiovascular health). Pasta noodles contain none of these nutrients. Zucchini, carrot, sweet potato, turnip, broccoli parsnip and squash are some examples of vegetable noodle.
WHICH IS HEALTHIER: JUICES OR SMOOTHIES?
Smoothies include additional nutrients since the vitamin-rich, fibrous pulp is not eliminated. Smoothies can be an excellent source of important nutrients, minerals, and phytochemicals as a snack or as an addition to a meal, especially if a variety of fruits and vegetables are utilized. Using different colored fruits and vegetables might help to change the nutrients in your smoothie.