5 worst habits that cause an unhealthy gut

Your gut is a lot more important for your overall health than you probably realise. In fact, research shows that maintaining a health gut microbiome is key to supporting numerous everyday functions of the body, and can decrease your risk of chronic diseases. That’s why it’s important to make sure you’re doing all you can to support your gut microbiome, and avoiding habits that hurt your gut health. Along with increased symptoms of depression, anxiety as well as gastrointestinal issues, your body is more prone to getting sick and even developing autoimmune diseases.

Reader’s Digest spoke with dietitian Patricia Kolesa about habits that hurt your gut health and small lifestyle tweaks to make that will benefit your gut microbiome for the long run.

“Water helps deliver the nutrients from your food to different parts of the body and aids in removing waste,” says Kolesa. According to the Australian Government’s Health Direct website, the amount of water that someone should drink varies greatly from person to person as it depends on how each individual’s metabolism works, what the temperature is, what they eat, their age and whether they have a medical condition. But it’s especially important for children and older people to drink enough water.

“We get about one fifth of the water we need from food and the rest from drinking fluids. The body gets rid of water throughout the day through breathing and sweating, as well as by going to the toilet. As a general rule, men need about 10 cups* of fluids every day and women need about 8 cups* (add another cup a day if you are pregnant or breastfeeding),” states the website.

“Without adequate hydration, toxins can build up in the body and run the risk of dehydration and/or constipation,” says Kolesa. To increase your water intake throughout the day, Kolesa suggests:

• Use a water bottle with a fluid intake tracker to stay motivated
• Keep your water bottle nearby while you work so you’re reminded to take a sip
• Add lemon, limes or cucumbers to your water to give it a new, refreshing flavour
• Brew yourself a cup of hot decaffeinated tea at night.

*(250ml)

Discover 10 ways your body changes when you start drinking enough water.

“Probiotics are the ‘good bacteria’ found in your gut,” says Kolesa. “Probiotics can change intestinal bacteria to balance your gut flora. This boosts your immunity and overall gut health because the probiotics from your food are added to the gut. Prebiotics are non-digestible components to encourage the growth of healthy bacteria in your gut. When taken together, prebiotics and probiotics can improve gut health.”

Kolesa says adding in a balance of prebiotic foods (such as whole grains and a variety of fruit and vegetables) and probiotics (fermented foods and cultured yoghurts, for example) is a great place to start. As for taking supplements, Kolesa suggests talking to a registered dietitian before making the investment.

It may seem convenient to skip a meal during the day, but according to Kolesa, it’s high on the list of habits that hurt your gut health. “When we don’t eat enough or skip meals, we tend to gravitate towards quick foods to fill the void of hunger,” she says. “This might look like fast food, sweet snacks or energy-dense foods. More often than not, this results in more mindless eating that can turn into a build-up of unhealthy bacteria in the gut.”

Kolesa says to aim for eating a balanced meal every three to four hours. Eating a variety of small snacks that include fibre, protein and healthy fats can help you feel full, and keep your gut happy.

Unfortunately, research shows drinking too much alcohol can negatively affect the microbiota in the gastrointestinal tract (GIT). A review in Alcohol Research found that alcohol-induced changes in the GIT alter microbiota composition and contribute to alcohol-induced oxidative stress, which increases the development of alcoholic liver disease as well as other diseases like gastrointestinal cancers. Alcohol causes cell death when consumed, which changes the composition of the intestine and overwhelms the GIT. This results in intestinal and other organ damage, and the potential development of chronic diseases.

Want to cut back on alcohol? Here are 16 tips to drink a little less.

Australian government guidelines recommend consumers get at least 25 to 30 grams of fibre a day (25g for women; 30g for men), but most of us don’t get the fibre intake we need, which research shows can negatively affect the health of the gut microbiome.

“The more healthy bacteria you have in your gut, the better it is for your health,” says Kolesa. “Some emerging studies are showing fibre as a possible contributor to diversity in gut microbiota. The two types of fibre are soluble and insoluble fibre. Soluble fibre (found in oats, legumes, fruit, vegetables and seeds) attracts water and slows digestion, allowing you to feel fuller for longer. It also helps to feed the good bacteria in the gut. Insoluble fibre (found in high-fibre breads and cereals, the outer skins of fruit and vegetables, and in nuts and seeds) adds bulk to the stool and helps food pass better through the stomach and intestines.”

Kolesa suggests finding ways to increase your fibre intake to feed that gut bacteria, like choosing whole grains and adding more high-fibre foods into your meals such as legumes, fruit and vegetables.

To get enough fibre every day, Cancer Council Australia recommends that you should eat:

• at least 4 serves of wholegrain or wholemeal foods every day (or ensure about half of your daily serves of breads and cereals are wholegrain or wholemeal varieties)
• at least 2 serves of fruit daily
• at least 5 serves of vegetables daily including legumes (also known as ‘pulses’)
• wholefoods rather than dietary fibre supplements, as the benefits of fibre from food may be from the combination of nutrients in food working together.

However, increasing fibre may not be wise for someone with conditions like IBS, so Kolesa suggests talking with a doctor and registered dietitian to determine the amount of fibre that works for your specific body’s needs.

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Source: RD.com