Worst Foods For Gut Health!

Gut health is extremely important to our overall health because a healthy microbiome (the bacteria in your digestive tract) has been linked with allergies, irritable bowel syndrome, diabetes, obesity, immunity, and heart and brain health, just to name a few.

One way to improve your gut health is with a probiotic and prebiotic supplement. However, it’s important to remember that it’s just a supplement to a healthy diet, not in replacement of one. What’s most important is what we put into our mouths each day, and there are a ton of foods that help your gut, and some that we really should avoid.

Check out this list of gut busters to start improving your gut health today!

Dairy

Some of us are more sensitive to dairy products than others, but studies have shown that a diet rich in dairy has a bad effect on your gut microbiome. In addition, when we consume dairy we are consuming more antibiotics then we think! According to the FDA standards, lactating cows aren’t supposed to receive antibiotics, but some farmers violate these regulations.

Of course antibiotics can be a lifesaver, but if overused it’s a recipe for disaster. Try this: Replace cows milk for nut milk, or some kind of dairy free option. If you do purchase dairy make sure it’s the best quality possible; organic, grass-fed, and rBGH free.

Sugar

Oh sugar, I love you so! Obviously this one is a hard one for me. But there is no getting around it, sugar is bad for your gut health. This includes all types of sugars: white and brown sugar, artificial sweeteners, and high fructose corn syrup.

The more sugar and sweeteners we eat, the more bad bacteria grow, and this will eventually crowd out the good bacteria. Try this instead: replace white sugar for a natural sweetener like honey. I recently did this in my coffee and now I actually prefer the taste with honey, not to mention honey is a good prebiotic. Coconut sugar and stevia are other good natural sweeteners.

Gluten

I didn’t want to write this one because I love bread SO much! Gluten is a type of protein that’s found in certain types of grain, wheat, and barley; it gives food a nice texture. While some people are more sensitive to gluten than others, gluten can still have a bad effect on your gut microbiome.

Thankfully there are a ton of gluten free alternatives. Try experimenting with gluten-free bread, chips, pasta, and so much more!

Tap Water

This is a BIG one, and one you wouldn’t really think would damage your gut flora. Even though your water may be drinkable and tastes great, it’s full of chemicals, chlorine, and even antibiotics. If you don’t believe me, check out “What’s Really in Your Tap Water,“ and use the link to examine your neighborhood tap water with your zip code.

Try this fix: This one is easy; purchase an inexpensive water filter so that your family is protected from unnecessary chemicals that damage your gut. Side note, I even give my dogs filtered water, even their little guts get affected from tap water.

Processed and Fried Foods

This one is obvious; we all know processed and fried foods are terrible for us. Just like sugar, processed and fried foods break down and feed the bad bacteria in your gut, this in turn affects your gut diversity, which is key to having a healthy gut flora.

How about this: if you’re really craving junk food like french fries, try baking them with olive oil or coconut oil instead of deep frying them. Instead of deep fried potato chips, try baked chips, or one of my favorites, super food chips.

Farm Raised Fish

Farm raised fish are often fed an unnatural diet and are given antibiotics directly into their food, which undoubtedly will be passed to you. Instead of food that’s found in the ocean or lakes, most farm raised fish are given GMO corn and growth hormones, which will result in a depletion of your beneficial gut bacteria.

It’s hard to find fish that aren’t farm-raised nowadays, but try your best to eat only wild caught fish, and check out this list of fish that are healthier and more sustainable.

Meat

Eating a diet high in meat is very hard on your body, especially if it includes a lot of red meat. Just like farm-raised fish, meat is filled with antibiotics, fed grain-based food, and given growth hormones. Then after being slaughtered, the meat is highly processed with various chemicals, preservatives, and nitrates (just to name a few).

All of this affects your gut bacteria, increasing the bad bacteria and decreasing the good. How about this instead: Only purchase high quality organic, grass-fed meat. Not only does it taste SO much better, but it’s WAY better for your gut health. In addition, If you’re not already vegetarian or vegan, try doing meatless meals, or increasing your plant intake and decreasing the meat.

Soy

I was surprised to learn soy is a damager to your gut, and that’s because most soy we consume today is genetically modified and processed. Studies have shown that soy products can rapidly affect your gut bacteria, especially the two strains Lactobacillus and Bifidobacteria, that are essential to a healthy gut.

Try this: avoid GMO soy at all cost, and purchase only organic soy products. Fermented soy is very good for the gut, such as natto (if you can stand the stinky smell), tempeh, or miso). In Hawaii we use shoyu (soy sauce) in a TON of foods, so now I only purchase organic GMO free soy sauce. It’s a little pricier than most, but it’s worth it for your gut health!

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Best Foods for Gut Health!

When it comes to your gut health, nothing is more important then what you eat and drink. Your microbiome is affected by your diet, but the good news is your body can create new microbiota within 24 hours, just by changing what you eat.

For a healthy gut, studies have shown eating more foods that contain fiber, probiotics and prebiotics are essential. While taking Probiotic or Prebiotic supplements can be helpful, what you eat is by far the most important.

So what foods should we eat to keep our gut flourishing?

Fiber Rich Foods

The recommended daily amount of fiber intake is 25 grams for women, and 38 grams for men. However, most Americans don’t even get close to consuming this amount. If you don’t meet this amount daily, start increasing your fiber intake gradually, and drink lots of water to stay hydrated.

Foods high in fiber:

Legumes (chickpeas, lentils, peas, all different types of beans) just one cup of legumes is half your daily intake of fiber. Try adding hummus to your sandwiches or as a vegetable dip for a snack, or add a side of black beans to your dinner.

Whole fruits and vegetables: Pretty much all fruits and vegi’s have fiber but some are extra high in fiber, check these out:

Artichoke. 10.3 grams of fiber per artichoke.
Raspberries & Blackberries. 8 grams of fiber.
Dark colored vegetables: collard greens, swiss chard, carrots, broccoli, beets. Around 4 grams of fiber.
Exotic fruits: mango and guava. 5 and 9 grams of fiber.

Try starting your day with a fruit and vegetable smoothie, it’s a super easy way to add fiber to your diet, and it tastes delicious! Check out The Healthy Gut Smoothie!

Whole grains including: high fiber cereals, oatmeal, brown rice, quinoa, barley, bran, bulgur, and whole grain bread.

Probiotic & Prebiotic

Probiotic and prebiotic rich foods can give your gut healthy microorganisms to crowd out the unhealthy bacteria. Studies have shown it can improve bacteria imbalance in the gut, immune function, relieve digestion, and heal stomach related issues.

For centuries people have been fermenting their food, and it’s no wonder that people from countries such as Japan and Korea (who regularly consume fermented foods) live so long.

Probiotic and prebiotic rich foods:

Kimchi: Fermented cabbage made with different spices and ingredients. One of my favorite fermented foods, a great to addition to Buddha bowls, Ramen, or as a side dish.

Sauerkraut: I’m not a huge fan of sauerkraut (maybe on a hot dog, which I rarely eat anymore) but I’ve been trying to sneak it into my meals. Add it to sushi, or a small amount to a smoothie and you can’t even taste it. Remember when you’ve eaten all the kraut from the jar, don’t throw away the brine, use it in salad dressing, or shoot-it for a strong gut healer.
Miso: I love me some miso soup when I’m sick, but this soybean has a whole lot of other uses. Keep some miso paste in your fridge and add it to salad dressings, soups, sauces, and miso-mayo. Yum!
Kefir: I always have a bottle of kefir in my fridge because it’s one of the MOST probiotic rich foods on the planet. Coconut kefir is my favorite because it’s dairy free, and has no added sugar.

Tempeh: This fermented soybean food is full of healthy bacteria. Try marinating it and add it to stir fry, or in a whole grain sandwich for a mock BLT.
Pickled vegetables: My husband’s favorite food is Korean, and thankfully they offer a ton of pickled vegetables. Pickles and pickled vegetables are high in antioxidants and probiotics, but not all pickled foods are fermented. Try making your own, or only purchasing fresh pickled vegetables (stored in the cold section in stores).

3 More foods your gut will love!

Ground Flaxseed– Flax is a power-house seed, that fuels your gut flora and is filled with antioxidants. It’s a staple in my cabinet, I throw it in smoothies, on aćai bowls, salads, stews, you name it.
Garlic- Who doesn’t love garlic? A recent study found that garlic boosted the creation of good microbes in the gut. Yay, just another reason to eat garlic.
Seaweed- Studies have shown that high seaweed intake increases good gut bacteria. Add it to soup, eat it as a snack, or put some Furikake Seasoning on your rice, fish, or salads.

I hope you can add more of these foods to your diet, and If you love this article, share it on your favorite social media app below =) mahalo!

The One Thing Your Immune System is Missing!

While boosting our immune system is especially important during cold and flu season, it shouldn’t JUST be a seasonal thing. Besides living a healthy lifestyle including: eating plant based foods, exercising regularly, and getting adequate sleep and relaxation. There may be one key thing you’re missing!

Immunity is in the gut.

When we think about gut health, the first thing that comes to mind is digestion. But did you know that as much as 70 percent of your immune cells actually reside in the gut? That means if you have a slow imbalanced gut, you may have a weakened immune system. In fact, there is an increasing amount of research being done on how different organ systems are affected by the gut environment.

If you think about it, the food we eat doesn’t actually enter our blood stream until it passes through our gut wall. So this makes our gut the first defense against any nasty things we consume, and it helps to break down and absorb the nutrients we eat.

This is where our gut microbiome plays a BIG role in immunity! It’s responsible for strengthening the gut wall, killing harmful bacteria, and it regulates the inflammatory immune response, just to name a few. Moral of the story; a healthy gut makes for a healthy immune system.

Probiotics may help strengthen your immune system.

So how do we keep our gut healthy and ensure there is more good bacteria in the gut than bad? Well as was mentioned, eating healthy and exercise is very important! But let’s face it, were human, and sometimes the junk food is just too irresistible! That’s why I play it safe by taking a probiotic daily.

Exercise workout, healthy lifestyle, plank

So what exactly is a probiotic and what does it do? Well in a nutshell (because no one has time for all the science), your gut needs healthy bacteria to replace the bad bacteria, and probiotics help do this. Probiotics also inhibit the growth of harmful disease causing bacteria, giving your immune system a boost.

If you know me (or have followed me for awhile), you know I’m not one for supplements. I believe we can get what we need through nutrient dense plant based foods. However, there are a few supplements I religiously take daily, and this is one of them! I haven’t been sick with the flu in over 2 years and I attribute this to my change of diet, and my daily probiotic.

Just a side note, I even give my dogs probiotics when they are experiencing some kind of ailment such as, after a round of antibiotics for a UTI, or ear infection. Recently two of my dogs had a bout of diarrhea and vomiting (from something they ate), so I followed it up with a round of probiotics to replace any of the nasty bacteria in their guts. Just a warning though, I’m not a veterinarian, I’m just telling you what works for my animals and me. If you wanna know more about what I feed my dogs check out: What I feed my dog to prevent bladder stones!

How to choose a probiotic.

Probiotics come in a variety of forms from powders, tablets and capsules, and choosing one can get a little tricky because there is a lot of crap out there on the market. Now I like a bargain as much as anyone, but QUALITY probiotics are not cheap, so don’t even bother taking a probiotic from Walmart or CVS pharmacy because they won’t do anything for you.

Remember probiotics are live strains of bacteria, so when looking for a quality product, make sure it’s refrigerated (to prevent the bacteria from dying), in a glass bottle, and preferably uses bioshield capsules (which insures the probiotic gets to your small intestine). In addition, make sure you purchase a probiotic with at least 5-100 billion (not million) colony-forming units (CFU). Start low and increase your tolerance.

Recently I started using TruFlora Probiotic’s with enzymes, it’s not shipped with a cold pack but they give an explanation on their website, I do however store them in the refrigerator during use. So far I really love Truflora, they do third party testing on their products and offer a money back guarantee. They are one of the better probiotics on the market (that I can buy online), instead of going to my local health food store, and they aren’t too expensive either.

If you have any questions or comments on probiotics please comment below, I love to hear from you! Also if you like this article please share it on your favorite social media app, by clicking on one of the bubble icons to the right ➡️or below if you’re on the mobile site. Mahalo!

Why I Don’t Watch the Scale!

Let’s face it losing weight is NOT easy! It requires working out consistently and eating a healthy balanced diet. No doubt after all our hard work, we want to see results, and we look to the scale to give us a reason to keep going. Wrong!

When that scale stops going down or we cheat for a few days, low and behold we’ve gained 5 pounds! AHHH! Repeat this scenario a few times, and sadly you’ve given up working out and you’re back to your unhealthy habits.

I’ve broken up with my scale long ago, and URGE you to kiss constant weigh-ins goodbye!!! Here’s what the scale won’t tell you.

You’re Losing More Than Just Fat!

Your body has three main components: fat, lean body mass, and water. A standard scale only measures your total body weight, it doesn’t measure how much lean muscle mass you’ve lost, or muscle. Obviously we want to lose only body fat, but a scale won’t tell us that, and most likely we’ll lose a little of each.

How much you lose depends on how much fat you have to start with. So the heavier a person is the more fat they have to lose, compared to a thinner person. If you’re busy burning fat into muscle, the scale may not change (in fact it may go up) but you will obviously look and feel leaner.

Your Losing Inches!

I LOVE to judge my weight loss by the way I fit my clothes! Muscle is about 18% more dense than fat, so you may drop a few sizes without even budging the scale. Using your favorite jeans or that cute little top that’s gotten a little tight, is a way better guide than weighing yourself every morning.

weight loss, don't trust the scale trust your jeans.

Dropping Fat Takes Time!

As we discussed, you can’t expect to lose 10 pounds in a week because you will lose more than just fat. At best you can only lose 1-2 pounds of fat a week, so if you’re busy focusing on that 3-digit number, you aren’t looking at what’s most important; your body fat percentage.

Ever wonder why that person weighing 125 pounds and is considered naturally skinny, still struggles with obese related health problems? That’s because despite the number on the scale, their body fat percentage can be 30% or higher, pushing them into the obese category. Just another reason not to focus on that number on the scale!

Your Retaining Water Because of Salt Intake!

Salt (or sodium) is super hard to avoid, it’s pretty much in everything delicious! According to a recent study by the Mayo Clinic, the average American consumes about 3,400mg of sodium a day. That’s about double the recommended daily amount!

When you eat a lot of sodium it can cause your body to temporarily retain water until balance can be restored. This means that when you eat a healthy balanced diet, and you cheat for a day or two, you flood your body with more salt than it’s used too, and you will see your weight increase. This doesn’t mean that all your hard work was for nothing, just that your retaining more water weight.

Work out, eat well, be patient, you will see results! weight loss inspiration.

Don’t Let the Scale Trick you!

Bottom line: there are SO many things that affect the weight on your scale, so don’t get into the habit of weighing yourself everyday! If you insist on weighing yourself, look for gradual changes every 3-4 weeks. If you aren’t seeing any weight changes in that period of time, then take a look at your diet and exercise and make some adjustments.

Because your weight can fluctuate for many different reasons, it’s best to keep track of your body composition. Personally, I love the Body Composition Scale by Nokia, because it tracks your weight, BMI, total body fat, water percentage, plus bone and muscle mass. That way you can look at your whole body and assess your goals, instead of focusing on that annoying 3 digit number.

Thank you so much for reading! If you’ve enjoyed this blog please share it on your favorite social media app by clicking one of the icon bubbles on the right =)

Mahalo!

Don’t Panic If You Can’t Buy Organic! How to Remove Pesticides From Your Produce.

When it comes to produce and meat I try to buy organic as much as possible. Because if I can reduce the amount of carcinogenic pesticides my family consumes, support small sustainable farms, and help the environment, why not right?

However, sometimes purchasing organic is just not possible! I live in Hawaii and certain varieties of produce aren’t always available in organic. Other times, organic is about three times the cost of non-organic, and the package is a LOT smaller too. Well the solution is simple, clean your produce with vinegar!

Studies have shown that washing your produce with water and vinegar can significantly lower the pesticide residue and remove harmful bacteria. Now theres no guarantee that ALL pesticide residue will be removed. But I feel better knowing I have removed as many pesticides as possible from my produce by using this wash.

How to Remove Pesticide Residue

Fill a large bowl with 4 parts water to 1 part vinegar.

soak produce in water vinegar to remove pesticide residue

If you’re doing a large batch of produce, you can also fill the sink with water and vinegar and let it soak. Just always make sure your sink is nice and clean first.

Soak the fruits or vegetables in the vinegar water for 20 minutes.

Thoroughly rinse the fruits or vegetables with water.

rinse fruits and vegetables well with water

After thoroughly rinsing your produce, you won’t taste the vinegar at all. Using this vinegar wash is a great solution for when you can’t afford to buy organic, or it’s just not available. Additionally, even if you have organic produce, you can still use this vinegar wash to remove natural pesticides that farmers use, and harmful bacteria that may make you sick.

I still choose to buy organic as much as possible, especially when it’s produce from the “dirty dozen.” You can check those out at 12 Foods You Should Buy Organic! Give this vinegar wash a try and tell me what you think by commenting below! =)

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