Trying to understand what foods you really need for a healthy gut can feel like navigating a creepy funhouse full of scare tactics, expensive supplements, and marketing that almost feels too good to be true.

It makes it hard to know what you need, what you should really avoid, and which trendy products you need to spend your precious money on (spoiler: its none of them).

This post will walk you through the best foods for gut health and provide some insight on why these very foods might seem to be the very ones causing your gut symptoms.

If you feel like you’re already eating all the right things and still seeing gut symptoms, you can learn more about how to heal your gut here!

If not, lets dive in!

Prebiotic Fibers

Pre- vs Pro- biotics can get a little confusing, but PREbiotics are the food for the bacteria (probiotics). Think of prebiotics like sprinkling fish food into a tank of goldfish (probiotics). They serve as fuel to help the bacteria in our gut make beneficial compounds like short chain fatty acids (SCFAs) and help with our body’s natural detoxification. Short chain fatty acids are particularly amazing because once the bacteria make them, they serve as food to keep our gut cells healthy (preventing leaky gut), they have anti inflammatory properties, and they help keep our blood sugar response healthy! Not to mention, SCFA secrete hormones that help us feel more full like GLP-1 (yes, that GLP-1! The very compound targeted by popular drugs like Ozempic! Being made naturally by your body! Pretty neat right?)

Their detox magic comes because the fiber acts like a chimney sweep for our guts- this is important because when you think about a gut, not only is it the trash chute for your body, but its also where packages get delivered FOR our body. Safe to say we want to keep that area nice and tidy- something fiber handles for us!

• Leafy greens
• Bananas
• Berries
• Garlic
• Flaxseed
• Legumes
• Oats

Resistant Starches

Okay so technically resistant starches are a sub category of prebiotics, but I had to give them they’re own category because they include some of my favorite foods that are sometimes mislabeled as “bad” (I’m looking at you, potatoes) Resistant starches are a type of prebiotic that give us a little added benefit because of a more complex starch formation.

• Green bananas
• Cooked + cooled potatoes (don’t worry, you can reheat them!)
• Cooked + cooled rice (don’t worry, you can reheat them!)
• Beans
• Lentils
• Cassava starch

If you notice that fibrous foods and resistant starches are also the very foods that make you feel bloated, it’s not in your head and you’re not crazy! This can happen when imbalances in your gut microbiome (known as dysbiosis) decrease your tolerance to those foods. You can read more about that here!

Fermented Foods

Fermented foods are where the probiotics come in to this whole conversation. By eating fermented foods, we’re supporting our microbial diversity by eating the bacteria themselves. This can sound gross at first, but really its SO dang cool. Many fermented foods, like sauerkraut and kimchi, have an added benefit that they also have prebiotic fibers- making them some of the best foods for gut health! The complete package. 

It’s important to remember that food isn’t the only source of microbial diversity: we also get exposed to beneficial bacteria in nature. So remember to get outside and get your hands in some dirt! 

• Yogurt
• Cottage Cheese
• Sauerkraut
• Miso
• Kimchi
• Kefir
• Tempeh

If you’re someone who notices the foods below cause you to bloat or experience other GI symptoms (ahem 💩💩💩), that could be a sign you have something deeper going on, like a histamine intolerance. These situations are where I would recommend working with a pro!

Mineral rich foods

Minerals are like the grease for our digestive gears: without them, things tend to get stuck. They help with both chemical and mechanical digestion. Which is just a fancy way to say they not only help produce chemicals that digest our food like stomach acid and digestive enzymes. BUT ALSO play a role in the mechanical digestion, or the actual movement of smooths muscle that propels digestion. After all, our digestive tract is jut one long muscle. And muscles don’t function without minerals. Some of my favorite mineral rich foods:

• Coconut water
• Potatoes
• Fruits
• Backstrap molases
• Beets
• Dairy

If you want to read more about the magic of minerals when it comes to your health, I’ve got you covered!

Bitter Foods

Bitter tasting foods are so underrated when it comes to gut health. In the same way that when you smell something sweet, your mouth water, when you taste something bitter, your entire digestive tract waters. Tasting something bitter stimulates stomach acid production, digestive enzyme production, and bile release. 

• Arugula
• Dandelion greens
• Collard greens
• Chard
• Turnip & turnip greens
• Asparagus
• Grapefruit
• Lemon/lime & rind
• Brussels sprouts

This is why I love keep digestive bitters on hand. They give you the beneficial stimulation of tasting something bitter, without having to carry around arugula with you everywhere you go. If you’re going to buy one “supplement” for your gut health, I would have it be bitters. You can often find these at a local farmers market or make your own if you’re crafty! My favorite brand is JÜJ (use Kasey10 to save 10%.) I recommend using these before meals if you’re experiencing frequent symptoms, or as needed when symptoms like gut, heartburn, bloat, or constipation pop up!

When Food Isn’t the Problem

If you’re still asking questions like “why are healthy foods making me bloat?” you’re not alone. In fact, when I first start working with someone two of the most common triggers I see are bloating caused by prebiotic fibers and probiotic rich foods or supps. 

As frustrating as it can be to down a big, healthy salad and realize a greasy burger might have done ya less dirty, this can actually give us big clues as to what needs fixing in your gut. The good news: having symptoms to these foods doesn’t mean you need to avoid them forever.

At KBN, we focus on increasing your digestive ability to process these foods instead of a simple avoidance tactic. We used comprehensive lab testing like stool tests and blood labs to understand whats hurting your digestive capacity and how we can increase your ability to digest these foods so that you can eat in peace- symptom free!

If you’re interested in testing your own gut, or developing a personalized plan for your gut health, you can learn more about our 1:1 services here!