What changes have you made to support your gut health? - £200 voucher to be won

[CeriMumsnet]

Created for Culturelle

We know that our lifestyle and diet have an impact on our overall health and digestion, with energy levels, bloating and even skin irritation all connected to gut health. With this in mind we’d like to know what changes, big or small you’ve made to your overall health, to support your gut health?

• Post your experiences in the thread below to be entered into a prize draw.
  
• One lucky winner will win a £200 voucher for a store of their choice.
  

Here’s what Culturelle has to say:
‘At Culturelle we believe that talking about the gut is still a stigmatized health issue around the world, and by opening up new conversations we can help people understand more about their bodies, the science and what we can all do to support the core of our health’

Thanks and good luck with the prize draw!
MNHQ

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[BristolMum96]

Trying to drink more probiotic yoghurts, seems to settle my digestive issues

[Shesasuperfreak]

I bought some tablets from Holland and Barret, I think they were called 1Billion something...
They were good. I also eat yogurts and pickles and I dont eat that much sugar.

[PlaitBilledDuckyPuss]

I take a garlic supplement daily.

[Gingerkittykat]

I don't regularly do anything for my gut health but ate probiotic yogurt with raspberries every day when I had a course of antibiotics.

[glasshole]

The best thing I've ever done for my gut health has been to start fermenting my own vegetables. Started with sauerkraut and now I'm doing kimchi as well and it's BRILLIANT! My auto immune issues have improved slightly and I've lost weight and just feel mentally more switched on.

[Zapx]

I drink prune juice daily. Been life changing for bloating! Wish I’d started doing it years ago

[Cotswoldmama]

I've honestly never thought about gut health! I remember trying a pro or prebiotic yoghurt and getting cramps after, so I came to the conclusion that my gut health must be good!

[rippleraspberry]

I drastically reduced the amount of processed wheat-based foods I eat. The biggest change was more or less cutting out bread, especially white/ packaged bread from supermarkets.

Used to get a lot of bloating etc. and this has now completely cleared up, plus I've lost weight.

[stealthsquirrelnutkin]

I'm pescatarian and eat a wide variety of plants, more than 30 different plants each week, including lots of pulses, whole grains, nuts and extra virgin olive oil.
I have a tablespoon of inulin in my breakfast porridge after finding out that some beneficial bacteria thrive best on oligosaccharides.
No longer have the strength and energy required to prepare and ferment my own vegetables, but lovingfoods.co.uk send me 6 big jars of assorted sauerkrauts and kimchis every 5 weeks, which is enough for 2 portions daily. I drink a glass of kombucha at breakfast time and a glass of kefir just before my eating window closes at 5pm. I don't eat or drink anything containing calories between 5pm in the afternoon and 11am the next morning, which gives my guts time to rest and repair.
I've lost 6 and a half stone since the end of February this year, my blood pressure has gone from 168/96 to 114/66, My fasting blood glucose in the morning is down from 7.9 to between 4 and 4.5 mmol/L (non diabetic levels) I've stopped needing insulin injections, and have reduced the daily tablets.
Still can't walk without pain, or manage more than a few steps without a stick, which is annoying. I hoped I'd be gambolling like a spring lamb by now, after having lost so much weight and gone down a couple of dress sizes, but my mobility has not improved at all, and that was the initial reason for making all those changes and sticking with them. Not tempted to stop though, who knows how much worse my rheumatism and other auto-immune ailments would be today if I hadn't made the changes to improve my gut health (that led to totally unexpected weight loss).

[CatNamedEaster]

I haven't done anything for it. I'd like to look into it more as the only thing I really know about probiotics is those teeny tiny yoghurt drinks and there's no way I'm buying all those plastic bottles each week!
Fermented vegetables sound horrible, as if they will be sour/vinegary?

[Happygirl79]

I am following Tim Spectors advice and I'm eating 30 varieties of whole plant foods weekly, fermented foods, reduced amounts of red meats chicken and fish. Regularly eating mixed seeds and many varieties of nuts

By doing this my health has improved overall. I have more energy and able to walk up to 4 miles most days and sleep very well.
I am 69 years old and feel more energetic than I have in many years
I avoid ultra processed food and limit my intake of processed foods.
The difference this makes to my health is quite unbelievable
I don't count calories. I count the nutritional values of each food stuff and give my gut the variety of foods it needs to look after my body

[MotherofPiggies]

I try to eat a wide a range of fruit, vegetables and pulses. I remember reading somewhere that you need to eat about 30 different types of veggies, salads, fruits, herbs etc a week in order to promote a varied and healthy gut.

[Happygirl79]

@Happygirl79

I am following Tim Spectors advice and I'm eating 30 varieties of whole plant foods weekly, fermented foods, reduced amounts of red meats chicken and fish. Regularly eating mixed seeds and many varieties of nuts

By doing this my health has improved overall. I have more energy and able to walk up to 4 miles most days and sleep very well.
I am 69 years old and feel more energetic than I have in many years
I avoid ultra processed food and limit my intake of processed foods.
The difference this makes to my health is quite unbelievable
I don't count calories. I count the nutritional values of each food stuff and give my gut the variety of foods it needs to look after my body

Forgot to add that my BMI is now 24.

[sharond101]

I have to be careful what I eat. I cannot eat alot of root vegetables and need to chew alot to aid digetsion or get boated and windy.

[LimeCheesecake]

I reduced my wheat intake and my health improved dramatically - I’ve not been as good with that recently with all the Christmas goodies and do look bloated.

there are some other great ideas on here, may try a few.

[Wazzzzzuuuuuuup]

I am a few weeks into the Zoe Nutrition programme so looking forward to understanding more about my personal gut microbiome and diversity, along with finding what foods will support an improvement. I suspect my gut is pretty good as I have been veggie for 30y now and don't eat a lot of refined white carbs. My issue is I am really NOT an enjoyer of fermented veg, so think it's going to be fairly unpleasant getting my gut populated with good bacteria.

I eat activia gut health yogurts too, but aware they are sugary and so undoes some of the benefits.

[HouseFullOfChaos]

I've been taking Bimuno sachets for over a year now. I truly think the only reason I'd stop is if they increase the price again. They've been a total game changer for me.

[hopezibah1]

I've started easting sauerkraut (and even made my own sometimes), kimchi and kefir. Also kombucha.
Generally eating a "rainbow" of fruit and veg and lots of fibre too for good gut health. I sometimes take a biotic tablet too.

[vdbfamily]

I am trying a fasting diet where I eat between 1 pm and 9 pm only. I only drink water in my fasting period and usually only have 2 pieces of fruit for lunch so main window is 6-9 pm.

[ursuslemonade]

I drink plain kefir often. Also eat seuerkraut and other fermented stuff sometimes. I should do a lot more for my gut though as I have IBS, reflux and a sweet tooth...

[EIfie]

I don't take anything focused on gut health. I don't even think about it. Never have gut issues. I have been vegan for 23 years, and don't drink alcohol. I believe this helps hugely. Neither choice was about gut health though.

[Tropicaliyes]

I take Garden of Life prenatal probiotics daily if I can, also have yoghurts with live cultures and sauerkraut. Should make my own as I have plenty of glass jars now🤔.

[Choconut]

Kefir yoghurt has been a game changer for me. I used to not be able to eat onions or garlic at all due to IBS and getting terrible stomach cramps but having kefir every day means as long as i'm sensible then I can eat whatever I want - including onion rings and garlic bread.

[incognitodorrito]

Since switching to a gut friendlier diet due to breast cancer (thankfully caught early). I also make going to bed at night a priority and try not to eat after 7pm. I mix 2 tablespoons of ground brown flaxseed with water and drink it in the morning (tastes a bit like cold porridge). Try and aim for between 38 - 50 g of fibre a day (weirdly my previously really bad gas has disappeared, no idea why, might be as I’ve cut out all meat?!). I take a supplement derived from cruciferous veggies daily. Eat as many nutrient dense veggies and fruits as i can each day and avoid anything that might have omega 6 in it. I also take 10ml of cod liver oil a day. I also avoid adding unnecessary fat or oil to my diet and only use extra virgin olive oil or butter when cooking. Reading the above it sounds extreme but I’m too young to have had inflammatory breast cancer and do believe my diet (as well as stress) played a huge role. My gut helps get rid of the bad estrogen so I do anything I can to help it do it’s job and ensure the cancer does not make a reoccurrence. Another really good side effect of this is that I actually look better (my skin glows these days) than I did prior my cancer diagnosis.

[GreenLeavesRustling]

eating a much greater variety of fruit, veg and nuts. Aiming for 30 types a week!