How to support your gut health

Over 2,000 years ago, the ancient Greek physician Hippocrates believed that ‘digestion and internal balance were central to health’. Turns out, he was pretty spot on! Recent research highlights that many aspects of our metabolism, mood, and immune health are deeply influenced by the gut and the trillions of microbes that inhabit it¹.

You don’t need a fancy supplement or a strict diet to keep them happy. With a few simple tweaks to what you eat, how you move, and how you sleep, you can give your gut community the support it deserves. In this guide, I’ll share some of my practical tips to support your gut health, like which foods to eat, and which to limit!

Meet our expert: Jordan Haworth aka Mr Gut Health

What is Gut Health and Why Does It Matter?

Gut health is still a relatively new term and scientists don’t have a clear definition yet of what constitutes a ‘healthy gut’. Obviously, not having any tummy troubles is a great start, but gut health goes beyond digestion. When things go south, for example due to poor diet, or stress, your gut and its resident microbes can suffer. To put it simply, gut health is the gateway to overall health².

Understanding the Gut Microbiome:

Inside your gut is a microscopic ecosystem teeming with life – the gut microbiome.  Trillions of microbes that live together, mainly bacteria., They are more than tiny hitchhikers, our microbes carry out a whole range of important functions, from helping to digest food (especially fibre), to the production of vitamins like vitamin K and some B vitamins, as well as supporting the immune system. In fact, around 70% of our immune system resides in the gut³. 

Research suggests that having a diverse and well-balanced gut microbiome can help when it comes to gut health. Diverse means lots of different types of microbes. Just like a thriving rainforest, ecosystems with greater variety tend to be richer in diversity. Balance comes from having more of the good guys, like Bifidobacteria and Lactobacilli⁴.

Other beneficial bacteria ferment fibre into compounds called short-chain fatty acids. These compounds do a lot for us, like helping to support the immune system, metabolic health and blood glucose control.⁵

The Gut-Brain Connection:

The gut and brain are in constant communication via something called the gut-brain axis. You will know this first hand, if you’ve ever had butterflies in your tummy, or had to run for a nervous poo!

Research increasingly links gut health to mental health. In one study called “transferring the blues”⁶, researchers took the gut microbes from people with depression and gave them to rodents. The animals started to show signs of depressive behaviour, like social reclusion and loss of enjoyment in their usual activities. There’s also growing evidence to show that certain microorganisms  can influence stress and mood. In short, your gut microbes can directly affect how you think and feel.

Signs that something could be up with your gut:

Since the gut is strongly connected to the brain, skin and immune system, an upset gut is more than just tummy troubles.

Let’s take a look at signs that your gut may be off:

• Persistent bloating, heartburn, constipation, or diarrhoea
• Intolerances to one or more foods
• Unexplained fatigue or low energy
• Frequent infections or poor immunity
• Skin issues such as acne, eczema, or rosacea
• Brain fog or low mood

If you experience any of these regularly, speak to your doctor. The first step is to identify any underlying digestive conditions that may be going on. Often this will involve simple blood or stool tests to check for infection or inflammation. In many cases, tests can come back clear. For example, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) affects around 1 in 10 people in the UK⁷, but there is no test to diagnose it. The process typically involves ruling out other causes for bloating, tummy pain or problematic bowels. The cause of IBS is often related to a combination of dysregulated nervous system and imbalanced gut microbiome, which is why it’s considered a disorder of gut-brain interaction!

10 Ways to Support Your Gut Health

1. Eat a Diverse Range of Foods

To help achieve a diverse gut microbiome, you need to eat a diverse diet! This means munching on as many different plants and plant based foods as possible. Research has shown that we should be aiming for 30 different plant based foods per week⁸!. Sounds intimidating, right? But in addition to fruits, vegetables, wholegrains, nuts, seeds and legumes (like peas and beans), it also includes herbs, spices and teas (plus coffee)! Also, different colours of the same plant count, like red, yellow and green peppers.

One tip is to make a diversity jar where you put lots of different plants together. You could do this with nuts and seeds (e.g. walnuts, almonds, pecans, flax, chia, pumpkin, sunflower and sesame seeds) to throw on yoghurt, porridge or salads.

2. Incorporate Live Cultures and Fermented Foods

Fermented foods are any food made from the growth of microbes. The most well-known is yogurt, made from fermenting milk with bacteria. Milk can also be transformed into a drink called kefir, which typically involves fermenting milk with strains of bacteria and yeast from authentic kefir grains, this often means it can contain different types of microorganisms than yogurt. 

Other fermented foods include sauerkraut, or “sour cabbage” that originates from Eastern Europe, as well as it’s East Asian cousin – kimchi, which is a spicier fermented cabbage. Research has found that diets rich in fermented foods can significantly increase gut microbial diversity⁹.

3. Feed your gut microbes Prebiotic Fibre

Prebiotics are the food that beneficial microbes in your gut thrive on. There are many different types of fibre and different gut microbes have a preference for fibre sources – which again is why diversity of foods is important. Fibre is important for many reasons, but when it comes to your gut, fibre can help move food through the bowel, keeping the digestive system healthy. 

Key prebiotic fibres and their food sources include:

• Inulin: garlic, onions, leeks
• Resistant starch: green bananas, whole grains, cooked and cooled potatoes
• Beta-glucans: oats, mushrooms, nutritional yeast
• Galactooligosaccharides (GOS): beans, lentils, chickpeas
• Pectin: apples, pears, carrots

 Aim to regularly include a wide range of these foods in your diet. Remember, dietary diversity wins when it comes to gut health.

4. Limit Added Sugar 

Foods that are high in fat, sugar and salt such as sugary drinks, sweets, biscuits, offer little nutritional value. Whilst small amounts are unlikely to cause harm, regular high intake can reduce microbial diversity, especially because they are also low in fibre and other nutrients.

5. Reduce Stress

Stress is a big player in gut health, all thanks to the gut-brain connection. When stressed, your nervous system is in “fight-or-flight” mode. Everything is heightened, including the nerves in your gut. This means that the gut fires off signals to the brain like a faulty alarm. Chronic stress is linked to reduced gut diversity. Being stressed can also influence behaviours that indirectly harm the gut, such as poor food choices, disrupted sleep, and reduced appetite for fibre-rich foods.

Stress management doesn’t require perfection. Even small, consistent practices can help regulate the nervous system to support gut health. This might include walking outdoors, breathwork, meditation, journaling, or simply slowing down at mealtimes. Eating in a relaxed state can improve digestion by switching the nervous system from “fight or flight” to “rest and digest” response. Before your next meal, try taking 10 slow breaths, in for 4 seconds and out for 8 seconds.

6. Prioritise Sleep

Sleep and gut health are more connected than you might think. When your circadian rhythm, aka the body clock, is disrupted by irregular bedtimes or shift work, this impacts your gut microbiome in a negative way. Just like us, they love routine. In turn, an imbalanced gut microbiome is also linked to sleep problems – a vicious cycle.

Some ways to optimise sleep include consistent sleep and wake times, reducing evening caffeine and alcohol, having a cold bedroom (as a drop in body temperature signals sleep) and also limiting screen exposure before bed^10,11.

7. Get Regular Exercise

Regular physical activity is one of the most underrated tools for improving gut health. Studies consistently show that active individuals tend to have greater microbial diversity and higher levels of beneficial bacteria compared to sedentary individuals. 

Moderate exercise, such as brisk walking, cycling, resistance training, or recreational sport, appears to be most beneficial for the gut. However, you can do too much. Excessive or very intense exercise like long distance running can have a negative impact on your gut The goal is consistency, not extremes. Move your body most days of the week, in a way you enjoy and can sustain. I like to go for  a 10-15 minute stroll after meals, which not only gets the steps in but is scientifically proven to help aid digestion¹²!

8. Stay Hydrated

Hydration plays a key supporting role in gut health, particularly when fibre intake increases. Water helps fibre do its job by adding bulk to stool and supporting regular bowel movements. 

There’s no one-size-fits-all rule for water intake, but a practical approach is to drink regularly throughout the day and monitor urine colour – pale yellow is a good sign. Don’t just stick to water, remember herbal and green teas (including matcha), pressed fruit or vegetable juices, and fermented kombucha or kefir also count towards staying hydrated

9. Polyphenols

Plants contain compounds called polyphenols – they are what make blueberries blue and turmeric orange. They are also found in bitter foods, like coffee, dark chocolate and EVOO (extra vigin olive oil). The more bitter, the better when it comes to gut health in my opinion! Polyphenols can support with the growth of good bacteria in the gut¹³.

10. Looking After Your Gut on Antibiotics 

It’s all well and good looking after your gut and its microbes… until something knocks everything out of balance! One of the biggest disruptors is antibiotics. Whilst they’re life-saving medications, antibiotics can also kill off  microorganisms in the gut , including the good guys! 

Having a more diverse gut microbiome in the first place can help. Remember, diversity and a fibre-rich diet tend to go hand in hand.  

If taking antibiotics, prebiotic fibres like those listed earlier, support the regroup of beneficial bacteria. Fermented foods such as kefir, yoghurt, sauerkraut, and kimchi may also help to restore microbial diversity^14.

The goal isn’t to avoid antibiotics when they’re needed, but to support your gut before, during, and after treatment. Remember to always complete your course of antibiotics, even if you feel better early. Otherwise you increase the chances of your infection coming back, and antibotics not working next time!

Foods to Eat for a Healthy Gut:

Diet remains an important aspect for supporting gut health and gut microbiome diversity. Rather than focusing on perfection, aim to eat more of the foods that feed beneficial bacteria and less of those that disrupt gut balance.

Foods to focus on

• High-fibre fruits and vegetables: berries, apples, pears, broccoli, carrots, onions, garlic, leeks
• Fermented foods: yoghurt with live cultures, kefir, sauerkraut, kimchi, miso
• Whole grains: oats, barley, quinoa, brown rice, wholemeal bread and pasta
• Legumes: lentils, chickpeas, beans (yes, baked beans count)
• Polyphenol-rich foods: green tea, coffee, extra virgin olive oil, dark chocolate (at least 75% cocoa), herbs and spices

Foods to limit

• Foods with little fibre or nutritive value e.g. biscuits, crisps, refined cereals, sugary drinks
• Excessive alcohol, which can disrupt the gut lining and microbiome
• Deep fried foods, which are harder to digest 
• Processed meats like bacon, ham and pepperoni, which are linked to increase risk of colorectal cancer¹⁵ 

Summary 

Let’s be clear: supporting your gut health isn’t about expensive supplements or restrictive diets. The single most important takeaway is consistency and diversity. This is achieved by regularly eating a wide range of plants and fermented foods, which builds a vast community of gut microbes that help us fight off infections, lift our mood, and keep digestion running smoothly. So add mixed frozen berries to yoghurt or kefir, use generous amounts of herbs and spices in cooking, and try something new or unfamiliar next time you eat out!

Everyday lifestyle choices matter too. Managing stress, prioritising sleep, staying well hydrated, and moving your body regularly all help create a more diverse and resilient gut microbiome. By focusing on these simple, sustainable habits rather than quick fixes, you can support your gut, and, in turn, your overall health!