The one thing most of us tend to take for granted is the health of our gut. Despite being overlooked often, gut health is pretty important. It not only affects our weight, but also our stress, sleep, hormones and more. Personally, the closest I’ve come to caring about my gut was chugging Yakult every now and then. And if I’m being honest, it didn’t really do much except give me a slight sugar-high. If you can relate to this, your knowledge on the gut is as bad as mine. To know more about gut health and weight management, we invited Nutritionist & Lifestyle Educator, Karishma Chawla to answer all out questions on maintaining a healthy gut and weight. Here are all your common FAQs on the same, answered:
1. How can I improve my gut health to increase my metabolism?
There are a few simple things that can be done. You should eat every two to four hours, exercise daily, drink at least 3 litres of water and sleep for seven to eight hours. In terms of food, add probiotic supplements along with fermented vegetables and a kefir drink. Consume lots of of fiber, fruits, juices salads, soups or salad wraps as well.
2. My stress-levels are affecting my gut health, how do I treat this?
Stress has an adverse effect on gut-health, and high stress-levels need to be brought under control. Start the day with deep breathing for 3-5 minutes. During the day, say an affirmation 21 times, like, “I am physically active and mentally relaxed”. Stretch as much as you can and even say a small prayer before eating your meals. Chew your food slowly too. End the day with gratitude journalling and some form of meditation or prayer. Additionally, drink sauf water before meals too. You can even start taking a probiotic supplement or a B-Complex vitamin.
3. How can I maintain my gut health post delivery?
You can do so by eating whole foods and healthy grains such as oats, jowar, bajra, rajgira and brown rice. Eat good quality protein like nuts, lentils, paneer, curd or tofu. Protein is a must! Consuming good fats such as avocados, olive oil, seeds, ghee and coconut oil are important too. However, it is important that you restrict cooking oil to only two teaspoons a day!
4. How can I prevent and treat my hair-fall?
By ensuring you eat protein and gut-healthy foods like fermented vegetables. Also, keep a check on your CBC, D3 and thyroid levels for any irregularities. Add probiotics, biotins and a good multi-vitamin tablet to your diet as well. This will help you get your hair-fall under control.
5. How can I reduce my bloating?
This is an extremely common question and gut-health has a major role to play when it comes to bloating. Start your day with lime water. Drink minimum three litres of water everyday. Consume sauf water before meals and also include ginger and turmeric water to your diet. Including probiotic supplements, B6 tablets and omega-3 supplements to your day will majorly help as reduce bloating as well.
6. What should I start my day with to ensure smooth gut function?
Start your day with with lime and cinnamon water. Have vegetable juice around mid-morning. Also drink little apple cider vinegar at some point during the day as well as one teaspoon of cold-pressed coconut oil with a pinch of turmeric and pinch of black pepper. Follow a slow, peaceful routine in the morning by deep breathing, doing yoga or meditating.
7. What can I eat and do to get good sleep?
Getting good sleep is very essential. Don’t have any caffeine after 12 PM. If you need coffee in the evening, make it a decaf. Avoid electronics an hour before bed time, try an Epsom salt bath, sip on chamomile tea, write in a journal, put some lavender oils around you and meditate before sleeping. Even banana tea with cinnamon powder does wonders!
What do you to to maintain a healthy weight and proper gut function? Share it with us in the comments below!
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