If you’re experiencing gastrointestinal issues, learning how to support gut health could naturally provide some relief. Learn more here.

Inside your intestines lives a vast community of microscopic organisms known as the gut microbiome.

These microbes have a significant impact on not only your digestion but on your health as a whole. When they’re out of balance, you might experience bloating, indigestion, headaches, or other symptoms.

If you’ve experienced a range of digestive symptoms without an obvious cause, an unhealthy gut may be the culprit. Read on to learn about some effective remedies for gut health that could help you start feeling like yourself again.

Change Up Your Diet

A poor diet is one of the leading causes of microbial imbalance in the gut. Modern processed foods are high in added sugars, refined carbohydrates, and unhealthy fats. These all can contribute to poor digestive health.

Make your gut flora happy by eating foods that are high in fiber, antioxidants, and vitamins. Swap out your fried foods for those with healthy fats, and try to incorporate a variety of fruits and vegetables every day.

As an added bonus, try introducing probiotics into your diet. Probiotics contain the good types of bacteria that are naturally found in your gut and can help rebalance your microbiome over time. These can come either from supplements or fermented foods like kefir, kombucha, sauerkraut, and kimchi.

For more information on treating your digestive system with diet, check out Dr. Todd Watts’ guide, Restore Gut Health: Fix Diarrhea, Constipation, and Bloating

Improve Your Sleep, Exercise, and Stress Management

Several research studies have shown that stressful events—even ones long in the past—can worsen a variety of digestive disorders. And to make matters worse, insufficient sleep and exercise are both linked to decreased levels of beneficial bacteria in the gut.

Managing stress, sleep, and physical activity can be hard, but it’s worth it. Try starting by exercising for 15 minutes each day and practising good sleep hygiene to improve your digestive health. And to manage stress, give yoga, meditation, or mindfulness activities a try.

Avoid Unnecessary Antibiotics

For some illnesses, antibiotics are a necessary part of treatment. But don’t get into the habit of requesting antibiotics every time you feel sick. Not only does the overuse of antibiotics contribute to drug resistance, but they can also do a serious number on your gut microbiome.

The job of antibiotic medication is to kill off infectious bacteria that are making you ill. Unfortunately, antibiotics don’t discriminate and will also kill the helpful ones in your gut.

Taking frequent courses of antibiotics can wipe out your gut flora without giving it any time to recover. This may leave you feeling even sicker than before.

Restoring Your Gut Health

If you’ve been experiencing unexplained digestive problems, don’t ignore them any longer. It’s time to start taking steps to support and restore your gut health. Begin with the ones on this list, and talk with your doctor about further options for treatment if the problems persist.

Looking for other ways to take care of your health? Check out the rest of our blog for more great wellness and prevention tips.