How to Heal Your Gut Naturally (Without Expensive Supplements)
Gut health plays a pivotal role in overall well-being, influencing digestion, immunity, and even mental health. While supplements can be beneficial, many individuals can achieve significant improvements through dietary and lifestyle modifications alone. This guide outlines evidence-based strategies to support gut health naturally.
1. Eliminate Ultra-Processed Foods
Ultra-processed foods (UPFs) are linked to adverse gut health outcomes, including dysbiosis (microbial imbalance) and increased intestinal permeability. Components like emulsifiers and artificial sweeteners in UPFs can disrupt the gut microbiota and promote inflammation. Reducing UPF intake may decrease the risk of gastrointestinal disorders and support a healthier gut environment. (1)
Focus on REAL foods: meat, vegetables, fruit, whole grains, legumes, dairy, eggs, seafood.
2. Identify and Address Food Intolerances
Food intolerances can contribute to gastrointestinal symptoms such as bloating, gas, and discomfort. Elimination diets are a systematic approach to identify problematic foods by removing potential triggers and reintroducing them while monitoring symptoms.
Common culprits include dairy, gluten, eggs and soy however other seemingly healthy foods could be problematic for you too. (2) Completing an elimination of these foods one by one for 4 weeks at a time can help to identify if they are affecting you or not. You could also work with us to pin point what is aggravating your system and potentially look at doing more comprehensive food intolerance testing to see if there is a food reaction that’s personal to you and not one of the common culprits.
3. Incorporate Gut-Healing Foods
While we want to remove gut irritants we also want to load up on gut supportive foods:
Bone Broth: Rich in amino acids like glycine and proline, bone broth may support intestinal integrity and reduce inflammation. (3)
Fermented Foods: Products like sauerkraut, kefir, and yogurt contain probiotics that can enhance microbial diversity and modulate immune responses. (4)
High-Fiber Foods: Dietary fibers serve as prebiotics, nourishing beneficial gut bacteria and promoting regular bowel movements. At every meal include 2-3 of the following: leafy greens, vegetables, whole grains, nuts and seeds, berries and legumes.
Incorporating these foods can create a favorable environment for gut microbiota to thrive and for your digestion to flow smoothly.
4. Prioritize Lifestyle Factors
Lifestyle choices significantly impact gut health:
Stress Management: Put simply, your gut is not neurally activated when you are stressed or in your sympathetic nervous system. Chronic stress can alter gut permeability and microbiota composition, leading to inflammation and a poorly functioning gut.
Sleep Hygiene: Adequate sleep supports circadian rhythms that regulate gut function.
Physical Activity: Regular exercise promotes gut motility and microbial diversity.
Implementing stress-reduction techniques, ensuring sufficient sleep, and engaging in regular physical activity can collectively enhance gut health.
5. Maintain Consistency
No one meal or supplement will heal your gut overnight. The magic is in what you do consistently. Focus on sustainable changes: prepare meals at home, eat mindfully, get into a rhythm with your meals and lifestyle practices. Over time, these daily actions build up and create real change in how your gut feels and functions.
6. Support Digestive Processes
Even the healthiest food can cause problems if you’re not digesting it properly. Low stomach acid, sluggish bile, and poor enzyme activity are common in people with gut issues. To support better digestion:
Thorough Chewing: Proper mastication initiates digestion and can influence satiety hormones. (6)
Mindful Eating: Eating slowly and without distractions can improve digestive efficiency.
Eat bitter foods like rocket or dandelion to encourage bile flow from your gallbladder
Try a splash of apple cider vinegar in water before meals to help with stomach acidity
These simple tweaks can help your body break down food more efficiently — reducing bloating and discomfort.
Conclusion
You don’t need a shelf full of pills to heal your gut — you just need to come back to the basics. Real food, mindful habits, and a bit of patience can go a long way. If you’ve been struggling with gut issues, try starting with just one or two of the steps above and build from there. Your gut didn’t become inflamed overnight, and it won’t heal overnight — but with time and consistency, it absolutely can heal.
References
Chassaing, B., et al. (2022). Ultra-processed foods and food additives in gut health and disease. Nature Reviews Gastroenterology & Hepatology, 19(11), 649–661. Nature+1PubMed+1
Berg, J. M., et al. (2021). Elimination Diets. StatPearls. NCBI
Zhou, Y., et al. (2021). Analysis of the Anti-Inflammatory Capacity of Bone Broth in a Murine Model of Ulcerative Colitis. Foods, 10(11), 2644. PubMed Central
Wastyk, H. C., et al. (2021). Gut-microbiota-targeted diets modulate human immune status. Cell, 184(16), 4137–4153.e14.
Li, J., et al. (2011). Effects of chewing on appetite, food intake and gut hormones: a randomized crossover trial. Physiology & Behavior, 105(3), 719–724. Nature+2ScienceDirect+2PubMed+2
