Just as your digestion can get messed up when you chow down on certain foods, it can also be boosted by eating fermented foods. That’s because the process of fermentation involves microbes—like yeast and bacteria—to preserve the ingredients. It’s these sugar-eating microorganisms that can help keep your gut healthy.
How fermented foods help
Serving as probiotics to support gut health, the microbes in fermented foods can help treat or reduce nasty digestive issues, including:
• irritable bowel syndrome
• Crohn’s disease
• diarrhea (due to antibiotics or infections)
• ulcerative colitis
• Clostridium difficile (known more commonly as “C. diff”)
Some examples of fermented foods
Ready to kick your digestive tract into high gear? Start by incorporating some of these fermented foods into your diet.
1. Kefir
Similar to yogurt but with a drinkable consistency, kefir is high in protein, may serve as an anti-inflammatory and appears to lower blood pressure.
2. Kombucha
Kombucha is an acquired taste, but studies have shown it to promote immune system health. The sweetened black tea is high in antioxidants and may help with metabolic disorders.
3. Tempeh and miso
Perfect for vegetarians because they’re made from soybeans, miso and tempeh are meat-less fermented foods often used in Japanese cuisine. They’re rich in proteins and the bioactive peptides released during the fermentation process are believed to fight infection, lower blood pressure and reduce the risk of cancer and diabetes.
4. Apple cider vinegar
If you can’t choke it down, try adding apple cider vinegar to tea or use it with olive oil on a salad. Although more research needs to be done, some studies have shown that apple cider vinegar may lower cholesterol, fight obesity and act as an anti-hypertensive, anti-tumor, antimicrobial, anti-diabetic and antioxidative.
5. Fermented vegetables
From ginger and beets to okra and broccoli, fermented vegetables can easily be added to sandwiches, salads and other recipes.
