www.Ups tatePhys i c i ansSC . com | www.Hea l thL i nksUps tate. com | 59 “Give your gut at least 12 hours to do its thing,” said Dr. Birchenough. “There's something called the migrating motor complex that happens overnight, and, if you don't give yourself enough of a break between dinner and breakfast, that's going to be a problem.” Maintaining a healthy gut is an ongoing process. EATING FOR A HEALTHY GUT Smoothies can be great for gut healing, but beware of fruits with a high sugar content, which will turn your healthy beverage into a sugar bomb, Dr. Birchenough said. To avoid that, pack it full of vegetables and low glycemic fruit such as berries. GREEN SMOOTHIE • 1 cup nondairy milk (coconut, almond, oat, cashew or any non-cow milk) • ½ cup frozen broccoli or spinach • ½ cup either blueberries or strawberries • 1 or 2 tbsp almond butter • A dash of cinnamon The great thing about smoothies is you can easily alter them to use whatever fruit or vegetables you have on hand. You can also substitute fresh greens for frozen, or frozen fruit for fresh. Mix it up and create your favorite version. CHICKPEA BOWL WITH GINGER TAHINI DRESSING: Chickpea, sweet potato and avocado bowl with ginger tahini dressing: • 1 cup fresh greens (lettuce, spinach, baby kale or mixed greens) • ½ cup chickpeas, drained and rinsed • 1 avocado, sliced • ½ cup cooked chopped sweet potato (prepackaged is fine) • 1 sliced watermelon radish or other radish • Other vegetables as desired, depending what you have on hand Dressing: • 2 tbsp tahini • 1 tbsp tamari soy sauce (gluten free) or reduced sodium soy sauce (typically made with wheat) • ¼ cup lemon juice • ½ tsp agave syrup • 1 tsp fresh ginger HEALTHY GUT SUPERFOODS To keep your gut healthy and working properly, make sure you include both probiotic and prebiotic foods – known as good bacteria – in your diet. Here’s a short list of some gut healthy foods: • Probiotics: Fermented foods, including low or no sugar yogurt, kefir, sauerkraut (refrigerated), miso, pickles, kimchi, tempeh and kombucha. • Prebiotic foods: Bananas, asparagus, garlic, leeks, artichokes, chickpeas, apples, blueberries, walnuts, cashews, almonds, oats and flaxseeds.
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