Next time you’re feeling under par, start by looking for ways to improve your gut health. While a healthy diet is incredibly important, so is your body's ability to digest and absorb nutrients from your food and supplements.

As a past chronic fatigue sufferer a key part of my recovery and transformation to buoyant health, involved addressing my gut health.

Your gastrointestinal tract contains microbiome, which consist of bacteria. Research shows that the state of your microbial population is linked to the quality of your health and wellbeing. 

Why you should improve your gut health

Here are 7 steps that you can take to improve your gut health.

1. Go with your gut instinct 

Pay attention to how you feel after you've eaten. Certain foods are more inclined to irritate our digestive tract than others. Typical offenders include: gluten, dairy and sugar. If you suspect something isn’t right for you, then it’s worth eliminating it from your diet for a trial period to see if it's absence will improve your gut health.

2. Test one food at a time

Test one food at a time to identify what might be irritating your gut and causing your symptoms. Remove the suspected food from your diet for at least eight weeks. During this period note any changes or improvements to your physical, emotional and mental well-being, as well as your general health.

If there's a benefit for removing a specific food then find alternatives to replace it with. This may seem drastic, but remember it's not necessarily for ever. 

Although clients frequently tell me that they wouldn't want to return to their old eating habits once they discover foods and ways that work better for them.

If you decide to reintroduce a suspected offender at a later date, watch out for returning symptoms. You may find the irritant was temporary and related to my next tip.

3. Find foods that suit you best

This can differ between seasons, shifts in lifestyle patterns, hormonal changes and age. The digestive system is crucial to your overall health and wellbeing. It’s therefore in your interest to improve your gut health and keep it functioning at its best with foods that you tolerate well.

4. Hone in on those cravings

Cravings are a sign of a chemical imbalance in your body. If you long for a particular food, then that’s a signal to remove it from your diet to see if your gut health improves.

5. Choose fresh, whole foods

Eat organic fruit and vegetables where possible to reduce pesticide and chemical consumption. Toxic sprays together with hormones, artificial preservatives and additives in our food are irritants to your intestines.

6. Make life easier for your digestive system

We take breaks from work to switch off mentally and rest our tired bodies through relaxation and sleep, but there’s rarely any let-up for our poor digestive system. To improve your gut health,  choose easily digestible foods, chew them well to slow down digestion and don’t over-eat, or graze on snacks throughout the day, instead or as well as eating proper meals. These simple adjustments will help your digestive system function better and can improve your gut health.

7. Take a quality probiotic

It’s a scary thought, but we are made up of more bacteria than human cells. So arm your gut with healthy microbes.

If you use a probiotic that contains sugar you’ll be feeding the bad guys, which will cause more harm and no good. The purpose of a probiotic is to promote healthy gut flora and force out unfriendly bacteria. It should also help with proper digestion, nutrient absorption from your food and strengthen your immune system.

If you're struggling with digestive health issues, you might want to check out my 90-Day Gut Health plan. It's all about helping you experience improved digestive harmony and well-being.