GUT WRENCHERS AND SUPERFOODS

If you are trying to get your digestion into shape and are suffering from any kind of bowel disorder, the following foods may be best avoided, at least until you are feeling much better:

  • Wheat-based foods such as:
    Wheat bran
    Breakfast cereals
    Bread
    Crackers
    Biscuits
    Cakes
    Pastries and pies
    Quiche and pizza bases
  • Cow's milk
  • Corn (maize)
  • Corn sugar/syrup
  • Rice syrup
  • Anything that contains 'modified starch': check labels, especially on low-fat and other packaged foods. Modified starch is often used as a fat-replacing bulking agent
  • Yeast
  • Sugar and sugary foods
  • Beef and pork (lean lamb is usually well tolerated)
  • Artificial additives, including colourings, artificial flavours, preservatives and sweeteners. Sorbitol seems particularly problematic, so do check labels.
  • Very hot or very cold foods (remember that stomachs were invented before cookers or fridges)
  • Oranges and orange juice
  • Eggs, especially if you have gall-bladder problems

TRY TO EAT MORE OF THE SUPERFOODS

These are the good gut foods that you should include regularly in your diet:

  • Psyllium husks
  • Linseeds
  • All kinds of fresh fruits - aim for two to three pieces daily between meals. Also good are all kinds of dried fruits. (make sure they are organic and are preservative free) These go well with sunflower and pumpkin seeds as a snack or with brazil nuts or almonds. Apples, bananas, berry fruits, fresh or dried figs, papaya, prunes, pears and raisins are especially valuable. Bear in mind that your fruit intake may need to be reduced during the early stages of Candida treatment, but I can advise you on this
  • All kinds of fresh vegetables and beans, including broccoli, cabbage, brussel sprouts, chickpeas, kidney beans, lentils, cauliflower, asparagus, globe and Jerusalem artichokes, sweet potatoes, pumpkin/squash, carrots, turnips, swede, leeks and onions. (Onions and tomatoes are generally considered good, but they do seem to increase the production of stomach acids in some people, so go easy on them if you suffer with acid reflux).
  • Fresh garlic - if you don't eat it or don't like the taste of it in your food, take a daily garlic capsule with your main meal
  • Organic potatoes in their jackets and cold cooked potatoes
  • Vegetable soups and juices. Fresh carrot juice is particularly recommended
  • Cereal foods: oat bran and oat biscuits, oat bran porridge, (easier to digest when made with water) rye bread and rye crackers, brown rice, rice cakes, rice pasta, buckwheat, millet and wheat-free muesli. Important note: for most people, oats and rye are an excellent source of fibre that is kinder to the gut than wheat, but be aware that they do also contain some gluten - although much less than wheat does. Check out your health food store for a range of gluten-free foods including muesli, pasta, flour etc. Yeast-free products are also available.
  • Cold pressed oils such as extra virgin olive oil, linseed or pumpkin seed oil. To be used as dressings only. To cook with, use coconut oil or olive oil, but not extra virgin.
  • Yogurt made from sheep's or goat's milk and unflavoured. Sainsbury's stock Woodland's Farm sheep's yogurt. Delicious and full of lactic acid and 100 million live cultures per gram.
  • Blackstrap molasses
  • Manuka honey

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