Struggling to maintain a strong digestive system? Is your gut in need of a little TLC? Need a good boost? Then stay tuned, because I’m about to show you how to get a leg up from Mother Nature. If you know where to look, she has a medicine cabinet full of foods and remedies for almost every ailment. 

And by the way, the majority of these foods can be found right at the grocery store, and will not break the bank. A few others can be found online from awesome organic companies and small businesses. My current favorite place to get them is thematchareserve.com. I’ll mention some of the top ones in this video and you can purchase them for a major discount here: https://www.thematchareserve.com/pages/zuzka-light
You can get 50% discount within the next 24hrs – at the check out. Or 40% after that for a month.

Starting off with-

Bitter Foods: In the last talk, I went over the effects of bitter foods towards digestion. They stimulate the liver into producing extra enzymes and bile to help you break down your food. Bitters can come from foods like arugula, radicchio, radishes, and dandelion, or as a natural supplement in the form of Digestive Bitters. Other bitter foods include grapefruit, chicory, endive, mustard greens, lemons and limes (they’re also sour!), bitter melon or gourd, kale, daikon radish, burdock root, and broccoli rabe. Add them to your meals to enhance the digestive process.

Turmeric: We all know this orange spice helps to lower inflammation, but did you know it’s also good for your gut? Turmeric has a record of helping to settle down upset stomachs, as well as relieving gas and bloating. A common remedy for stomachaches is Golden Milk, which is simply drinking a warm glass of milk with a bit of turmeric mixed in; there are many variations of golden milk to be found, with some including extra spices like ginger or natural sweeteners like honey. Turmeric has also been said to help with the release of bile, which is important for breaking down dietary fat. If you’re dealing with inflammatory-related gut issues, turmeric may be a good addition to your treatment, but always check with your doctor first before eating or supplementing with it.

Look for this in the spice section, or buy it in bulk online from sites such as thematchareserve.com.

Fennel: Want to send uncomfortable gas away as soon as it came? Or is the dreaded bloat calling your name? Fennel to the rescue! You can add the bulb and leaves to salads, stir-fries, and even smoothies, or the seeds as a seasoning. The seeds can also be made into a soothing tea, and chewed on after meals to support digestion and naturally cleanse the palette. You really can’t go wrong with fennel; try it out for bloating, indigestion, gas, and constipation.

Peppermint: Not just for toothpaste, peppermint is one of the top digestive herbs around. It’s amazing for bloating, indigestion, gas, irregular stools, PMS, and headaches. Add it to recipes, drink it up as a tea (hot or cold), and look into finding it in essential oil form to help nurture your gut. 

Ginger: This warming spice is also a top miracle-worker for your digestion. Used before meals, it helps to the digestive process into high gear. After meals, it ensures your stomach is happy and calm. Ginger is excellent for those dealing with IBS, acting as an antispasmodic, which helps to calm an upset stomach. Another benefit of ginger is its ability to relieve nausea, especially for women during PMS or pregnancy. 

Fiber-Rich Foods: If you’re already consuming a lot of plant-based foods, chances are your body is no stranger to fiber. However, despite all plant foods containing some amount of fiber, there are a few that happen to have more than others. Out of all the fruit, berries top the list as being the ones with the most fiber. Blackberries and raspberries are two of the most fiber-rich berries you can find. For vegetables, it doesn’t get any better than asparagus. Yes, it does make your pee smell a bit weird, but it’s also a good source of the prebiotic fiber known as Inulin, which is a powerful fuel source for your beneficial bacteria. There’s also okra. This slimy vegetable isn’t just a good southern staple; it’s also an amazing prebiotic as well, and can definitely help to keep things moving down in the colon if things start to get “backed up” (if you know what I mean). Then we’ve got seeds. The two that tie head-to-head are flax and chia seeds, both of which have similar nutrients and properties. If you soak them in water overnight, they’ll start to form a “gel”. Add them into your smoothies and drinks or enjoy them as a pudding, and you’ll be feeding your bacteria as well as promoting regularity down in your colon. Chia and flaxseeds are also excellent sources of plant-based omega-3 fatty acids, with a small hint of protein to boot. 

Antioxidant-Rich Foods: Here’s another reason why plants rule. Not only do they provide the fiber to help feed your gut bacteria, many of them also contain another source of fuel for those bugs in the form of antioxidants. Normally, whenever we talk about antioxidants, it usually has to do with anti-aging, inflammation, and disease. But another benefit they provide is their ability to feed our good bacteria. You heard that correctly: antioxidants are another type of prebiotic! Foods such as blueberries, red wine, pecans, sweet potato, broccoli, and spinach are all rich in antioxidants, and are usually available all year round.

Bone Broth: Vegans, you may want to skip this food. But for everyone else listening, bone broth is an amazing food for your gut. Bone broth is an excellent source of minerals, amino acids, and collagen for healing and supporting a healthy gut lining. This lining is like a protective shield keeping bad bugs and toxins away where they shouldn’t belong, and is one of your first lines of defense when it comes to your immune system. If you’re going through any sort of gut-related ailment, add bone broth to your diet to encourage proper healing and restoration. Consuming it regularly also acts as a form of insurance towards maintaining a healthy digestive system. 

Collagen Powder: If you’re not able to use bone broth, then consider switching over to collagen powder. Collagen, which is found in bone broth, nourishes the lining of the intestines, making sure it’s strong and healthy. This acts as a form of insurance against conditions like intestinal permeability or leaky gut, when the gut lining becomes weak and porous, allowing undigested food particles, bad bacteria and yeasts, and toxins to leak out and enter the bloodstream, where they can cause a lot of disruption to the body. Supplementing with collagen also provides a wide spectrum of amino acids, making it a perfect alternative to conventional protein powders. Some good brands to look into include the Dr. Axe multi collagen powder, Vital Proteins collagen peptides, and the Beauty Bomb blend containing collagen powder from thematchareserve.com. 

So now that we’ve gone through some of the foods, it’s time for me to share with you some of my favorite products from the thematchareserve.com. I’m really enjoying them, and think you will too.

First is their Super Green Me Organic Green Superfood Blend. This is a green powder blend containing some of the most powerful superfoods on the planet: matcha, Moringa, spirulina, wheatgrass, and barley grass. Not only that, but they’re all organic! The greens are great for supporting detox, improving digestion, and flooding the body with tons of nutrients. 

Another blend of theirs that’s awesome is the Viking Matcha. This contains a mixture of matcha, ginger, Cordyceps mushroom, and orange powder. The reason I like this one so much is that it helps your body to adapt to stress while healing it from the inside. Since stress can significantly affect digestion, a blend of superfoods like this would be really beneficial for preventing the physical effects of stress.

They also sell single-ingredient pouches, too, which are 100% pure superfood. 

One that I’ve taken a liking to is their Acai powder. If you’ve ever seen Acai bowls online but don’t have access to the actual fruit, this is a great alternative. And since it’s in bulk, you’ll be able to make more servings than you normally would from the expensive packets sold at the health food store. Acai is really great for your skin, and is rich in antioxidants which you now know helps to feed the good bacteria in the gut.

And yet another superfood I’ve tried is their Organic Astragalus (as-strag-uh-lus) Powder. With Fall just around the corner, it’s only a matter of time before cold and flu season takes off. Astragalus is a special herb that helps to strengthen your immune system. According to Traditional Chinese Medicine, it protects the body against stress, and enhances overall vitality. Because most of the immune system is found in the gut, herbs like Astragalus really help to give it a boost. 

So there you have it everyone.

Add some of these foods to your shopping list the next time you’re due for a grocery run. All of them encourage a stable, healthy microbiome, and are great forms of medicine whenever something goes out of balance. They’re all the more proof that Mother Nature does provide for us!