What You Drink Impacts Your Gut Health

Written by Yuko Tabasa

One of the fascinating things about the human body is how it houses many different bacteria and microorganisms. Now, before you germaphobes start freaking out, don’t! These microorganisms that thrive in our bodies are beneficial and help us carry out our day-to-day functions.

Let’s take a closer look at our digestive system, a host to a myriad of gut bacteria essential to a healthy, well-functioning gastrointestinal tract. Any pursuit of health starts in the gut, as everything we consume contributes or subtracts to our overall gut microbiome. We need to be more conscious about what we put in our bodies, specifically, what we drink. So let’s talk about how different beverages can affect our gut health and decide whether we should keep drinking them or toss them in the bin.

What Is Gut Health?

Gut health is the overall health of our digestive system. What we consume gets broken down into nutrients that travel through our bloodstream for easy delivery in our bodies. When your gut can properly digest our meals and drinks, communicate seamlessly with your nervous system and contain healthy gut bacteria and immune cells, you have a healthy gut!

Why Should We Care About Our Gut Health?

Since everything we consume is broken down and distributed in our digestive system, it is crucial to maintain a healthy gut. Caring for our gut helps us avoid unwanted illnesses and symptoms such as loose bowel movements, abdominal pain, bloating, heartburn, nausea and vomiting.

Remember the old saying, “the way to a man’s heart is through his belly?” It’s true! Studies have found that a healthy gut microbiome is highly correlated to a healthy circulatory system. For example, a healthy gut that creates more trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) is linked to lower risks of heart failure and other circulatory issues.

Other than lowered heart disease risks, we have to remember that our immune systems are found in the gut, too. The healthier our guts are, the better our bodies can fight off potential illnesses.

And the final reason to care for our guts is because it is deeply linked to our brain. Researchers have even dubbed it the “gut-brain” connection!

Our gut biome interacts with a plethora of nerves connected to our central nervous system, as well as our enteric nervous system. Slight changes in our gut bacteria’s health can lead to diseases in the long run such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s.

Drinks That Are Bad for Your Gut

Soda

Both artificial sweeteners and heavily carbonated drinks tend to harm gut bacteria. As a result, these beverages can cause abdominal discomfort and bloat due to the damage done to the gut bacteria.

Energy Drinks and Caffeine-heavy Beverages

These drinks can cause gastritis, inflammation and diarrhea. Caffeine is usually not bad for us, but an excess (as is the case in energy drinks) can literally punch us in the gut. Smaller amounts are fine, so don’t worry too much if you’re having a cup of joe in the morning.

Alcohol

A regular round with your friends can cause an imbalance in our gut microbiomes, leading to an overabundance of harmful gut bacteria and inflammation.

Black and Green Teas

The majority of black and green teas available in the market contain a good deal of caffeine. This can cause the same problems with energy drinks and excess coffee intake.

Drinks That Are Good for Your Gut

Now that you know what drinks to avoid, let’s discuss what drinks you should be consuming more to help your gut microbiome stay happy and healthy.

Water

If you’re going to drink anything at all, go for water. Water not only hydrates but also promotes balance in our gut microbiomes! Alkaline water, in particular, has been proven to immensely help improve gut health because of its acid-neutralizing nature.

Kombucha and Probiotic Drinks

Fermented drinks are full of live bacteria that tend to boost the health of intestinal cells, help in digestion and improve immune health. Yogurts full of probiotics do the same thing!

Herbal Teas

Herbal teas such as ginger tea, fennel tea and other herbal infusions are healthy for your gut microbiome since they aid in digestion and tend to soothe abdominal discomforts. In addition, they help the gut bacteria do their job more efficiently!

A Parting Reminder

Having a healthy gut microbiome is the key to a healthier, happier you. And with the weight of the ongoing pandemic, cleaning our gut might be the little extra something we can do to ease our mental and physical well-being!