Life can often be very hectic and certain lifestyle factors like stress and our food choices can lead to an unhappy gut, bloating and constipation and, if you’re not looking after your gut then your heart might take a knock too. Gut Week is the perfect time to make some changes for an overall healthier you.
- Get a balanced diet. Too many foods high in fat can leave you feeling sluggish while raising cholesterol levels and increasing your risk of heart disease, so go for low fat foods. Increase your fibre intake by eating more fruits, vegetables and wholegrain foods such as wholemeal bread, brown rice, whole-wheat pasta and cereals like muesli. Fibre provides bulk in the diet giving a feeling of fullness helping to prevent unhealthy snacking and helping to control weight. It also aids digestion and promotes bowel health.
- Set aside some proper meal times and avoid rushing food. This will give your gut more chance to digest food properly and give you more time to enjoy it. Irregular eating patterns can upset the gut so avoid skipping meals. Again this will help prevent unhealthy snacking and an increasing waistline which increases the risk of developing heart disease.
- Stress can irritate the gut and increase blood pressure - so get exercising. Exercise is a great stress-buster, helps to control your weight and also aids digestion.
- Sugar and caffeine can also irritate the gut. Replace sugary snacks with fruit and vegetables and caffeinated drinks with herbal teas or water, a great reason to increase your water intake.
Give your gut and heart the care and attention they deserve for a happier and healthier body.
This content is provided by Heart Research UK working in partnership with Sovereign Health Care. The charity currently funds over £4m of research projects at 31 hospitals and universities across the UK and funded six of the first eight successful UK heart transplants. Sovereign Health Care is proud to support Heart Research UK through donations from The Sovereign Health Care Charitable Trust. If you would like to add your own support you can visit their site www.heartresearch.org.uk