Gut health is vital to overall wellbeing. Turn your run-of-the-mill dinner into a glorious, gut-loving one.
Meat and three veg is a go-to dinner for many. Here’s how you can add more gut-loving goodness for healthier, happier insides.
+ MORE VEGIES
Less than one in 10 adults eat enough vegetables. To help you reach your five-plus-a-day, fill your plate with at least 50 per cent veg at each main meal. A variety of colours will boost the disease-fighting antioxidants in your meal.
Add: Half a cup of pumpkin and a small zucchini to a baking tray, along with half a potato and half a cup of broccoli.
+ MORE LEGUMES
Beans, chickpeas and lentils are part of the legume family, providing fibre, protein and slow-burning carbohydrates.
Add: Half a cup of canned chickpeas (drained and rinsed) to your tray of baked veg. While you’re at it, reducing the size of your steak from 200g to 100g, will provide a more balanced protein portion.
+ MORE PROBIOTICS
In the right amounts, probiotics can support a healthy gut. Look for yoghurt containing a scientifically-backed strain of probiotics such as Lactobacillus.
Swap: Gravy for a sauce made out of plain probiotic yoghurt, mustard and a squeeze of lemon juice. An added bonus: this swap contains around half the sodium of the original condiment.
+ MORE HEART- HEALTHY FATS
Butter is rich in unhealthy saturated fat, which can be detrimental for heart health when consumed in excess.
Swap: Butter for extra virgin olive oil. Not only will this slash your intake of saturated fat by almost 75 per cent, you’ll get a boost of heart-healthy unsaturated fats and disease-fighting antioxidants.
+ MORE WHOLESOME WHOLE GRAINS
Whole grains, like wholemeal bread and brown rice, are more nutritious than their refined counterparts, such as white bread and white rice. Whole grains contain more vitamins, minerals and antioxidants.
Swap: Your white dinner roll for a wholemeal one, and you’ll benefit from twice the satisfying, gut-loving fibre.
For more advice on gut health, we recommend:
www.healthyfood.com
