Should You Consume Smoothies for Gut Health

Smoothies for Gut Health - Why is Good Gut Health Important?
Gut Health Smoothie ‘Gems’
Healthy Meal Delivery

Many believe smoothies to be the elixir of health, but not all smoothies are created equally. While carefully home-crafted recipes can be nourishing for your body, and good for your gut, most pre-packaged editions tend to be stripped of fibre, and void of the ingredients that feed the bacteria in your gut. We’ve compiled some helpful tips to help you choose, or make, the perfect smoothies for gut health.

Smoothies for Gut Health - Why is Good Gut Health Important?

Your gut bacteria not only impacts your physical health, but also your mental health. The exact mechanisms of how this can be is not yet fully understood, but through the ‘gut-brain axis’, our microbiomes communicate with our central nervous system through the enteric nervous system (aka the ‘second brain’), which covers our gastrointestinal tract. This is a bidirectional path that communicates from the brain to the gut, and the gut to the brain.

Because of this, it’s believed that our mental state can impact our gut health - hence a potential increased urge to go to the toilet in states of heightened anxiety. Nourishing yourself well is therefore imperative for keeping your gut and mind healthy and happy. The best approach to this is by eating a diet rich in whole foods, including complex carbohydrates, and fruit and vegetables. The more variety in your diet, the more variety of bacteria in your gut.

While there’s no one holy ‘gut health smoothie’, smoothies are a convenient way to deliver prebiotics (food that feeds ‘good’ bacteria), probiotics (live ‘good’ bacteria), and fibre (essential for microbial diversity and stool formation) all in one glass, if the right components are chosen.

What to Look Out For

As mentioned, some prepackaged smoothies are not designed with gut health in mind. So, what exactly should you be aware of if wanting to consume smoothies for gut health benefits?

Whole food ingredients - aim for options composed of fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds to provide plenty of variety and keep your microbes happy.

Sugars - while smoothies will contain some sugar by default from the natural sugars found in fruit, be wary of any extra sweeteners added. Things like fruit juice (from concentrate), cane sugar, or syrups, can feed the less beneficial bacteria in your gut. Let the natural sweetness of the fruit do its job, and aim for under 10g added sugars.

Fibre content - fibre is key in maintaining good gut health, and is often something that is removed in the manufacturing process of shop-bought smoothies. Try to find a smoothie that provides 3-5g with each serving - high fibre drinks are a great hack to boosting your fibre intake, if you’re struggling with food.

Additionally, smoothies containing probiotic cultures (e.g. Lactobacillus or Bifidobacterium) are a beneficial bonus!

Gut Health Smoothie ‘Gems’

The best healthy smoothie recipes will fit all of the above criteria, but if you want to go the extra mile when it comes to your gut health, look out for either of the following nutrient-packed ingredients;

Spirulina - spirulina powder benefits the gut by acting as a prebiotic. It nourishes beneficial bacteria, and plays a key role in maintaining the stability of the gut environment.
Chicory Inulin (like in PRESS’ Citrus Sunrise smoothie, pictured above) - chicory is a rich source of inulin - a soluble fibre (i.e. one that absorbs water and helps soften stool). Regularly consuming inulin can aid with good, regular bowel movements. Since chicory is likely not something you’d consume on every day basis, having it packed into a smoothie is a great way to sneak it into your diet.

Healthy Meal Delivery

Keeping your gut healthy has never been more simple. Download the Calo App; our meal prep service offers delicious, nutritionally-balanced meals delivered right to your door, with the option to add a range of gut-loving smoothies! Boost your gut health in just a few easy clicks.

FAQs

What are pre and probiotics?

Prebiotics are a type of fibre that cannot be properly digested by the body. Rather than being digested, they’re passed into the gut, which ‘healthy’ gut bacteria feed off, helping them grow strong and maintain a healthy environment.

Although they can be artificially made in supplement form, they’re often found in plants, such as asparagus, bananas, berries, and many other green veggies, and whole grain cereals.

Probiotics are live bio cultures that are consumed through fermented food or drink - in products such as kombucha, kimchi, or kefir. These are often colloquially referred to as ‘good’ bacteria, as they are not disease or illness-causing, and help to keep you healthy, rather than making you ill.

When consumed, they compete with any potentially harmful bacteria in the gut for space and food, reducing the amount of harmful bacteria that reside there.

Are smoothies good for you?

So long as you’ve followed the guidance above, smoothies can absolutely form part of a healthy diet. It’s worth noting that when smoothies are made, the blending breaks down the cell membranes of the fruit used, releasing the naturally-occuring sugars. If consumed regularly in excess, this can lead to dental damage. To avoid this, just stick to the recommended portion sizes!

Conclusion

If consumed carefully, smoothies can be a great means of packing more nutrients into your diet, as well as benefitting your gut health. However, remembering what to look out for at the point of smoothie selection may be challenging - there are endless brands, flavours, and ingredient combinations to consider, which can leave you feeling stuck.

Luckily, we’re here to save the day. We’ve teamed up with Press to offer gut healthy smoothies every day, giving your body an extra boost of gut-friendly nutrients on top of the whole foods in each meal! Look out for Berry Bliss, Citrus Sunrise, and Green Goddess in the Calo app, ready to add to your daily Calo deliveries, and a one-off sample coming to you very soon!