This Doctor’s Daily Gut-Healing Smoothie

Gut health month is sadly coming to a close (stay tuned for December’s healthy gift guides & peppermint treats). We’ve explored my top gut-healing supplements and the FODMAP diet, learned in ins and outs of pre and probiotics, and even sampled a few of my go-to gut healing recipes.

It’s been so incredible sharing my views on all things digestion, but I couldn’t possibly conclude a month of gut-health focused posts without including my daily gut-focused smoothie. This smoothie recipe is an excellent addition to your digestive health recipe repertoire; it makes a delicious and convenient breakfast, and is a daily staple in my diet. It’s free of the top gut-disruptors (conventional dairy, gluten, grains, sugar) and contains the following gut-healing foods and supplements:

• Prebiotics: Prebiotics are non-digestible foods that beneficially affect humans by stimulating the growth of “good” bacteria in the digestive system; they are essentially the food for the good bacteria in your gut. Examples include: inulin, FOS, PHGG, arabinogalactans and galacto-oligosacchries and they are also found in whole food food sources, such as the flax seeds used in this recipe.
• Probiotics: These are the good bacteria that live in and on our bodies. They improve health by maintaining healthy gut flora, healing the lining of the intestines to prevent leaky gut, rebalancing the immune system, reducing inflammation in the gut and by preventing and treat GI infection as well as improving overall digestive function. Studies show us that probiotic supplementation doesn’t actually ‘recolonize’ the gut, and must therefore be taken consistently to maintain beneficial results. I add a small scoop of probiotic powder to my smoothie to promote intestinal balance.
• Glutamine:  my favourite gut-healing supplement. Glutamine acts as a natural anti-inflammatory in the gut and is also necessary for the repair of the intestinal lining. While probiotics can indirectly aid regeneration of gut lining, glutamine is an incredible supplement because it directly feeds the cells in your gut so they can regenerate. There are even multiple studies showing that glutamine supplementation maintains tight junction integrity and improves gut barrier function.
• Collagen: Collagen is an essential component for healing the gut lining because it provides the building blocks for new collagen production in the body. These include amino acids glutamate, arginine, and cysteine which help to maintain the integrity and may promote regrowth and function of the intestinal wall.
• Ginger: Ginger is a natural antimicrobial, which means that it can help inhibit the growth of “bad bacteria” in the gut. It also makes the smoothie incredibly tasty and provides a warm element to an otherwise cold smoothie. Typically smoothies and other frozen foods aren’t  a great idea in the colder months but the warming ginger helps to balance this smoothie making it appropriate to drink all year long.

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Gut-Healing Smoothie Recipe

This smoothie recipe is an excellent addition to your digestive health recipe repertoire. It makes a delicious and convenient breakfast, and is free of the top gut-disruptors (conventional dairy, gluten, grains, sugar) and contains the following gut-healing foods and supplements.

Ingredients

• 1 cup almond milk 
• 1/2 cup frozen strawberries or raspberries
• 1 tbs ground flax seeds 
• 2 tsp collagen powder 
• 1/2 inch ginger, ground 
• 1 capsule probiotics
• 5g glutamine powder

Instructions

Add the almond milk, frozen berries, flax seeds and ginger to a high-powered blender (Vitamix is everything!) and blend on high for 1 minute. Place the collagen, glutamine and probiotics in the blender and blend for 20 seconds - or until well incorporated. Drink daily & enjoy the gut-loving benefits.

References:

• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8023941
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24290641
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4045285/
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21248165
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28498331
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27749689
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4231515/
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22326433
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17456850/