This week ends our mini series on digestion!  If you haven’t read part 1, 2, or 3 yet, make sure you read them before tackling this post!

• Week 25: Keeping Regular – The Other Fiber (Healthy Digestion Part 3)
• Week 24: Feed The Probiotics With Prebiotic Fiber (Healthy Digestion Part 2)
• Week 23: Amazing Health Benefits of Probiotics (Healthy Digestion Part 1)

You done? Great, let’s do this!

3 Healthy Fats To Support Digestion

So far in this mini digestion focused series we have learned about probiotics (keeping good glut flora), prebiotic fiber (feeding the healthy gut flora), and insoluble fiber (staying regular.)  This week is about incorporating nourishing fats to help support gut health and digestion.

Short Chain Fatty Acids:  Acetate, Propionate, and Butyrate

We can find some of these naturally in the GI tract because they are produced by the microbiota as they digest prebiotic fiber.  These particular types of fats are thought to be responsible for many of the health benefits attributed to prebiotic fiber.  Some short chain fatty acids are considered to be the primary source of nutrition for the cells of the colon.  Also, they may elicit anti-inflammatory effects as well as alleviate symptoms of IBD (UC and Crohn’s Disease.) If you are working on building up your tolerance of fiber and restoring your microflora balance, then you can also obtain small amounts of butyrate from some milk, butter, and cheeses.

Not everyone can tolerate adding a ton of fiber overnight.  If you are working on building up your tolerance of fiber and restoring your microflora balance, then you can also obtain small amounts of butyrate from some milk, butter, and cheeses.  Grass-fed dairy products have been consistently found to have higher levels of butyrate than conventional products.  (One of many reasons I recommend Hungry Hobby RD clients use full-fat grass fed dairy most of the time.)  Butter is known to contain butyric acid, a form of butyrate.  If you can’t tolerate dairy, try grass fed ghee.  Ghee is a staple in Indian Cooking a dairy and casein free substitute for butter.  It’s what is called, clarified butter, removed of impurities you may find you have an issue with.

MCT’s – Medium Chain Triglycerides

MCTs are naturally found in coconut and palm oil.  The interesting thing about them is that they don’t require bile salts for digestion.  For this reason, they are thought to be easier for the body to digest, absorb and utilize as energy.  They don’t necessarily help promote better digestion, but they may promote better health overall for people who are having digestion problems.  MCTs are also available in concentrated form, but information varies as to which form is the most beneficial and the dose needs to be increased slowly to avoid gastric discomfort.  In general, I recommend clients cook and regularly use coconut oil and full-fat canned coconut milk to incorporate more MCT’s into their diet naturally.

Omega 3 Fatty Acids: EPA & DHA

If you haven’t already developed the habit of getting enough omega 3’s from week 6 or if you lost attention on it you’ll want to get back on it!  Omega 3’s fight inflammation in the body, underlying inflammation is thought to be the driver of many digestive disorders as well as many chronic conditions.

This Week’s Goals

To put this into action try to pick from one of the following action items:

1. Use real butter or ghee (ideally 100% grass fed) instead of chemical laden fake butter
2. Use coconut oil in baking, cooking, etc. instead of shortening
3. Eat fatty fish 2-3x this week
4. Take your fish oil supplements
5. Keep working on getting enough prebiotic fiber to promote the production of SCFA’s.

[Tweet “Check out these three healthy fats that help nourish your gut via @hungryhobby #health #nutrition “]

This ends our mini series on digestion!  If you have implemented all these suggestions and are still struggling with uncomfortable symptoms, you need to read this.  

52 HEALTHY HABITS IN 52 WEEKS SERIES:

The 52 Healthy Habits Series is about ditching the diet mindset and making small changes to improve health overall naturally leading to a healthy body composition, increased energy and improved health. Please follow along and check out the past weeks!

• Week 52: Healthy Habits Wrap Up
• Week 51: Nightly Reflection
• Week 50: Limit Harmful Chemicals
• Week 49: Find Your Tribe
• Week 48: Cultivating Positivity
• Week 47: Healthy Thanksgiving Tips
• Week 46: Check In
• Week 45: Mobility – Foam Rolling
• Week 44: HIIT Training
• Week 43: LISS or Steady State Cardio
• Week 42: Limit Alcohol
• Week 41: Eat White, Wait What?
• Week 40: Eat Blue & Purple
• Week 39: Eat Green
• Week 38: Eat Yellow/Orange
• Week 37: Eat Red
• Week 36: Learn Which Foods to Purchase Organic
• Week 35: Read the Ingredient List!
• Week 34: Focus.
• Week 33: Chew Your Food!
• Week 32: Meditation
• Week 31: Gratitude Journaling
• Week 30: Plan & Revamp Dessert- 20 Healthy Ideas
• Week 29: Two fistfuls of veggies per meal
• Week 28: Get In Veggies At Breakfast
• Week 27: Healthy Veggie Snacks
• Week 26: Nourishing Fats for the Gut (Healthy Digestion Part 4)
• Week 25: Keeping Regular – The Other Fiber (Healthy Digestion Part 3)
• Week 24: Feed The Probiotics With Prebiotic Fiber (Healthy Digestion Part 2)
• Week 23: Amazing Health Benefits of Probiotics (Healthy Digestion Part 1)
• Week 22: Check In
• Week 21: What You Will Learn From Recording Your Meals (Intuitive Eating Series Part 4)
• Week 20: Eat Until 80% Full (Hara Hachi Bu) (Intuitive Eating Series Part 3)
• Week 19: Limit Distractions While Eating (Intuitive Eating Series Part 2)
• Week 18: Gaging Your Hunger Cues (Intuitive Eating Series Part 1)
• Week 17: 10,000 Steps Per Day
• Week 16: Assess Your Caffeine Intake
• Week 15: Decrease Sugar Intake
• Week 14: Healthy Coffee Creamers (upgrade yours)
• Week 13: 3 Month Check In
• Week 12: Sleep Enough & Sleep Better
• Week 11: Schedule Your Workouts
• Week 10: Pack A Healthy Lunch (5 Ways to Create Endless Combinations)
• Week 9: Prioritizing Protein
• Week 8: How and What to Meal Prep
• Week 7: Create & Stick To Your Healthy Meal Plan
• Week 6: Get Enough Omega-3’s (Fight Inflammation)
• Week 5: What Is A Healthy Fat & How To Get Enough (Include Healthy Fats)
• Week 4: How to Spot A Healthy Carbohydrate (Upgrade Your Carbs)
• Week 3: Tips to Increase Veggie Intake (Eat Veggies)
• Week 2: 15 Healthy On the Go Breakfast Ideas (Eat BF Challenge)
• Week 1: Tips to Drink More Water