Why is Fibre important for your Gut Health? Part 3

Dietary fibres, starches, and prebiotics work together to support a healthy gut ecosystem. We have delved into Dietary fibres HERE and prebiotic fibre HERE. In this short blog we start the conversation of starches and its role in Gut Health.

Not all starch is equal. Refined starches which you find in most packaged pre-made food incl. bread, crackers and many other store ready food, cause blood sugar spikes, weight gain and can do the opposite of diversifying and feeding good gut bacteria. The starch that has been shown to be very beneficial for the gut is Resistant Starch (RS).

Gut bacteria particularly love resistant starch. RS moves through the digestive system largely untouched before it gets fermented in the large intestine (hence why it is called resistant). The bacteria in the intestine ferment the RS to produce something called short-chain fatty acids (such as butyrate). We touched short-chain fatty acids and their importance in part one.

Regularly having resistant starch has been shown to have beneficial effects on the colon and can improve certain gastrointestinal conditions as well. It also enhances insulin sensitivity, so you do not get the blood sugar spikes that you do when eating refined starches.

How do you incorporate resistant starch into your diet?

• Include prebiotic rich foods daily. These include asparagus, artichokes, beans, lentils, green bananas (the greener the better), artichokes and onions. Remember… with beans and lentils, cooked and cooled is key!
• Eat carbohydrates from vegetables. Diversity is key. Try and include broccoli or cauliflower most days of the week.
• Cook, Cool and then reheat your starches when you do have them. (you don’t have to reheat, but you can). This is for starchy foods like sweet potatoes, potatoes, rice and legumes. When they are cooked and cooled for at least 24hrs then the starches transform in a way that makes them more resistant to digestive enzymes, which significantly improves glucose spikes after eating them.

The key in adding resistant starch foods into your diet is thinking about the way you prepare many of your starches!

TO NOTE - It is really important to remember when introducing more fibre into your diet to stay hydrated and for some people to increase slowly if you notice any side effects.