Are you experiencing an inflamed stomach lining? Either through a once-off case of food poisoning or gastritis, or ongoing stomach issues with ulcers or perhaps a long term H.Pylori infection.
Navigating food choices with gastritis or an inflamed stomach lining is tough. But there are some rules of thumb. Processed meat is definitely going to inflame a sore stomach lining further. Red meat should be kept to a minimum. Likewise any artificial additives, sugar, or fatty and fried foods. It takes a few months for your stomach (and gastric pH levels) to return to normal levels after the worst phase of infection. During this time you need to eat fairly bland and follow the rules of what to eat and what to avoid.
Below are some tips for each meal, plus some recipes for added inspiration.
Breakfast
- Your best bet in the morning will be a few slices of toast (no butter!) with some slices of banana, or a bowl of oats, again with some banana slices, but with lactose free or low fat milk.
- Add banana, apple and pears to your oats
- Small meals at breakfast and throughout the day are best.
- You can start adding leafy greens like spinach, as well as avocado, and eggs once you can eat grainy toast and oats without pain.
- Try and avoid sweeteners like sugar or honey initially whilst you’re in the calming stage.
- Really important to avoid any foods high in grease or fats. That includes bacon, breakfast meats or sausages, or anything fried.
- Sip your water after or before your breakfast, not whilst you’re eating
- Stay clear of juices, coffee or tea initially.
- Once you have settled your stomach you can try some of our healthy gut breakfast recipes which are full of prebiotics, probiotics, fibre, wholegrains and polyphenols for their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory gut healing properties
Snacks
- Bananas, pears, apples, keep these fruits up
- Try and get in lots of small meals and snacks rather than large meals throughout the day
- Aim for calming but high fibre snacks
- Celery and carrots
- Cranberries are great due to their flavonoid content
- low fat cheeses only once you’re stomaching a basic diet (cheddar is good)
- Yoghurt (low in sugar and fat) once you’re back on track, will keep your healthy gut thriving
- Some great gut healthy snack recipes can be found here
- No chocolate, lollies, soft drinks, bakery goods, packaged foods, cookies, crisps.
Lunch & Dinner
- Brown rice, barley and grainy bread are your staples
- Chicken broth or noodle soup is a great idea in the early days. Add carrot, celery, herbs.
- Lean meats such as turkey and chicken, as well as fish are your go to proteins. Some people experience an intolerance to too much protein during the initial inflamed stomach phase so take it easy to start with until your stomach pH levels normalise.
- With soups, ensure you don’t add high fat creams
- Leafy green veg with all your meals: spinach, rocket,
- If you’re vegetarian you can eat Tofu and leafy green veg
- Beans are great, as are broccoli and broccolini
- Then start introducing a bigger range of fibre rich, bright and colourful veggies with your meals as well as lentils and peas, all great fibre rich options for a healthy gut.
- Our range of healthy gut recipes for lunch and dinner have been designed around their prebiotic, probiotic, fibre, wholegrain and polyphenol ingredients. These are all anti inflammatory, antioxidant and assist in both healing and nurturing a healthy gut
- No alcohol!
- Remember, sip water before and after your meal, not with it
- Try and leave a decent amount of time between dinner and bedtime to aid digestion
IBS
Navigating IBS can be tricky, especially when you are first diagnosed. Following our healthy gut meal plan for a fortnight can really help, as well as keeping a food journal detailing what foods irritate you. Unfortunately it’s different for everyone. But sticking to a diet full of fruits, vegetables, low in added sugar and lean protein, removing dairy, soda alcohol and coffee for a few weeks, and sticking to only limited red meat (especially baked or slow cooked red meat which is harder to digest).
Try Our 14 Day Healthy Gut Meal plan and Recipes
Our 14 Day healthy gut meal plan has been designed especially for those experiencing gut irritation and will help to heal an inflamed stomach lining. The recipes will nurture a healthy gut through their antioxidant and anti inflammatory ingredients. All full of prebiotics, probiotics, fibre, polyphenols, multi-grains, gut friendly fruit and vegetables. They’re NOT full of added sugars and artificial ingredients.
A sample of tasty recipes from the meal plan include:
Green Smoothie
Vanilla Turmeric Chia Pudding
Carrot Cake Overnight Oats
Smoked Salmon Breakfast Bowl
Blueberry Coconut Smoothie
Detox Salad
Butternut Squash Soup
Tempeh Taco Salad
Moroccan Chickpea & Pomegranate Salad
Salmon Beet & Dill Salad
The full range of Healthy Gut recipes can be found here
Additional Recipes
Here are some additional recipes which I have found can certainly help to calm an irritated stomach due to their anti inflammation ingredients such as ginger and turmeric :
Butternut Squash Soup
Green Smoothie with Ginger
Ginger Carrot Apple Smoothie
Anti-Inflammatory Toddy
Tumeric Tea
Watercress Leek and Coconut Soup
Supercharged Lamb Bone Broth
Soothing Gut Healing Soup
Anti-Inflammatory Carrot and 3 Ginger Soup
Bone Broth Gut healing Recipe
Probiotic Rich Miso Soup Recipe
Miso Soup with Kale
Pumpkin and Ginger Soup
Healing Sweet Potato Miso and Honey Soup
You can find more information on how to heal an inflamed stomach in this article