If you’ve ever had a “gut feeling” or felt butterflies in your stomach when nervous, you’ve already experienced how deeply connected your gut is to your brain and body. But there’s so much more going on under the surface—learning how to improve gut health can make a surprising difference to your energy, mood, weight, and overall wellbeing. Read on to learn my Nutritionist recommendations for supporting your gut from the inside out.
What is gut health, and why does it matter?
Your gut isn’t just responsible for digesting food. It’s home to trillions of bacteria that make up your gut microbiome. These bacteria help:
- Digest and absorb nutrients
- Regulate your immune system
- Support your metabolism, important for maintaining a healthy weight and avoiding chronic disease
- Communicate with your brain through the gut-brain axis
When your gut microbiome is thriving, it can positively influence everything from your mood and energy to your immune response and weight. But when it’s out of balance, you might experience bloating, constipation, low energy, brain fog, and even increased stress or anxiety.
Why gut health matters for busy adults
Whether you’re working full time, supporting your family, or simply trying to juggle a million daily tasks, it’s easy to put your own health on hold. But looking after your gut can actually help you handle life’s demands more easily. A healthy gut means:
- More stable moods
- Better sleep
- Improved energy and focus
- Easier weight management
And the best part? There are plenty of simple ways to support it—without overhauling your entire routine.
Common challenges
Even with the best intentions, you might face things that quietly chip away at your gut health:
- A limited diet (especially low in fibre)
- High stress levels
- Lack of sleep
- Overuse of antibiotics or medications
- Minimal time in nature
- Lack of connection (with pets, people or community)
The good news? You can make small shifts to rebuild a happy, healthy gut.
How to improve gut health in everyday life
You can support your health by providing beneficial microbes the food they need to thrive, helping to crowd out less desirable microbes. Here are some simple, sustainable ways to nurture your gut every day:
Eat a variety of plant foods
Aim for 30+ different types of plant foods in a week. Include veggies, fruit, legumes, whole grains, nuts, seeds, herbs and spices. Each one feeds different bacteria and supports a more diverse microbiome. Many of us tend to eat the same foods week in week out, this nourishes the same types of gut microbes and limits diversity. Vary thet plant foods in your shopping basket every week.
Include prebiotic foods
These feed your good gut bugs. Although we don’t digest prebiotics, when certain microbes feed on prebiotics they produce compounds that are beneficial to your gut and overall health. Great options include garlic, onion, leeks, asparagus, oats, bananas, and legumes.
Probiotics
There are many probiotic supplements available, with many different strains. Each strain will have a different action. It is important to use the correct strain to achieve the result you want. If you’re not sure what prebiotic to use, speak to a nutritionist.
Add fermented foods
These bring beneficial bacteria into your gut. The process of fermenting foods increases the beneficial microbes. Try sauerkraut, kimchi, kefir, yoghurt (unsweetened), or miso—start slow if you’re not used to them.
Prioritise good quality sleep
Your gut microbiome works in rhythm with your body clock. Poor sleep disrupts your digestion, mood and immune response. Aim for 7–9 hours of sleep a night with a regular bedtime. To improve sleep, increase your exposure to natural light.
Manage stress
Chronic stress weakens your gut lining and alters your gut bacteria. People with higher stress levels show a different diversity of gut microbes. Stress also impacts other functions of your gut which can impact your health. Consider breathwork, journalling, gentle exercise, or even 5 minutes of quiet time with a cuppa.
Spend time in nature
Being outdoors exposes you to a greater diversity of microbes and helps calm your nervous system—both great for your gut. Even when living in an urban environment, grow plants or vegetables on balconies, picnic in a park, try a camping holiday, visit national parks.
Play with pets
Living with pets has been shown to increase microbiome diversity. . Pat your dog, take them for a walk to a park, if you can’t have animals visit places that do or volunteer at an animal charity.
When to seek extra support
If you’re experiencing more persistent or severe gut symptoms—like ongoing bloating, constipation, diarrhoea, reflux, or food sensitivities— working with a qualified nutritionist can help. In some cases, running a comprehensive microbiome or stool test can uncover underlying imbalances or deficiencies that may not be resolved through diet alone. A personalised treatment plan based on your results can make all the difference, helping you move from trial and error to targeted support that actually works. Book an appointment here.
Which of the steps are you already doing and which ones are you going to introduce to improve your gut health this week? Maybe it’s buying a new veg or two at the markets, or switching up the herbs you add to meals. Small changes add up when it comes to improving gut health.
Want more help learning how to improve gut health and boost your energy?
Download the Healthy Gut Microbiome handout from Co-Biome—it includes extra information to build on the tips in this blog, plus a handy Plant Points Tracker to help you count how many different plant foods you’re eating each week.
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Kim Healey
Nutritionist | Metabolic Balance Coach
Intentional Steps, Real Change
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