The Worst Foods For Stomach
If you think a bag of chips, popcorn or a muffin is great for your health then you’re wrong. Those are on the list of the worst foods for stomach.
How come?
Because they are carb-dense foods.
Carb-dense foods can alter the balance of our gut flora triggering inflammation almost immediately.
Which foods are considered as carb-dense foods?
They are considered as such, if they have a high ratio of carb grams relative to their total weight.
For example, a small potato, which many consider a bad carb, weighs 150 gr, but it’s mostly water, and only about 20% of it is carbohydrate.
On the other hand, a plain rice cake weighs only 9 gr, but contains almost 80% carbohydrates!
If you want to keep your waistline checked and in control, it is recommended to avoid these products which contain too many carbs:
- Bagels
- Bread (including whole-grain breads)
- Crackers
- Pasta
- Cereals
- White rice
- Pretzels
Yes, it’s difficult to simply turn your back to all of these, as they’re maybe your favorite breakfast choices,but you should definitely should give it a try.
Unhealthy Fats
Three types of dietary fat are linked to inflammation and thus contribute to excess belly fat:
- trans fats
- saturated fats
- and omega-6 fats
Many different foods which cause belly fat, contain unhealthy fats such as:
- packaged foods (trans fats)
- processed and high-fat cuts of meat (deli meat)
- full-fat dairy products
- candies (saturated fat)
- corn oil
- grape-seed oil
- soybean oil
- sunflower oil (omega-6 fats)
Why Processed Meat Is Bad For You
Processed meat is very high in calories and saturated fats, and it’s not only bad for your stomach, but it can also lead to heart disease and stroke.
The truth is – they are very difficult for many people to digest. They can stay in the intestines for a longer period of time because they are very difficult to break down.
They don’t contain any fiber, so they aren’t good for digestion.
What is a definition of processed meat?
Processed meat is the meat that has been preserved by curing, salting, smoking, drying or canning.
Food products categorized as processed meat include:
- Sausages
- Hot dogs
- Salami
- Bacon
- Ham
- Salted and cured meat
- Corned beef
- Smoked meat
- Dried meat
- Beef jerky
- Canned meat
On the other hand, meat that has been frozen or undergone mechanical processing (like cutting and slicing), is still considered as unprocessed.
Yes, they’re tasty, but if possible, try to avoid these products.
What About Fried Foods
Fried foods tends to overwhelm the stomach resulting in having acid reflux and heartburn.
They usually stay in your stomach similarly to processed foods, and it takes much longer to be digested due to their high fat content, making them foods that cause belly fat as well.
They are high in fat, calories and often have too much salt.
If you’re going to eat fried foods, make sure you make them yourself at home, where you are in full control of the type of oil you use.
Olive oil, soybean, and canola oils are all good choices because they are also high in heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids.
One word of advise: Never reuse oil when you fry!
Start with a fresh batch each time, and when you’re done frying, use paper towels to soak any excess oil off the food.
Dairy Foods
Do you often feel bloated and gassy after you drink milk or eat ice cream?
If you do, you might have a very common condition called lactose intolerance. It makes it hard or impossible for your body to digest a type of sugar in milk and dairy products which are containing lactose.
Some people aren’t so sensitive, others may experience symptoms after eating only certain ones, and some may develop gradually worsening effects with each exposure.
Lactose is broken down in the small intestine by an enzyme called lactase.
And, as we get older, our bodies produce less lactase which means dairy foods that contain lactose can cause stomach problems.
Lactase can be found in:
- milk
- regular (non-Greek) yogurt
- soft cheeses
- dairy-based desserts
Your doctor can tell you if you’re lactose intolerant, and how to modify your diet to stay healthy if you have these symptoms after consuming dairy products:
- upset stomach
- bloating
- gas
- diarrhea
- vomiting
- flatulence(farting)
Too Much Fructose
Foods with a lot of fructose compared with glucose can contribute to:
- Bloating
- Flatulence
- Reflux
- Stomach pain
- Nausea/Vomiting
- Diarrhea/Constipation
- Fatigue
- Mental depression
- Headaches/Brain Fog
- Mood changes
Gastrointestinal symptoms are the most common complaints of fructose malabsorption sufferers.
The gas produced by the bacteria will result in flatulence, bloating, and reflux.
You may also experience stomach pain as a result of muscle spasms, from chronic, mild spasms to acute and severe, sometimes leading to nausea and vomiting.
Fructose foods can be found in:
- certain fruits (apples, mangoes, watermelons)
- certain vegetables (asparagus, sugar snap peas)
- sweeteners (high-fructose corn syrup agave nectar, honey)
If you’re fructose intolerant, you should definitely avoid some, or all of these products.
Garlic, Onion and other High-fiber products
The body’s inability to digest a kind of fiber, called fructan in these foods can cause flatulence. This fiber seems to cause more symptoms than some other kinds, because we use it in preparation of our everyday meals.
Fructan can be found in:
- grains (barley, wheat)
- vegetables (artichokes, onions, garlic)
- legumes (black beans, kidney beans, soybeans)
- additives (inulin)
Artificial and Natural Sweeteners
If you’re trying to reduce sugar and calories in your diet, you may be turning to use artificial sweeteners or other sugar substitutes.
Well, you aren’t alone.
Today artificial sweeteners and other sugar substitutes can be found in a variety of food and beverages.
They’re marketed as “sugar-free” or “diet”, including soft drinks, chewing gum, jellies, baked goods, candy, fruit juice, and ice cream and yogurt.
And yes, they can fall into the category among worst foods for stomach.
These don’t easily pass through our cell walls so gut bacteria can digest them, which in return can cause gas and bloating.
You can find them in:
- some fruits (apples, blackberries, nectarines, peaches, pears, plums)
- vegetables (cauliflower, mushrooms, snow peas)
- artificial sweeteners (isomalt, mannitol, polydextrose)
- sugar-free foods
Fat-free Foods Are The Tricky Ones
Many people think that choosing the fat-free option makes it a much healthier choice, but in reality, fat-free foods fall into the category of worst foods for stomach.
Fat-free foods contain a lot of artificial preservatives and chemicals, which confuses the brain, because our body isn’t made to digest artificial ingredients.
This will only buildup bad ingredients that leads to bloating and fatigue.
Fat-free doesn’t necessarily means trouble free.
Advise: you better stick with 100 % real ingredients!
Alcohol
Alcohol usually carries a lot of empty calories and drinking a lot of it can slow down your body’s fat-burning processes.
A drink or two is harmless, but if you make it a habit of having more than a few drinks, you might start to see the effects on your belly and your digestion as well.
Once most of the alcohol is absorbed, the rest is excreted from your body through your stool and urine. Your colon muscles move in a coordinated squeeze to push the stool out.
Alcohol speeds up the rate of these squeezes, which doesn’t allow for water to be absorbed by your colon as it is normally.
This causes your stool to come out as diarrhea, often very quickly and with a lot of extra water.
Sweetened Fructose Beverages
Fructose-packed drinks are not friends to your health and your belly either. Sneaky culprits like fruit juice and sweet tea will cause you problems too.
Fructose-sweetened drinks might actually be more dangerous in terms of belly fat risk, since they make it easier to consume more fructose in a shorter period of time.
Breakfast Pastries
Muffins may have little bits of blueberries in them, but don’t assume that they’re actually a healthy option.They’re still processed and packaged, so they’re still carrying trans fats and artificial sugars.
Do you know that some brands of packaged muffins even contain up to 50 % of your daily value of sugar?
Yes, you should definitely have these goodies as rare as possible.
Pre-packaged Salads
When you get a pre-packaged salad from a gas station or cafe, it usually comes with a little cup of thick dressing that can pretty much mess up the nutritional value of the salad.
Ready (to-go) salads are usually topped with processed cheese and carbs croutons, which is known can lead to having a belly fat.
So next time when you’d like to eat your greens, better opt for vinaigrette or olive oil, instead of dressings that contain lots of trans fat.
Salty Snacks
Salt in any form is a major culprit for belly fat, mostly because it causes your body to retain lots of water, which leads to bloating and weight gain.
Salty snacks like potato chips and cheese puffs also contain lots of hydrogenated oils, and hydrogenated oils mean bad fats.
And if you want to keep your health in check, you better walk away from these in supermarkets.
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