2 weeks ago
Hello, I'm 35 y male. Working in different shifts and sleeps 5-6 hours a day. Please suggest some good diet plan for me to stay healthy and improve my gut health?
2 weeks ago
Dear Hussey, Thank you for the question
Meal timings play an important role in maintaining a healthy balanced lifestyle and reduce the potential risks of digestive issues. It is recommended to consume 3 major meals at regular intervals with healthy snacks in between and avoid skipping of any meals or fasting. A Minimum 2–3-hour gap between the last meal and bedtime is recommended. Shift work may influence the frequency and regularity of eating. It may also lead to irregular eating habits such as skipping of meals, which should be avoided and adequate nutrition should be consumed.
It is necessary to improve your overall digestive system which involves a healthy lifestyle management including a good balanced diet, adequate hydration, regular physical activity and hygiene & stress management is key to maintain a good digestive health. It is also important to ensure adequate fiber intake which is essential for a healthy gut and overall digestive health.
Gut microbiota includes a diverse community of bacteria in human gut, they carry out various functions that influences our overall health. The functions include, nutrient metabolism, natural defense against infections and regulation of immune system.
For managing a healthy gut it is important to consume a diversified balanced diet at regular intervals, maintain hydration and include dietary fibre in your daily diet. It is also important to engage in regular physical activity and include prebiotic and probiotics in your daily diet Prebiotics are food components that confer benefits to the host by selectively stimulating the growth of beneficial gut microbiota whereas Probiotics are beneficial bacteria that incur positive effects on human health. They are present in the human gut and are also taken through food products such as yogurt, fermented foods, dietary supplements etc.
Prebiotics naturally exist in different foods including, asparagus, garlic, chicory, onion, honey, banana, barley, tomato, rye, soybean, human’s and cow’s milk, peas, beans, etc.
The common sources of probiotics are yogurt, cultured buttermilk and cheese. The other foods that are produced by bacterial fermentation are, tempeh, sauerkraut, sour dough, bread etc. Look for food products labelled ‘Probiotic’, ‘Probiotic food’, ‘Contains Probiotics’, ‘with Probiotics’ etc.
As a general dietary guideline, for an apparently healthy individual/ with no specific health or nutrition needs and/or metabolic condition it is recommended to consume 2000kcal/d and for men, the RDA for protein requirement is 54g/d and for fiber it is 30g/d.
Here are a few guidelines for general digestive health & healthy balanced diet
For a customised and personalised meal plan for specific conditions, please contact your Health care professional.
Hope we have answered your query.
Wishing you a great day ahead