Worst Food for Your Gut #2: Processed meat Lunch meats, hot dogs, sausages and other processed meats are packed with saturated fat, sodium and nitrates. Processed meats have been linked to colon cancer, possibly because they are cooked at high temperatures, which can increase carcinogens.
Foods that may not help
Avoid fried foods, or foods high in fat like bacon, sausage, pizza and pastries which may worsen symptoms. Caffeine acts as a bowel stimulant and may aggravate diarrhea in some, she says.
Any meats that are tough or fibrous may be hard to digest. These include: meats with casings, such as hot dogs, sausage, and kielbasa.
Processed meats, such as ham, sausage, hotdogs, beef jerky, and bacon, have been treated to preserve or enhance their flavor, texture, or shelf life. This includes meats that have been smoked, cured, salted, or dried. While these meats can be delicious and convenient, they can also be hard on the digestive system.
Because the gallbladder is stimulated by fat, mild to severe abdominal pain can occur after eating a greasy meal (think: fried foods, cheese, sausage, potato chips, and butter). Inflammation caused by gallstones blocking the ducts to your small intestines can also result in severe pain.
Fatty foods like bacon, sausage, and oily dishes may also cause bloating because they are slowly emptied from the stomach. They don't necessarily produce gas, they just hang around in the gut longer and increase the feeling of fullness.
Sausages provide high levels of Vitamin B-12 and Iron, both of which are essential for healthy red blood cells and haemoglobin production. On top of this, B-12 helps you metabolise both fats and protein! Each sausage provides around a third of your RDA.
Lean Meats
In comparison, fatty and processed meats can cause inflammation and worsen your IBS symptoms. Avoid sausage, bacon, pepperoni, salami, and marbled cuts of meat.
Some types of meat are easier to digest than others. In general, you want to go with lean meat, like fish or skinless poultry. These proteins have less fat and fewer fibers than something like steak, so they may be easier to digest.
If you want to eat sausage often, however, consider choosing healthier types of sausage, such as those made with chicken or turkey. You can also make your own to get the freshest variety with none of the harmful additives or high-fat meat.
Eating too much bacon, sausages, hot dogs, canned meat, or lunch meat—meat that has been processed in some way to preserve or flavor it—is bad for health, according to experts. A number of studies have found links between processed meat and various forms of cancer, as well as heart disease and diabetes.
People who eat a lot of processed meat such as sausage products, salami or ham run a higher risk of dying from cardiovascular disease or cancer. The problem is that carcinogenic substances such as nitrosamines form through salting, pickling or smoking, and these might be the cause of the increase in cancer mortality.
They concluded that, in their expert opinion, adults should continue to eat their current level of red and processed meat, roughly three to four times a week.
Avoid vegetables such as peas, onions, artichokes, cabbage, broccoli, brussels sprouts, cauliflower, mushrooms, as well as asparagus. Avoid whole grains that are high in carbohydrates such as whole wheat, bran, and pasta. While delicious, avoid fruits such as peaches, prunes, apples, and pears.
Processed foods, as well as alcohol, can also negatively impact gut health. Prebiotic and probiotic foods like whole grains, onions, garlic, fermented foods, miso and yogurt feed the good bacteria in your gut.