The best greens for your guts include kale, spinach, beet greens, mustard greens, dark green leaf lettuce and Romaine lettuce. You can consume them as salads, or opt for the good old' way of steaming or sautéing.
Romaine. Romaine ranked among the top 10 "powerhouse foods," by the CDC, which are classified based on their associations with reduced risk for chronic diseases. It's an especially great source of vitamin A — one cup has 81% of your daily intake — as well as some B vitamins.
Butter lettuce may be easier for some people to digest because it has a low fiber content; however everyone reacts differently to different fruits and vegetables.
Leafy greens and gut health
The results of the study show that leafy greens are essential for feeding your microbiota in a way that is different than how dietary fiber and prebiotic fiber does. When your intestinal residents have access to their preferred food, they reproduce!
Spinach Is an Excellent Source of Fiber
Fiber is essential for gut health as it helps to keep the digestive system moving and promotes regular bowel movements. A diet rich in fiber has been shown to reduce the risk of colon cancer, and it can also help to prevent constipation, hemorrhoids and other digestive problems.
Leafy greens (mixed greens, romaine lettuce, spinach, kale, etc.) are probably the most nutrient-packed foods you can eat. They are high in vitamin A, C, and K, all of which have anti-inflammatory properties.
“With the high water content, iceberg lettuce isn't as rich in [nutrients] as other types of lettuce,” Feller explains. The sky-high levels of H20, mean there's just not as much room for other good stuff, like vitamins, minerals, and fiber, making iceberg lettuce nutrition less impressive.
Compared with green lettuce and red lettuce, some studies have reported that red lettuce has comparatively higher phenolic levels than green. Thus, red lettuce is a good source of antioxidants in the daily diet [4].
Spinach and lettuce are nutritionally different. spinach has twice as much potassium, protein, calcium, iron, niacin and vitamins A, C, B, C and B-12 as any other leaf vegetable. Spinach also contains more fiber and minerals including magnesium, phosphorus and potassium than any of the four lettuce types.
Dark Leafy Greens
Along with spinach & kale being optimal choices, green olives, asparagus, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, celery, collard greens, sea vegetables like seaweed, leeks, peas, and Swiss chard are all high in chlorophyll, which means they can help cleanse your digestive tract and detoxify your liver.
Research shows that vitamin K-rich leafy greens like spinach and kale reduce inflammation, as do broccoli and cabbage.
Anti-inflammatory foods
An anti-inflammatory diet should include these foods: tomatoes. olive oil. green leafy vegetables, such as spinach, kale, and collards.
Certain vegetables cause gas and abnormal bowel habits. Avoid cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, coleslaw and sauerkraut. Also, limit artichoke, brussels sprouts, onions, shallots, leeks and asparagus.
Iceberg lettuce helps to digest food. It helps to break down heavy carbohydrates and proteins and enables your stomach to function properly. Thus it allows for smooth movement of bowels and helps to cure constipation and acid reflux.
If you have IBS, we recommend you avoid cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage or salads containing these vegetables, such as coleslaw. We also suggest you limit your intake of artichoke, onions, leeks, garlic, and asparagus.
In some patients lettuce produces abdominal distension, which is not related to gas, but rather to an uncontrolled reaction of the abdominal muscles and the diaphragm. Hence, learning to control the abdominal muscles may prevent distension with no need of dietary restrictions.
Not only does spinach contain more lutein and zeaxanthin, but almost 20 times more vitamin A than iceberg lettuce. Vitamin A is a vital nutrient for maintaining good vision, enhancing immune function and having beautiful skin.
There's another misconception out there about tomatoes and other nightshades: That they cause inflammation. (Spoiler: They don't.)
Lectins — These are found in many foods, not just grains, and when consumed in smaller amounts, your body normally does just fine with them. But foods that have large amounts of lectins are more problematic. Some of the lectins and foods that cause leaky gut include wheat, rice, spelt and soy.