The Best & Worst Foods To Help You Avoid Bloating

Having a perfectly flat stomach all of the time is not realistic for the large majority of us. However, it is possible to have a flatter stomach if you're not trying to fight against daily bloating. One survey found that bloat can affect up to 30 percent of Americans. While you may naturally have a bigger stomach after a meal, bloat is not a real concern until you can’t zip up your jeans in the morning. Here are the best and worst foods for bloating.

Dealing with Broccoli, Kale, and Cabbage

These three greens are famous for giving you gas and causing bloat. However, these three vegetables are very healthy and offer many nutritional benefits. It is best to eat these types of foods regularly so that your body gets better at digesting them, which will lead to less bloat over time. Also, cooking or steaming these vegetables may make them easier for the GI tract to digest.

Legumes Are Another Bloat Causer

It is no news to you that beans and lentils can cause major gas issues, however, once again, these foods are healthy and good for you, but the bloat issues they cause can be an issue. To battle the bloat issues of legumes, try soaking them in water overnight to help decrease the amount of bloat inducing nutrients within them. Also, combine legumes with easy to digest grains, such as brown rice or quinoa.

Cucumbers Are Great for Bloat

One bloat fighter is cucumbers. Because of cucumbers high water content and its antioxidants, they help reduce the puffiness of the belly. Eat them or slice them up and put them in water to help reduce bloat.

Bananas Reduce Bloat

Another great food to fight the bloat are bananas. Rich in potassium, which helps prevent water retention and reduce salt-induced bloating, you can get this benefit from any food that is rich in potassium, such as avocados, kiwis, oranges, or pistachios. Bananas are also beneficial in the fact that they can help with constipation, which could also be the reason for a bloated stomach.

Try Papaya Enzymes

The enzymes in papaya can also benefit the GI tract, since they help break down proteins. Papayas also have great anti-inflammatory properties.

Bloating does not feel, or look good. Thankfully, bloating can be controlled through some simple dietary changes.Incorporating these bloat fighters into your diet can help you to maintain that flat stomach you've worked so hard to achieve.