Food and the gut
A 7-day Indian diet plan for gut health (vegetarian and non-vegetarian)
A diet that suits the gut has four features: 25 to 30 grams of fibre a day, many different plant foods across the week, a fermented food every day, and meals at regular times. Ordinary Indian home cooking can meet all four. This seven-day plan shows one way of doing it, with a vegetarian base and egg, fish or chicken options. It is meant for adults without a diagnosed bowel disease. If you have IBS, reflux or another condition, use the adjustments below and the charts written for those conditions.
In short
- Aim for variety before quantity. Thirty different plant foods in a week is a useful target, and spices, nuts and seeds count.
- Include a pulse at two meals a day and a fermented food once a day.
- Increase fibre in steps over three to four weeks. A sudden jump causes gas.
- Keep meal times steady, and finish dinner three hours before bed.
What is this plan built on?
- 25 to 30 grams of fibre a day
- 30 plant foods across the week; spices, nuts and seeds count
- Every day a fermented food
- 3 hours between dinner and bed
| Principle | Why |
|---|---|
| 25 to 30 g of fibre a day | Pooled studies found the largest health benefit at 25 to 29 g a day. Many people eat much less than this. |
| 30 plant foods a week | In a large citizen-science study, people who ate more than 30 different plants a week had more varied gut bacteria than those who ate 10 or fewer. |
| A fermented food daily | In a ten-week trial, a diet rich in fermented foods increased the diversity of gut bacteria. |
| Regular meals | The gut works to a daily rhythm. Long gaps followed by heavy meals bring on reflux and bloating. |
| Few sweetened and packaged foods | Sugar and refined flour displace fibre. In one study, artificial sweeteners altered gut bacteria and blood sugar control in some people. |
The seven-day plan
Portions depend on your size and activity. As a guide, a main meal is one cup of cooked cereal or two small rotis, a large bowl of dal or other protein, and vegetables filling half the plate.
| Day | Breakfast | Lunch | Evening | Dinner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | Idli, sambar with vegetables, coconut chutney | Rice, toor dal, beans poriyal, cucumber salad, curd | Buttermilk, roasted chana | Two phulkas, palak with paneer or egg curry, carrot salad |
| Tuesday | Vegetable poha with peanuts and peas | Jowar or wheat roti, chana masala, bhindi sabzi, raita | Guava, a few almonds | Vegetable khichdi with moong dal, kadhi |
| Wednesday | Ragi dosa with tomato chutney, a boiled egg or sprouts | Rice, rasam, cabbage-carrot poriyal, fish curry or rajma | Buttermilk with roasted cumin | Mixed vegetable soup, moong dal chilla with mint chutney |
| Thursday | Oats upma with vegetables, curd | Brown or hand-pounded rice, masoor dal, lauki sabzi, beetroot salad | Papaya, walnuts | Two phulkas, mixed vegetable curry, grilled chicken or tofu |
| Friday | Pesarattu or besan chilla with chutney | Bajra or wheat roti, lobia curry, brinjal sabzi, onion-tomato salad, curd | Sprouts chaat with lemon | Curd rice with pomegranate and grated carrot, sautéed greens |
| Saturday | Vegetable upma with a bowl of sambar | Rice, sambar with drumstick and pumpkin, avial, a small portion of pickle | Banana, peanuts | Millet khichdi with vegetables, kadhi or fish fry in little oil |
| Sunday | Dosa with potato-pea filling, sambar | Vegetable pulao with raita, chole or chicken curry, kachumber salad | Tender coconut, roasted makhana | Two phulkas, dal, tinda or ridge gourd sabzi |
Through the week this plan includes about 40 different plant foods, a pulse at two meals on most days, and curd, buttermilk, idli, dosa or another fermented food every day.
How do I count 30 plants a week?
Each different plant counts once in the week. Herbs and spices count too.
- Cereals and millets: rice, wheat, ragi, jowar, bajra, oats
- Pulses: toor, moong, masoor, chana, rajma, lobia, urad
- Vegetables: whatever is in season, and a different one each day
- Fruit: banana, guava, papaya, orange, pomegranate, apple
- Nuts and seeds: peanuts, almonds, walnuts, sesame, flaxseed, coconut
- Herbs and spices: coriander, curry leaves, mint, ginger, garlic, turmeric, cumin, mustard
The simplest way to raise the count is to buy two vegetables you did not buy last week, and to rotate the dal.
How do I adjust the plan?
If you bloat easily or have IBS
Start with half portions of pulses, choose moong and masoor over rajma and chana, cook vegetables well, and go slowly. Use the Indian IBS diet chart.
If you have acid reflux
Keep dinner small and early, and reduce fried food, tomato-based gravies and late tea or coffee. Use the GERD diet chart.
If you have diabetes or fatty liver
Halve the rice and roti, add protein at each meal, and choose whole fruit over juice.
If you avoid milk
Use lactose-free curd, or fermented foods without dairy such as idli, dosa, kanji and fermented rice. See whether curd is a probiotic.
If you do not eat onion and garlic
The plan works without them. Hing, ginger, cumin and curry leaves carry the flavour.
Who should not follow this plan without advice?
- People with coeliac disease, who need a gluten-free version
- People with a flare of colitis or Crohn’s disease, or a narrowing of the bowel, who may need less fibre for a time
- People with kidney disease, who may have limits on protein, potassium and fluids
- Anyone who has recently had bowel surgery
- Anyone with weight loss, blood in the stool or symptoms at night, who needs a diagnosis first
Questions patients ask me
How soon will this diet improve my gut health?
Gut bacteria begin to shift within days of a change in diet. Bowel habit usually improves in two to three weeks. Give the plan six to eight weeks before judging it.
I get gas when I eat more fibre. Should I stop?
No. Halve the increase and go more slowly. Some extra gas in the first two weeks is expected and settles as the bacteria adapt. Soak and pressure-cook pulses, and drink enough water.
Is a vegetarian diet better for gut bacteria than a non-vegetarian one?
Indian studies show different patterns of bacteria in people on plant-based and mixed diets, and neither pattern is a disease. The amount and variety of plant food on the plate matters more than whether meat is also eaten.
Do I need a probiotic supplement with this plan?
No. A daily fermented food and enough fibre do the work for most people. A probiotic is a targeted tool for particular situations.
Is this a weight-loss plan?
It is not designed as one, though many people lose some weight because fibre and protein are filling. For weight loss, portions of rice, roti and oil need to be set for you.
Can I have tea and coffee?
Yes, two or three cups a day, preferably not on an empty stomach and not late in the evening. Keep the sugar low.
Are millets necessary?
No. They add variety and fibre, and one millet meal a day is a reasonable aim. Rice and wheat remain part of a gut-friendly diet.
Sources
This page is written for patients and is based on the guidelines and studies below. It is for education and does not replace a consultation.
- Systematic reviews of carbohydrate quality and human health. Reynolds A et al. Lancet. 2019. PubMed 30638909
- American Gut citizen-science study of diet and the microbiome. McDonald D et al. mSystems. 2018. PubMed 29795809
- Trial of high-fibre and fermented-food diets and immune status. Wastyk HC et al. Cell. 2021. PubMed 34256014
- International consensus statement on fermented foods. Marco ML et al. Nat Rev Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2021. PubMed 33398112
- Study of how quickly diet changes the gut microbiome. David LA et al. Nature. 2014. PubMed 24336217
- Multi-omics study of the Indian gut microbiome. Dhakan DB et al. Gigascience. 2019. PubMed 30698687
- Study of artificial sweeteners, gut microbiota and glucose tolerance. Suez J et al. Nature. 2014. PubMed 25231862