5 Snack Foods that can cause Bloating, Cramping and Gut Health Issues: and Mindful Eating Tips to Support You
Snacking is a joyful part of life that helps us maintain energy throughout the day. Snacks are often filled with flavors that light up pleasure and reward centers in the brain.
There are many benefits to eating snacks. For example, when consuming smaller meals throughout the day, your body has more energy to properly break down foods, versus very large meals.
That said, sometimes even the healthier snacks can cause gut irritation, bloating, cramping and diarrhea. When I work with clients, people are often surprised that these foods below can be big gut health triggers, especially with IBS, Leaky Gut, SIBO, Ulcerative Colitis or Crohn’s Disease.
With all of these foods, it's of course about moderation and understanding what works with your body. The goal here is to have intutive gut-restorative eating!
This is all about cultivating an awareness and an abundance of what gives your gut joy: not to think about it as a restriction.
So this isn't to say that we should all universally avoid these foods below. It’s to be aware and have information so you can make healthy decisions for yourself.
Read on to learn more about these snacks. Then tune into your own gut’s intuition through the guided mindful eating exercises that you can journal and reflect on!
5 snack foods that can cause bloating, cramping and gut health issues
Energy Bars
While energy bars can be a nice snack after a workout, many of them are filled with ingredients that are known gut irritants: such as added sugar alcohols, palm oil, kern oil and whey protein. And let’s be real, a lot of bars are made to resemble candy while marketed as a healthier option.
These can cause unwanted symptoms of gas, bloating and irritable stools. In addition, energy bars often high in carbs or fat - which can be taxing on the liver and the body to breakdown if a few are consumed daily or even regularly throughout the week.
Alternative Tip:
Try high-protein whole foods like hard-boiled eggs instead of bars. Or if you are going with bars, look for ones with natural, low-glycemic index (GI) sugars like date sugar or agave. You can also opt for bars that incorporate functional mushrooms. These provide lots of nutrients and trophorestorative properties, meaning they help the body better repair.
Microwave Popcorn
Popcorn is a low-calorie food but corn is also a major gut irritant for many folks! It’s a grain that’s high in insoluble fiber which is very hard to digest and can cause cramping, bloating, gas and diarrhea. Many microwave popcorn snack brands will add on chemicals for flavor or even within the packaging itself.
For example, brands often include PFAs to microwave packaging because these help the bags be resistant to melting. But exposure to PFAs can be quite harmful, linked to fertility hormonal health issues, increased inflammation and ongoing chronic conditions. They don’t degrade well in the body and are linked to many health issues.
Alternative Tip: Avoid microwavable bags! Use stove-top kettle corn. Or if you can’t eat popcorn (including myself), you can use an air fryer or food dehydrator to make lots of other fun puffy veggie snacks.
Spicy Trail Mix
High spice and high fat can be big red flags when it comes to gut health. Spices like chili and paprika are in the nightshade family (Solenaceae family) which are major gut irritants. In addition, peanuts and other nuts often in trail mix are major allergen or gut irritants.
When consuming a lot of fat at once, this body has to produce extra bile and gastric juices to break down lipids. This can be taxing on the liver and harder for the body to process and eliminate. So if someone is to eat a lot of spicy trail mix, versus 1-2 portion servings, this can both tax the body and easily add on calories.
Alternative Tip: Make your own trail mix! If you’re sensitive to nuts, dehydrated peas or pea protein may be more tolerable. Replace chili spice or paprika with turmeric or ginger. These are great for adding in spice with out the gut irritation and are wonderful for the immune system.
Cheese Puffs
Yes, those salty crispy, puffy balls can be a world of joy inside the mouth. They’re formulated to light up our brain’s pleasure. In fact, in food chemistry - the word as known as mouthfeel, that sensory experience that brings pleasure to how it feels in the mouth.
Dairy is one of the top gut irritants: many people’s bodies don’t have the enzymes to properly break down the milk proteins. This can cause lots of gas, bloating and diarrhea.
In addition, cheese puffs often have added chemicals like Red40 which has been linked to increasing the risk of inflammatory bowel disease and other symptoms like migraines, hyperactivty, hives.
Take a look at Cheetos’ Flaming Hot ingredients for example:
Enriched Corn Meal (Corn Meal, Ferrous Sulfate, Niacin, Thiamin Mononitrate, Riboflavin, and Folic Acid), Vegetable Oil (Corn, Canola and/or Sunflower Oil), Flamin' Hot Seasoning (Maltodextrin [Made From Corn], Salt, Sugar, Artificial Color [Red 40 Lake, Yellow 6 Lake, Yellow 6, Yellow 5], Monosodium Glutamate, Yeast Extract, Citric Acid, Sunflower Oil, Cheddar Cheese [Milk, Cheese Cultures, Salt, Enzymes], Hydrolyzed Corn Protein, Onion Powder, Whey, Natural Flavor, Garlic Powder, Whey Protein Concentrate, Buttermilk, Corn Syrup Solids, Sodium Diacetate, Disodium Inosinate, Disodium Guanylate, Sodium Caseinate, Skim Milk). CONTAINS MILK INGREDIENTS.
Lots of major gut irritants here!
Alternative tip: if you can tolerate dairy, try making you own puffed cheese snack in a food dehydrator. Or go for a dairy-free option.
Seeded Crackers
Some people thrive off seeds and crackers, others will clutch their belly with them. Seeds are very tiny which can create permeability in the gut lining, especially with diverticulitis, Ulcerative Colitis, Crohn’s Disease and leaky gut. Some seeds also contain lectin, which can inflame the gut lining and create inflammation.
If the crackers have gluten, this is a big gut irritant for those with Celiac’s Disease or often with general gut health issues. Gluten has been linked to higher levels of inflammation, malabsoprtion, and causing the body to be triggered to create lower stomach acid, making food harder to digest.
Alternative tip: If you notice lots of cramping, bloating or funky poops after eating seeded crackers, then opt for gluten-free, seedless crackers.
Tapping into your Gut’s Intuition: how to Identify if these foods are triggering your gut.
Mindful eating practices and food journaling can help you gain greater clarity around what’s triggering your gut. Below are some questions and tips that will help you on this path!
When do you tend to feel most gassy, bloated or have gut issues?
How are you eating when you’re snacking? Are you in a relaxed state or is there stress? Can you try a few breaths before you eat?
Bring in mindful awareness to your body’s cues. Before you eat a snack, take note of your hunger, satiation and general gut feeling before the meal.
Hunger = how much you need to eat
Satiation = your cravings. What are you desiring to eat?
General gut feeling = the state of your stomach. Does it already feel gassy, bloated or cramping? Does it feel sensitive.
Then rate these sensations on a scale of 1 to 10.
Hunger = 1 is absolutely starving, 10 is Thanksgiving full.
Satiation = 1 is not at all satisfied or satiated, 10 is extremely satisfied and satiated.
General gut feeling = 1 is no symptoms, 10 is extreme symptoms
Rate the sensations again after eating.
What is a mantra that you can create that helps you tap into your gut’s intuition? Consider something sweet and simple that you can easily repeat when opting for snacks!
*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. The information above is purely educational and cannot substitute professional medical advice. It is not intended to treat, cure, or diagnose medical conditions. Consult with a medical professional if you have any concerns.
