One of the best things to do for your little one’s is to establish a healthy microbiome. This can be done by making better adjustments of the food you serve.  Gail Cresci, Ph.D., R.D., of the Cleveland Clinic, shares four ways to keep your little one’s gut well fed.

By Gail Cresci, Ph.D., R.D. from Parents Magazine

1. Read Labels in the Dairy Case

Whether your child gobbles up Greek yogurt or slurps down smoothies doesn’t matter much. Just make sure the yogurt has added strains of “live active cultures,” aka probiotics, the living organisms created during the fermentation process that can take up residence in the GI tract and strengthen your kid’s immune system.

2. Pick Cold Pickles

Fermented foods, like fermented pickles, sauerkraut, and beets, also contain probiotics. However, shelf-stable varieties often aren’t produced through fermentation or are pasteurized, which kills the healthy bacteria. Hit up the refrigerator section of your grocery store instead.

3. Swap Cereal for Oatmeal

The friendly bacteria in your child’s large intestine thrive on fermentable fiber (also known as prebiotic fiber), which can be found in unprocessed oats and barley.

4. Pack Cold Pasta for Lunch

When you boil and chill pasta, it increases the amount of resistant starch, a type of fiber that your body has difficulty digesting, so more of it makes its way to the good bacteria in your gut. Potatoes, lentils, chickpeas, and less-ripe bananas offer other ways to serve up this carb.

Original article : https://www.parents.com/health/ways-to-grow-a-healthy-gut/