Because what you eat shows up in your poop AND your pores.
If you’re in your 40s like me, and you’ve ever said, “Wow, I didn’t used to bloat like this after a salad,” or “Why is my skin freaking out like I’m 16 again?”—welcome, friend. Let’s talk about the not-so-secret secret behind it all: your gut.
As a nurse with 22 years of experience (and way too many conversations about poop before lunch), I’ve seen firsthand how what you eat affects how you go—and how you glow. The connection between your gut and your skin is as real as that one coworker who always microwaves fish in the breakroom.
So today we’re diving into my favorite kind of list:
Eat this, not that—for happier bowels and better skin.
Because good skin starts in the gut, and so does not hating your bathroom time.
🍞 Bread Edition: Whole > White
Eat This: Sprouted grain bread or whole wheat
Not That: White bread, croissants, or anything with “enriched” flour
White bread is basically cardboard for your gut. It spikes your blood sugar, feeds the bad bacteria, and leaves you hungry in 20 minutes. Whole grains? They’re fiber-packed, feed your good gut bugs, and help you poop like a champion.
💩 Gut bonus: Fiber = movement = less constipation = less toxin reabsorption = clearer skin.
🧃 Drink Edition: Water > Juice
Drink This: Water (with lemon, cucumber, or even chia seeds)
Not That: Sugary juices, soda, or “detox teas” that are just glorified laxatives
Juice may look healthy, but your gut and skin know better. It’s a sugar bomb in disguise. Water keeps everything hydrated—from your colon to your collagen.
💦 Pro tip: Dehydration is the fastest way to look tired and get constipated.
🍟 Snack Edition: Avocados > Chips
Eat This: Avocado toast, guac with veggie sticks, or even just a spoonful
Not That: Potato chips, pretzels, or “low-fat” snack packs
Avocados are loaded with healthy fats that keep your skin plump and your gut lining happy. Chips? Mostly salt and empty carbs. Sorry, not sorry.
🥑 Bonus: Avocados contain fiber + vitamin E, a double win for your glow.
🍫 Treat Edition: Dark Chocolate > Candy Bars
Eat This: 70%+ dark chocolate
Not That: Milk chocolate candy bars with sugar as the first ingredient
Dark chocolate (in moderation, of course) has polyphenols—plant compounds that love your gut and fight inflammation. Candy bars? Just a sugar party for acne-causing bacteria.
🍫 Nurse wisdom: Eat the chocolate. Just make it dark and mysterious, like your favorite medical drama.
🍗 Protein Edition: Salmon > Processed Meats
Eat This: Wild salmon, sardines, eggs, beans
Not That: Deli meats, bacon, hot dogs
Omega-3s in salmon are great for calming skin inflammation and soothing the gut. Processed meats? They’re full of preservatives and inflammatory fats that make your gut and face very unhappy.
🧠 Gut-skin note: Omega-3s support mood, too. So you’ll look good and stop yelling at your houseplants.
🥤 Gut Helper Edition: Fermented Foods > “Probiotic” Gimmicks
Eat This: Yogurt, kefir, kimchi, sauerkraut, miso
Not That: Sugary probiotic drinks with cartoon labels
Fermented foods bring real, living bacteria to your gut party. Fake probiotic products are like inviting a clown to a medical conference. Not helpful.
🧬 A healthy microbiome = better digestion, better immunity, fewer breakouts. Win-win-win.
🚫 Avoid the “Low-Fat” Lies
Let me be clear: your skin and gut need fat. Healthy fats. Not the “low-fat” processed stuff that spiked in popularity in the 90s (and ruined all our hormones). Your skin barrier and your gut lining are made of lipids. Give them what they need.
👩⚕️ Final Thoughts from Your Friendly Nurse Blogger
What you eat either feeds the inflammation or fights it. It either supports your gut-skin connection—or sabotages it one soda at a time.
You don’t need a perfect diet. Just a realistic, whole-food, gut-happy plan that works with your life (and your shift schedule). If your poop is regular, your skin is glowing, and you’ve got energy to spare—you’re on the right track.
And if not? Just remember, you can turn things around one avocado at a time.
Want more tips like this—plus recipes, skin care advice, and real nurse-approved wellness hacks?
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