Butyrate Foods: Everyday Options to Boost Gut Health

Nearly 30% of children suffer from constipation. This is one sign of poor gut health, alongside diarrhea, bloating, and cramps. Good gut health isn't just about digestion, though. It's linked to brain development and immunity, and helps prevent allergies. What you feed your kiddo can have a lifelong impact on their health.

Butyrate is a short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) that is produced when dietary fiber is broken down by bacteria in the gut. This four-carbon molecule has immense benefits for both adults and kids, enhancing the health of the gut and other organ systems. Butyrate is a source of energy for gut cells and helps their growth and maintenance. It's especially valuable for young ones as it helps with the development of the gut lining, digestion, and immunity.

Environmental and nutritional factors have potent effects on the gut microbiome in early life. Postbiotics like butyrate protect against several disorders, including autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. The Journal of the American Medical Association reports that butyrate is effective in reversing obesity in kids. It also promotes the growth of beneficial bacteria like Lactobacilli, while inhibiting disease-causing ones like E.coli. 

It is well-established that prebiotics boost immunity, but a diet that also includes the best postbiotic foods for kids can be immensely valuable for your kid's health, too. 

How Do I Improve My Child’s Gut Health?

Gut health and the microbiome are essential components of health, affecting brain development, digestion, immunity, metabolism, and the risk of chronic diseases. A few signs of a healthy gut in kids include regular bowel movements and a stable mood and behavior.

Along with a balanced mix of macronutrients — proteins, carbohydrates, and fats — kids also need nutrients for gut health and immunity, such as prebiotics and butyrate foods. Incorporating butyrate-rich foods can help support the cells of the gut, strengthen the gut barrier, bolster the microbiome, and protect against gut inflammatory disorders and cancer. Foods high in butyrate are also high in dietary fiber, which promotes gut motility and prevents constipation, a frequent gut-related issue in young ones.

Similarly, prebiotics for a baby's immune system help nourish the gut bacteria and provide a foundation for long-term gut health. 

Everyday Food Categories That Boost Butyrate

Most of the food we consume contains little butyrate. However, the friendly bacteria that live in the gut ferment certain types of food components into SCFAs likebutyrate. While dairy fats like butter and some types of cheese provide a little bit, the most important source of butyrate for your kiddo is their own gut bacteria. 

You can plan your family meals around some of the foods that promote butyrate production, including the following:

Whole Grains and Resistant Starches

Resistant starches and fiber are both fermented by gut bacteria to yield butyrate. Green bananas, lentils, chickpeas, and beans are important sources of resistant starches. Cooked and cooled rice and potatoes also contain significant amounts of resistant starches.

Whole grains are important for your little ones in several ways. Oats, whole wheat products, barley, and brown rice are rich in fiber, which supports gut motility and health and aids gut bacteria in generating butyrate. 

Legumes Kids Can Learn to Love

Many legumes are rich in both fiber and resistant starch. Some legumes popular with young ones include:

• Beans like kidney beans, lima beans, and black beans
• Peas
• Pulses, which are dried seeds of legumes such as chickpeas, peas, and dried beans
• Soybeans
• Lentils

Fruits and Vegetables That Feed the Gut

Fruits and vegetables are rich sources of dietary fiber, which improves gut health and helps prevent constipation. Eating apples, berries, artichokes, sweet potatoes, and other fruits also allows the bacteria in the gut to produce butyrate. 

Eating fruit with the skins increases your kid's fiber intake. Dried fruits like dates, apricots, and prunes are also rich in fiber.

Fermented Foods for a Balanced Gut

Fermented foods contain butyrate directly. Foods such as kimchi, some cheeses, and other fermented dairy can provide your kiddo with small amounts of butyrate. Fermented foods have other benefits, too, including improved digestive health, blood sugar stabilization, enhanced immunity, and better absorption of nutrients. 

Nuts and Seeds for a Fiber Boost

Nuts have great nutritional value, are convenient to carry, and most kids enjoy eating them. Cashews, walnuts, hazelnuts, pistachios, and almonds are popular nuts that are rich in nutrition and fiber. They also add unsaturated fatty acids to the diet, which are good for long-term health. 

Seeds are generally smaller than nuts and can easily be added to cereals and other foods. The nutritional benefits of seeds are similar to those of nuts. To add fiber (and thus, butyrate) to your kid's diet, try incorporating seeds such as chia, flax, pumpkin, sesame, and sunflower seeds. 

Butyrate Foods You May Need to Avoid

Some butyrate foods, such as beans, are rich in fiber but can make your baby gassy, uncomfortable, and unable to sleep. You may want to delay the introduction of beans and start with small quantities to avoid digestive discomfort. Also, if your kid is unable to digest gluten, you will want to remove wheat, barley, and rye from their diet. 

How Do You Increase Butyrate in Your Gut?

Maintaining a healthy gut is a lifelong journey that's easier the younger you start. Some ways to increase butyrate in the gut include:

• More fiber. Variety is the key, as little ones get easily bored. Alternate between fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and legumes to avoid monotony and keep them interested.
• Resistant starches. Boiled and cooled potatoes and rice are good sources of resistant starches and are easy to include in tasty recipes.
• Fermented foods. Add them to family foods gradually, allowing kiddos to get used to their flavors.

Begin Health: Helping Parents Support Butyrate Naturally

Guiding your kids to form the right long-term habits will pay off in the long run — they will be more likely to have better digestion and immunity, with fewer allergies and stomach issues. 

However, not all kids take to kimchi and broccoli. Fortunately, certain supplementation that includes prebiotics and probiotics can help feed the beneficial bacteria that produce butyrate. For your baby less than a year old, Beginbaby® Pre + Pro with HMOs provides gut microbiome builders along with complex sugars called human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs). Among the HMO benefits for babies are the growth of friendly gut bacteria, prevention of infections, support for brain development, and enhanced immunity. Meanwhile, older kids will benefit from Begin Health Daily Growing Up™ Prebiotics.

Frequently Asked Questions

What Foods Are High in Butyrate?

In general, foods rich in dietary fiber and resistant starches enable gut bacteria to produce butyrate. Such foods include whole grains, fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts, seeds, potatoes, and rice. Butter, ghee, and some cheeses contain butyrate directly.

Can I Take Butyrate Every Day?

Natural butyrate and foods that help butyrate production are safe for daily consumption. If you're thinking about giving butyrate supplements to your little one, it's best to consult your pediatrician. Conditions like gastrointestinal disorders, metabolic disorders, and immune system disorders require caution. 

What Is the Best Butyrate for Gut Health?

Consuming butyrate-rich foods and foods that promote butyrate production are the best way to support gut health. But you can also supplement with prebiotics and probiotics, which help feed the good bacteria that produce butyrate in the gut. This is an especially good option for babies, kids, and picky eaters.