Healthcheck: Foods that may improve your digestion

Many people know that eating yogurt may help improve digestion and overall health - but there are other foods that may also have those same benefits.

We met Juliet Burgh, the nutrition director for Unite Fitness, at Essene Market and Caf to talk about the growing popularity of fermented foods.

These foods include items like yogurt and sauerkraut. They carry good bacteria known as probiotics.

"The benefit is really trying to create good healthy gut bacteria," said Burgh.

She says it can boost immunity and overall health.

Dr. Rajiv Sharma, a gastroenterologist, recently wrote the book called "Pursuit of Gut Happiness." It focuses on probiotics.

We spoke with him via Skype.

"If you are healthy and doing well, this will be a health supplement to help you maintain health and wellness, that's the way I look at this," said Dr. Sharma.

He explains the human gut has about 80-percent of the body's immune system which leads to the theory that a healthy gut will boost immunity.

Not all medical experts agree these foods will make a significant difference in your health but for a healthy person, they won't hurt.

So if you want to try it, Burgh suggests yogurt and kefir for dairy items.

"You want to go for grass fed," said Burgh.

Dr. Sharma also says read the label.

"The key word is 'active cultures'" he said.

Other fermented foods include miso, soy or soy-free sauerkraut and other pickled vegetables. Tempeh is also good because it has protein.

"So for vegetarians and vegans out there, you can kill two birds with one stone," said Burgh.

Kombucha tea is also a fermented food and it's become a very trendy drink.

Dr. Sharma says there's not enough evidence for him to support kombucha tea yet but as for the others, he's a fan.

His book includes recipes to incorporate fermented foods in your diet.

"Pursuit of Gut Happiness" is available at Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble.

As for why some doctors aren't sold on the benefits of probiotics, many want to see more scientific evidence.

But there is a lot of research currently going on to better study the probiotics we know and to design new ones.