'I didn't know why I was always bloated. Then I learnt about the "magic" number.'

Silly season is the best. We eat, we drink, we eat some more. But coming out the other side, my poor stomach is fighting for life.

Bloating? Tick. Indigestion? You betcha. Constipation? Shed a tear for me, please.

For years, I naively assumed gut health was just another wellness buzz phrase designed to sell me supplements. But oh, fellow tummy ache soldier, I've recently learnt it's so much more.

Watch: Where to start with gut health. Post continues below.

It turns out, our gut microbiome (aka the trillions of bacteria living in our digestive tract) is the hard-working engine room of the body. It's not just about digestion; it benefits our immune system, regulates our metabolism and even influences our moods.

In the spirit of #NewYearNewMe, I decided it was finally time to take action to address my gut woes. And in my search for answers, I've found the solution is surprisingly simple.

So, how do we keep this engine room happy? According to the experts, it's not about cutting everything out, but rather, adding things in. Specifically, 30 of them.

The 'magic' number 30.

In 2018, a team of researchers conducted the world's largest citizen science microbiome project and studied, well… poo.

The American Gut Project — which collected samples from more than 10,000 people mainly across Australia, the UK and the US — found the number of plants in our diet plays a major role in the diversity of our gut microbiome.

A diverse microbiome is basically the "gold star" we're all aiming for, and researchers found the magic number to get there is 30 plants a week.

Renowned gastroenterologist Dr Robynne Chutkan is among the experts who back this, calling 30 the "magic number".

She explained it like this: different plants contain different "phytochemicals" (a type of plant chemical that is thought to boost our health) and fibres that feed various bacterial species. Without variety, our gut bacteria is basically stagnate.

Before you panic, 30 plants sounds like a lot, but you don't need to live on a diet of kale and radish.

"When I say plants, you get credit for fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, herbs, spices, beans, whole grains — all of them," Chutkan clarified on The Mel Robbins Podcast.

If 30 still seems daunting, senior lecturer of food science and nutrition at the Australian Catholic University, Dr Emma Beckett, told Mamamia there's no need to make it a hard and fast number. Instead, focus on diversity.

"It shows that it's not just about the amount, but diversity plays an important role in health too," she said.

Listen to Well, Mamamia's full body health check for the Australian woman. Post continues below.

Three pillars of gut health.

Chutkan spends her days helping people address their gastrointestinal issues, and her three-step rule of thumb is simpler than you'd think.

Imagine your gut is your body's plumbing. When it's not working, the pipes are clogged. To get things moving, you need three things.

Liquid.

"I tell people my rule of thumb, half your body weight in ounces of water as a minimum and that's just plain water," Chutkan said.

Fibre.

Ideally, 25g a day for women, but don't overthink it.

"It doesn't have to be like some enormous kale salad," Chutkan said. "It can literally be a carrot as you're walking out the door… throw an apple in your car, eat some nuts, something basic, ideally something unprocessed."

Beckett echoed this, saying plant foods are great for dietary fibre.

"There are lots of different fibres, lots of different bioactives and lots of different elements in the gut that need supporting, so variety helps you cover off multiple needs, without needing to stress about which one has which benefit," she said.

But a warning. Beckett stressed one key point: slow and steady wins the race when it comes to increasing your variety of plant foods.

"If you add them too hard and fast, you might get gas and bloating," she said.

And more of that is the last thing we all need.

Movement.

Because motion is lotion, baby! Unlike your biceps, your gut muscles aren't under your control — they rely on you moving your body to get them moving. If you're sitting in an office chair for eight hours, everything else slows down too.

"Physical activity helps move food through our guts, which helps keep us regular and means things we don't want to hang about in there (like carcinogens that increase cancer risk) don't stay in there too long," Beckett said.

Try a gentle walk to help digestion. Image: Pinterest/kaylarenee1214.

Enemies and allies.

Beyond water, plants and exercise, these are Beckett's easy changes we can all make for a happier gut:

• Eat and drink slowly

• Avoid or reduce carbonated drinks

• Limit salty/fatty/sugary discretionary foods

• Manage stress (not so simple!)

• Sleep is important for reducing stress — when we're rested, we make better food and health choices.

It's no surprise that ultra-processed foods aren't great for us, but it's not just about the sugar or calories. It's the added chemicals, such as preservatives, artificial sweeteners and additives, that disrupt gut bacteria.

There are other things to avoid.

"Drinking alcohol, smoking, recreational drugs, stress — all these will play havoc with gut health," Beckett said.

Fermentation, on the other hand, is your friend.

Before you go out and spend $80 on a fancy bottle of probiotics, Chutkan suggests looking at your plate first.

Think of probiotics as the good bacteria living in your gut, and prebiotics as their favourite snack.

For probiotic-rich foods, incorporate yoghurt, kefir, sauerkraut and kimchi into your diet.

To feed the good bacteria, load up on high-fibre prebiotics like asparagus, oats and leeks.

De-stress yourself.

The gut-brain connection is no joke. Have you ever felt nauseous before a big presentation or got "butterflies" before a date? That's your nervous system talking to your intestines.

A lot of what people think are 'gut symptoms' are psychological symptoms related to stress, according to Beckett.

"Stress is often overlooked in this conversation," she said.

"Stress isn't good for the gut, and often we mistake stress symptoms that manifest in the gut for actual gut problems, then we stress about the gut symptoms and how to avoid them and that becomes a vicious cycle.

"Plus, when we are stressed, we make poorer health and food decisions as part of surviving."

In these cases, the solution to gut health isn't always "choose better foods".

"It (goes back) to much bigger problems and changes, how do we redesign lives, society and supports to put people under less stress? That is probably more impactful," Beckett said.

"And I think we need to be kind to ourselves when we don't eat perfectly during times of high stress. That doesn't help!"

Why it feels like a 'women's problem'.

If you've noticed the women in your life seem to be battling stomach problems while the men are fine, there's a biological explanation for that.

"The female plumbing system is very different from the male plumbing system," Chutkan said.

And there are three main reasons.

Firstly, we actually have a longer digestive tract. On average, a woman's colon is 7–10cm longer than a man's. Evolution designed it this way to allow for more fluid absorption during pregnancy, but that extra length can cause problems.

"That extra length creates more looping and twisting and so things are more likely to get stuck, and that's one of the main reasons women tend to be so much more bloated and constipated," Chutkan told Robbins.

Women also have a deeper, wider pelvis where the colon has to compete for space with the uterus, ovaries and bladder.

And thirdly, men have higher testosterone, which results in a tighter abdominal wall. We have lower levels, meaning our abdominal wall is looser — so when we bloat, it's much more visible.

It's a hard life being a woman.

But now, armed with your new gut health toolkit, you'll hopefully no longer be a tummy-ache soldier in the trenches.

May 2026 be the year of healthy guts for us all.

Feature image: Supplied.