3 Foods That Are Secretly Causing Your Digestive Issues

You're eating healthy—lots of vegetables, whole grains, "clean" foods—but you're still bloated after every meal, dealing with constipation or diarrhea, and your stomach hurts regularly. You've tried probiotics. You've cut out gluten and dairy. Nothing seems to help consistently.

The problem might not be what you think. These three "healthy" foods cause gut issues for a lot of professional women, especially when stress and shifting hormones are already compromising your digestion.

Raw cruciferous vegetables

Broccoli, cauliflower, kale, Brussels sprouts, raw cabbage—they're packed with nutrients, but they're also incredibly hard to digest when your gut is already struggling. These vegetables contain complex fibers and sulfur compounds that require strong stomach acid and good gut bacteria to break down properly.

If you have low stomach acid (which is extremely common with chronic stress and as you get older), these raw vegetables just sit in your gut and ferment. That's what causes the intense bloating, gas, and discomfort.

Here's what to try instead: lightly steam or roast your cruciferous vegetables. Cooking breaks down those tough fibers and makes the nutrients much more bioavailable. You'll still get all the health benefits without the digestive distress.

High-FODMAP "superfoods"

Garlic, onions, apples, beans, cashews, asparagus—all technically healthy foods, but they're high in FODMAPs (fermentable carbs that feed gut bacteria). If your gut microbiome is imbalanced, or if you have SIBO (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth), these foods ferment in your digestive tract and cause extreme bloating, gas, cramping, and unpredictable bathroom issues.

The confusing part is that you might tolerate these foods fine one day and react terribly the next, depending on what else is going on with your stress levels and digestion.

Try this instead: while your gut is healing, choose low-FODMAP alternatives. Zucchini instead of onions. Carrots instead of asparagus. Blueberries instead of apples. Almonds instead of cashews. You don't have to avoid FODMAPs forever—just while you're addressing the underlying gut imbalances.

Dairy products (even if you're not lactose intolerant)

A lot of women develop dairy sensitivity in their 40s as hormones shift, even if they've never had issues before. And it's not always lactose that's the problem—it's often casein, the protein in milk, that triggers inflammation and digestive issues.

Greek yogurt, cheese, whey protein shakes, even small amounts of milk in your coffee—they can all cause bloating, gas, constipation, and gut inflammation if your body is reacting to casein.

Try this: eliminate all dairy for 2-3 weeks and see if your symptoms improve. If dairy isn't your problem, you'll know quickly because nothing will change. But if it is the culprit, you'll feel dramatically better—less bloating, more regular bowel movements, less overall gut discomfort.

The real issue underneath

Here's what's important to understand: when your nervous system is chronically stressed and your gut lining is inflamed (which happens with prolonged stress and cortisol elevation), you become reactive to foods you used to handle just fine.

It's not that these foods are inherently bad. It's that your gut has lost the ability to process them properly. Once you calm your nervous system, reduce inflammation, and heal your gut lining, you'll likely be able to tolerate many of these foods again.

But in the meantime, removing the foods that are causing reactions gives your gut a chance to heal instead of staying in a constant state of inflammation and irritation.