You’ve added more plants, swapped in wholegrains and perhaps started taking a probiotic too. Yet the bloating is still there, your digestion hasn’t changed much, or something that helped for a while no longer seems to.
In this guide
- Why more fibre can make bloating worse
- How a gut microbiome test can help you
- Why it's best to identify patterns before excluding foods
- When changes in routine affect digestion
- When persistent bloating needs investigating
- Why the gut–skin connection shaped Flora Daily Biotic
1. Why more fibre can make bloating worse
Most of us could probably eat more fibre, but increasing it quickly can make bloating worse for some people. The amount, the type of fibre and how quickly your intake changes all matter.
UK adults are advised to aim for around 30g a day, yet the latest national diet survey found average intakes were only around 16–17g, with just 4% meeting the recommendation.
That still doesn’t make “more fibre” the answer to every digestive problem. Adding lots of bran, seeds, pulses, vegetables and prebiotic foods at once can mean more fermentation, gas and bloating while your gut adjusts.
The type matters too. For people with IBS, insoluble fibre such as bran can aggravate symptoms, while soluble sources such as oats may be better tolerated.
Start with 1 tsp before gradually building up to 1 tbsp of fibre and drink plenty of water throughout the day.
2. How a gut microbiome test can help
A microbiome test can provide valuable insights into the balance and diversity of bacteria living in your digestive system, helping to build a clearer picture of your gut health. When working with a clinical nutritionist (book an appointment with our Co-founder and Registered Clinical Nutritionist, Sarah here), these insights can be considered alongside your symptoms, diet and health history to help guide personalised nutrition and lifestyle recommendations aimed at supporting digestion, nourishing beneficial bacteria and improving overall gut wellbeing.
3. Why it's best to identify patterns before excluding foods
Bread seems to make you bloated, so you stop eating it. Onions are next, then beans. Before long, an attempt to settle your stomach can turn into a surprisingly narrow diet.
Before cutting something out completely, look for a pattern. Does it happen every time, only with a larger portion, or when constipation or a particularly large meal is also involved? A simple note of meals, bowel habits and symptoms for a week or two can often tell you more than excluding the food from your diet completely.
Persistent symptoms after gluten-containing foods need a little more care. Coeliac testing should be done while gluten is still in the diet, as removing it beforehand can make the results less accurate.
4. When changes in routine affect digestion
What you eat may stay much the same while the routine around it changes.
For people with IBS, NICE advises having regular meals and avoiding long gaps between eating. A rushed breakfast, repeatedly missing lunch or eating much later than usual may therefore be relevant even when the foods themselves look familiar.
Sleep may be another part of the picture. Research published in 2026 looked at sleep and the gut microbiome in almost 7,000 adults. Sleep quality, chronotype and social jetlag, the shift in sleep timing between working days and free days, were associated with differences in the microbiome.
The research doesn’t show that an occasional late night damages your gut, or that sleep directly causes those microbiome differences. But travel, shift work, late weekends or a stressful period can change when you sleep and eat without changing what is in your kitchen.
When digestion changes around the same time, the food itself may not be the only place to look.
5. When persistent bloating needs investigating
Bloating is a symptom.
Bloating can happen with constipation, food intolerance, coeliac disease and IBS, and some people notice it around their period.
Constipation isn’t always as obvious as not going to the toilet for several days either; hard stools, straining or feeling that you haven’t completely emptied can also be signs.
After months of trying to “fix your microbiome”, it may be more useful to ask Why does this keep happening? rather than What else can I take?
Bloating that is frequent, doesn’t go away or continues despite dietary changes is worth discussing with your GP, particularly when it comes with other unexplained symptoms, rather than continuing to experiment with your diet.
6. Why the gut–skin connection shaped Flora Daily Biotic
The gut–skin connection shaped Flora Daily Biotic from the beginning.
Each delayed-release capsule provides 20 billion live cultures across 9 probiotic strains, alongside 10mg of zinc, 100% of the daily NRV. Zinc contributes to the maintenance of normal skin and the normal function of the immune system, and the formula contains no added sugars, preservatives, sweeteners or colours.
CFU count is only one part of the picture; strain choice, formulation and delivery matter too.
For us, “skin-first” means the relationship between the gut and skin informed Flora Daily Biotic from the beginning. It sits within the same wider way we have always thought about sensitive skin: looking beyond the surface as well as caring for it.
Continue exploring
For more from By Sarah, follow @bysarahlondon, where we share expert tips about skin, hormones and the things that can make a real difference day to day, alongside nutrition and gut-health insights from our Co-founder and Registered Clinical Nutritionist, Sarah.
And if this article has left you with a question, or there’s something you’d like us to explore next, we’d love to hear from you. You can always message us at care@bysarahlondon.com.
This Journal article is for general information and isn’t intended to diagnose or treat a health condition. If you have persistent or unexplained digestive symptoms, speak to your GP or an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
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