Home/Blog/15 Gut Support Drinks

15 Gut Support Drinks

By Ethan Boldt

March 9, 2025

With the spawning of probiotic sodas and gut-supporting wellness drinks, you’d think that the gut was trending as a health interest. While that’s true, gut health has long been prized by most civilizations for centuries, and it was widely accepted that gut support drinks, from tonics to teas, played a key role in that health. 

Even the ancient Greek physician Hippocrates understood that a healthy gut is fundamental for overall health and well-being, including for healthy digestion, metabolism and the immune system.

So, these days, which gut support drinks are worth our time and money? Let’s examine the ingredients that certain gut support drinks contain, the general benefits of these drinks, and then the actual drinks themselves. 

Of course, you should always consult your healthcare professional prior to beginning any new dietary or lifestyle regimen, including certain foods, beverages and/or dietary supplements. 

Gut support drink ingredients

What ingredients are best suited for gut support drinks and show actual gut health benefits? 

• Probiotics: Fermented or cultured probiotic drinks like kombucha and kefir (and many others below) introduce a diverse amount of healthy bacteria into your gut. They can help improve the ratio of “good guy” bacteria to the “bad guy” microbes living in your gastrointestinal tract.

• Juicing vegetables: Certain veggies like leafy greens, beets and celery are full of antioxidants, fiber and other nutrients that can help fight against free radicals and support digestive health.

• Fruits: Some fruits are particularly high in polyphenols, which are beneficial plant compounds that help increase the number of healthy gut bacteria. Candidates included cooked pears and apples, berries, citrus fruits and pomegranates.

• Bone broth: Made up of amino acids — including proline, arginine and glycine — that help to support a healthy gut lining and generally support healthy connective tissues throughout the body. 

• Super greens: Most green superfood powders contain a variety of dried greens, in addition to dried algae, berries and herbs. They're often brimming with nutrients, including phytochemicals and antioxidants, that can help the gut. They help support healthy digestive function and can reduce occasional constipation and bloating. 

• Fiber: Whether from vegetables, fruits or a supplement, fiber is important for gut health, and it promotes digestive health and regular bowel movements, plus reduce occasional constipation.

• Herbal tea: Certain teas are a great digestive aid for soothing the stomach. 

Meanwhile, the types of ingredients you do not want in your gut support drinks are anything sugar related. Sugar can ramp up inflammation, disturb the gut lining and even interfere with gut bacterial balance. 

Benefits of gut support drinks

Depending on the type of gut support drink you choose, many benefits may be enjoyed. Probiotic drinks tend to feature the most gut-related benefits.

Here are some of the potential benefits of gut support drinks: 

• Provide beneficial microbes that populate the digestive tract.

• Help to reduce occasional constipation, gas and bloating. 

• Help to maintain the integrity of the gut lining, and the gut is a crucial part of the immune system.

• Support a healthy immune system response.

• Help healthy microbes in the gut to reproduce, flourish and thrive.

• Promotes a healthy gut barrier. 

• Support a healthy microbial balance.

• Promote the health of the colon and surrounding digestive areas.

• Assist with nutrient absorption, such as having a probiotic drink with a nutrient-dense meal. 

• Support the so-called “gut-brain connection,” which can help digestion, metabolism, healthy immune system function, stress response, one’s mindset and even cognitive function.

• Encourage healthy weight management (in addition to a healthy diet and lifestyle, including regular exercise) by creating satiety and reducing calorie absorption.

• Support heart health by supporting healthy cholesterol, blood sugar and blood pressure levels.

To experience such benefits, it helps to be consistent with drinking these gut support beverages regularly. After a few weeks or even earlier, you may experience some positive results. 

Best gut support drinks

1. Kefir

Similar to yogurt, kefir is a fermented dairy product. This combination of milk and fermented kefir grains is considered one of the most concentrated food sources of healthy bacteria. It’s typically higher in probiotics and lower in lactose than milk, which could make it a better choice for those who are sensitive to lactose. However, you should always consult your healthcare professional if you have any allergies, are lactose intolerant or have a sensitivity to lactose.

There are also cultured coconut drinks called coconut kefir that combine coconut water and kefir grains. 

How to enjoy: Drink by itself, as it’s like a drinkable yogurt. You can also add to smoothies, overnight oats, even pancakes. 

2. Drinkable A2/A2 milk yogurt

Containing live and active yogurt cultures and with A2/A2 milk yogurt that is often easier on the gut for some people, this is a popular probiotic-rich drink in many parts of the world.

How to enjoy: Drink by itself or add to a smoothie. You can also have with cereal, like a thick milk. 

3. Bovine colostrum

One of the original superfoods, bovine colostrum is loaded with nutrition and antibodies, like the first milk created by mammals after childbirth. Designed for gut and immune system health support, this “liquid gold” is thicker, yellowish and more nutrient-filled than regular milk.

How to enjoy: Bovine colostrum typically delivers a mild, creamy taste with a subtle sweetness and a hint of milky richness. That’s certainly the case with Ancient Nutrition’s unflavored Colostrum powder or its lemon bar flavor. Add one scoop of the powder to 8 ounces of cold water. Stir with a spoon or use a frother and consume.

4. Bone broth

Bone broth is a beneficial stock made from slowly simmered animal parts, including chicken, beef and fish bones and connective tissues. It's brimming with amino acids (the “building blocks of proteins”), collagen and other hard-to-get compounds like glutamine that may help promote a healthy gut lining and support beneficial bacteria growth. 

How to enjoy: You can make your own bone broth or use something even more convenient (and with more protein) like Ancient Nutrition’s Bone Broth Protein. Flavors include pure, vanilla, chocolate, turmeric and salted caramel. You can also try one of Ancient Nutrition's sipping broths which come in three flavors: chicken soup, tomato basil and butternut squash. Simply add one scoop of Bone Broth Protein to a cup of hot water and either stir or blend to combine. That can include an easy hot chocolate by mixing Bone Broth Protein Chocolate with a warm cup of milk or plant-based milk. 

5. Miso

This Japanese specialty is a great source of probiotics and works as a digestive health promoter. Miso consists of fermented soybeans (or sometimes rice) combined with the type of fungus called koji, which together create a nutrient-filled paste. 

How to enjoy: Dissolve a tablespoon of miso in a cup of hot water. Stir until dissolved. .

6. Kombucha

A fermented tea that has a sour, often fruity flavor, kombucha is naturally bubbly and is a great option for a celebratory drink. 

How to enjoy: While you can make your own, most people buy kombucha at the store. Choose a brand with less sugar. 

7. Kvass

This fermented grain-based juice is a traditional Slavic and Baltic beer-like beverage. It features a sour taste and is usually made from fermented rye, wheat or barley bread. It can also be made from beets, fermented fruits and even carrots. 

How to enjoy: Learn how to make or you can also buy in some grocery stores.

8. Wellness shot

Some gut support drinks combine multiple gut friendly ingredients. While you can buy such a wellness drink, it's also fun to make wellness shots at home. 

Try this recipe: 

• 1 cup pineapple, juiced

• 2-inch piece fresh ginger, juiced

• 1 lemon, juiced

• ¼ cup coconut water

• 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

• ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder

• ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

Here are the directions: 

• Place the first few ingredients — that say "juiced" next to them — into a juicer. Juice them together and pour into a small mixing bowl.

• (Don't have a juicer? Then use a power blender and pour into a fine mesh strainer and press out the juice into a mixing bowl.)

• In the mixing bowl, add the coconut water, apple cider vinegar and the spices.

• Mix well with a wooden spoon.

• Pour into a small glass to consume now or in a small bottle to consume later.

• When stored in the refrigerator in a closed container, wellness shots can last for up to 4–5 days.

9. A drink featuring apple cider vinegar

You’re now seeing apple cider vinegar drinks in the store because it’s such a popular ingredient. 

Organic apple cider vinegar is typically unfiltered, meaning bacteria and yeasts used to ferment the apples into vinegar remain intact (these are known as "the mother").

How to enjoy: Add a tablespoon to a glass of water along with a lemon and some raw honey for a really easy, refreshing gut support beverage. You can also choose sparking water if you want some bubbles. 

10. Prebiotic smoothie

Prebiotic foods like under-ripe bananas, apples with skin and uncooked greens like baby kale are high in fiber and contain certain types of carbohydrates that the body cannot fully digest. These fibers help healthy microbes in the gut to reproduce, flourish and thrive. 

How to enjoy: Use select prebiotic ingredients in a smoothie along with water or plant-based milk and ice. You can also follow the recipe for this gut-support green smoothie. 

12. High-fiber smoothie

For the best high-fiber smoothie, you want fiber-rich yet tasty ingredients that go together well, such as banana, pineapple, avocado, spinach and chia seeds. 

How to enjoy: See this recipe for a high-fiber smoothie, which boasts 15 grams of fiber per serving. It uses Plant Protein Vanilla, which adds a little more fiber plus invaluable protein in the form of super seeds.

13. Ginger tea

Ginger tea contains valuable compounds like gingerol that helps soothe the stomach and assists digestive function. 

How to enjoy: Aim to use ginger root rather than ginger powder or a ginger tea bag. Simply add a clean two-inch knob of fresh ginger to two cups of boiling water. Let it simmer for 10 to 20 minutes. To enhance its flavor and impact, you can add a slice of lemon. 

14. Peppermint tea

Peppermint tea can also help soothe the gut, including helping to relax the muscles. It may even improve the flow of bile and help with digestive function.

How to enjoy: While you can use peppermint tea bags or loose leaves, fresh mint leaves make the most potent peppermint tea. Boil a cup or more of water and pour into a big mug with chopped mint. Steep for 5 minutes. Strain and drink. 

15. Tepache

Less sweet than kombucha (and without any caffeine), this traditional Mexican fermented beverage is made from pineapple peels, sugar and spices. It includes probiotics and vitamins, and it can support digestive health and a healthy immune system.

How to enjoy: While you can make your own, most people purchase and enjoy chilled as a refreshing beverage. It contains a small amount of alcohol.