Gut health is becoming more and more understood these days, after what was recommended lead to a huge population of the public suffering with eating disorders and health conditions such as IBS and diabetes. Good news, prevention is better than cure! As the hunger for good gut health is becoming stronger, we've started to question more and understand how our bodies work, and also, how they can thrive.
If you notice signs of poor gut health, we’ll dive deep into how to improve your gut microbiome and benefit your overall health and vitality.
The term “gut microbiome” refers to the microorganisms living in your intestines. Each person has about 200 different species of bacteria, viruses, and fungi in their digestive tract.
Some microorganisms are harmful to our health, but many are incredibly beneficial and even necessary for a healthy body.
Research indicates that having a large variety of bacteria in the gut may help reduce the risk of conditions like diabetes, inflammatory bowel disease, and psoriatic arthritis.
The 7 signs of an unhealthy gut
Many parts of modern life can affect your gut microbiome, including:
- High stress levels
- Lack of sleep
- Eating a diet with processed foods and high sugar foods
- Taking antibiotics and medicines
This in turn may affect other aspects of your health, such as:
- Immune function
- Hormone levels
- Weight
- Development of diseases
As you can see our gut health is important and something not to be overlooked. Especially if we have any unpleasant toilet visits, stomach sensations or pain frequently. How to improve gut bacteria through nutrition some foods that support the good bacteria in your gut are:
- Fermented vegetables - Sauerkraut, pickled vegetables (carrots, pickles, onions), Kimchi are all fermented and can support the breakdown of foods to help support the stress on the gut microbiome
- Apple cider vinegar - Before or after eating, the acid in the vinegar is known to help gut bacteria as well.
- Removing intolerance foods - Gluten, seeds, grains can all be linked to intolerances and this can lead to things like leaky gut and bloating.
- Collagen boosting foods - Bone Broths, bone marrow and even salmon skin contain collagen which is proven to reduce inflammation of the body, thus supporting our gut health and function. It's easy to continue even when something doesn’t feel right, in the hope that it improves itself or goes away. We may already understand it’s an intolerance but lack the intention to remove that problem food. The impact this has however is profound and the difference we can make to our overall health is well worth the short term sacrifice.
So ditch the processed foods, and switch them out for the incredible god given fruits of the earth. Aim for adequate sleep and find new ways to remove stress. Try out some meditation, book a series of sessions in our MINDBODY room such as yoga or pilates and even give some breath work a try!