Gut Health, Your Health, and Bacteria
What does one have to do with the other?
Everything.
In fact, it is difficult to be truly healthy if you have poor gut health. Poor gut health can manifest itself in many ways. Skin issues, stubborn weight loss, mood (depression, anxiety), energy, constipation, IBS, immune issues, sleep disturbances, and autoimmune conditions. Just for the record, I experienced almost every one of these symptoms before I changed my eating habits.
Let’s dive in!
We have more bacteria in our bodies than cells, which estimates to be over a trillion. In fact, we are more bacteria than cells, says Dr Ruairi Robertson, PhD.
Most of these bacteria are necessary. The healthier we eat, the more good bacteria increases.
But on the opposite side, the more sugar, white flour and processed foods we eat, the more bad bacteria can multiply and cause many of the health issues in our bodies that I noted above.
How many of these gut facts do YOU know?
What can we do to help the healthy bacteria grow and tamp down the unhealthy?
Eat a variety of foods! The greater diversity in our gut, the better our health becomes. This includes:
Fibrous foods such as: beans, legumes, and nuts
Fruit and leafy greens, such as broccoli. Vegetables, in general, are wonderful
Whole grains (many people skip over this one, but eating whole grains is excellent for both gut health and weight loss). This can include wild rice, quinoa, barley, and oats
Polyphenols such as green tea, dark chocolate, olive oil, and red wine
Fermented foods like sauerkraut, Greek yogurt, Kefir, and Kombucha
Chia, ground flax and hemp seeds
The bottom line is not to focus on one particular food, but to infuse a wide variety of foods in your daily diet whenever possible. Don’t forget seeds such as hemp, chia and ground flax along with whole grains. It is the diversity in our foods overall that will allow our guts to heal and give us the healthy microbiome that can equal the best of health, including weight wellness.
Instead of taking an over the counter probiotic, which can sometimes inadvertently decrease the microbiome new research is showing, eat foods that keep the good bacteria multiplying. Below is a recipe for one of my favorite gut health power bowls. Top it off with a cup of green tea and voila!
My Favorite Gut Health Power Bowl
Do this on a regular basis, while cutting back on sugars and refined carbohydrates, and you can look forward to having improved the gut health, which can make all the difference in the world. with your overall health.
If you wonder how all of this can be accomplished while still continuing to live your life, then I invite you to a complimentary one-on-one session to get you on the right track.