Why Your Gut Matters….
This blog could be the most important piece of information you read today. We take for granted the things we put into our bodies. We randomly pick up a slice of cake or a burger or biscuit. We may think we eat a wide range of fruit and veggies but are we really eating enough? The food we choose to eat and what we drink feed the TRILLIONS of bacteria in our GUTS which in turn sends messages to our brain that can effect things like our mood, symptoms of menopause and depression, how we sleep, how sharp our brains are…..even disease and life limited conditions….the list goes on. It’s not just a case of eating to be healthy - our lives and how we function really do depend on it. I can’t stress the importance of what you eat and how it effects how you feel. For many years I lived with bloating, tummy pain and much more. Not because I wasn’t eating terribly unheathy foods but because I didn’t understand that what I was eating wasn’t serving my body and was causing all sorts of issues seemingly unrelated to food. I juts thought that was the way things were for everyone!
The Mind / Gut connection and why it really matters!
There is not enough time or space to write about this important topic in detail, so today I will touch only the surface of this topic that scientists are still finding out about but who now know the real connection our gut and our brains have, and the effect they have on all functions of our bodies. What you eat can have a profound effect on so may things and in some cases can be life changing in the management of things such as anxiety and depression, diabetes, cancer, heart disease, Irritable Bowel Symptom (IBS), inflammation and even things like cancer and so much more. If there is one thing you change in your life then what you eat has to be one of them if you are to live a long and healthy and happy life. I find it incredibly frustrating that we don’t teach our children from a young age the importance of what they eat. Can you imaging the billions of pounds we would save in later life in medical costs in the UK? Daily we are bombarded with ads for fast foods, processed foods that are high in salt and sugar, even ‘low fat/diet’ options which are often not the best choice when it comes to gut health. Is it any wonder we are confused and quite frankly suffering because we are just not told or taught the truth about this important topic and how we should be nourishing our precious and amazing bodies. Did you know our bodies are made up of 90% microbes and 10% non-microbes? This means what we eat effects ALL the microbiome in our bodies which is pretty epic right?
Many people go through life accepting that they feel lethargic, have chronic bloating, tummy pain in the afternoons, disrupted sleep patterns (sounds familiar right?). I was one of them - I just thought that was the way it was - it’s just part of being a human right? Wrong. It doesn’t have to be that way and here’s why. There is an incredible thing that is your body and its totally geared up be a super amazing piece of engineering - the problem we have today is the human race has, through its smart development of technology, creating foods that nature never intended us to eat, to over farming produce where the nutritional value has become depleted because of intensive farming of crops and animals. We dish out antibiotics and medicines like there is no tomorrow and out bodies have had to adapt to this constant flow of alien substances that interfere with it’s natural and complex systems and to put it bluntly completely f*!k up how it’s meant to work which should be like a well oiled machine! Don’t get me wrong, we as a race have achieved some great things, but a what cost? And even if you haven’t taken antibiotics in years or ever, if you eat meat or consume dairy for example be sure you are consuming them….antibiotics are widely used in animal agriculture.
So how to get your gut back on track? Well its pretty simple really and it is the base for all my programmes. Eat a wide variety of wholefoods. Eat a rainbow everyday. Eat fermented foods. Avoid artificial sweeteners and added sugars. Eat a diversity of foods and include high fibre foods like cruciferous vegetables, fruit, wholegrains etc. Variety and wholefoods are the key. Keep the majority of your diet to these principles and you cant go far wrong*.
Top Tips to Improve Gut Health:
-Eat a diversity of plants. Studies shown that people who eat 30 different plants a week have the best gut health. (Ref: The American Gut Project ) And this isn’t as hard as you think. Every plant food, herb and spice counts.
-Add Polyphenols to your diet. Polyphenols feed friendly gut microbes, are anti inflammatory and are really really good for your gut. Include spices such as cinnamon, matcha, cacao, berries, vegetables, nuts and seeds including flax seeds.
-Alcohol and caffeine - cut down caffeine to two or three cups of tea or coffee a day and leave out the dairy and sugars. Cut down or cut out alcohol but if you like a glass of wine opt for a glass of organic red!
-Cut out or down processed foods and added sugars - check out the labels on food packets - sweet or savoury, most are laden with saturated fat, salt and sugar. If you have a sweet tooth go for more natural sugars like maple syrup but even better sweeten foods with whole fruits instead.
-Eat fermented foods like kimchi or saurkraut. Fermented foods are far more effective than expensive probiotic pills! So get fermenting (and use the brine too as long as the have no added sugars).
-Reduce high salt foods - basically anything that’s processed usually has a high salt content.
-Saturated fats - go for mono or polyunsaturated fats in nuts and seeds, avocados etc cut down saturated fats. Saturated fats mostly come from animals products and should be limited.
-Include beans and lentils into your diet. Soak overnight and rinse and change the water several times to stop gas! Cook well.
-Avoid unnecessary use of antibiotics. NEVER request antibiotics for a cough or a cold…there not only do no good they really mess with your gut microbiome.
-Avoid stress as much as possible and aim for at least 7-8 hours of sleep each night. Stop eating at least two hours before bed if possible so your body has time to work its magic overnight before the following day. I aim for around a 12 hour window between my last meal and first meal of the day, but whatever works for you. If it’s less then just make sure that window before bed stays clear and you will sleep better and give your body optimal chance to re-boot overnight.
