What's the Gut Got to Do With It?

Did you know that your gut is your second brain? Some researchers even think that your gut is more important than your brain.

Fact: 70% of your immune system is housed in your gut. There’s more serotonin in your gut than your brain. If your gut bacteria is out of balance, the rest of your body will also be out of balance and you may find yourself getting sick more often.

All disease begins in the gut. Making gut health your top priority will reward you with great health. It'll also make it easier for your body to fight against any foreign invaders. 

What gets your gut out of whack?

The #1 suspects are poor food choices. Especially highly processed foods, fried foods, and sugar. They feed the bad bacteria and drown out the good bacteria living in your gut microbiome. Red meat, farmed fish, dairy and eggs are also not ideal for gut health. 

You may find your mood is affected if you’re ingesting a lot of processed sugars. If you're getting moody highs and lows look at your diet. It's a vicious circle because sugar has a huge impact on your gut health but you keep craving it!

Have you ever noticed that when you’re stressed out that things don’t feel right in your gut? Stress can totally throw off digestion and elimination.

Antibiotics also destroy the good bacteria in your gut and compromise your immune system. That’s why it’s so important to focus on restoring the good bacteria in your gut after a round of antibiotics.

Chemicals and GMO-heavy foods have a profoundly negative impact your gut microbiome. Eating foods that have alot of additives or preservatives can overwhelm your body because it isn’t able to digest chemicals the same way it can digest macro- and micronutrients. Over time chemical toxins can build up in your body, being stored in cells and tissues.

Did you know that there are now close to 10 000 different chemicals in our food supply? Yikes! Many of the chemicals in our food supply are either cancer causing, endocrine disruptors or neurotoxins or some combination of the three. There's also no research study that has looked at what happens in the human body when all of this various chemicals blend together inside your body.

One particular chemical herbicide has been getting a ton of press is glyphosate. It’s a water-soluble toxin that’s used in farming. And because it’s water soluble it’s in the ground water, the air, and in food. The worst is that it can’t be washed off of produce. It’s linked to cancer, the rise in autoimmune conditions, as well as leaky gut syndrome.

Many people think that if they take a probiotic that it’s enough to heal their gut. Truth: The majority of these products don’t work because they don’t have the same strains of bacteria that are in your gut. Each person has a unique gut microbiome determined partially by their mother’s gut microbiome and by their diet and lifestyle. There are anywhere from 300-500 different strains of bacteria in your gut.

What's the fix?

The best way back to optimal gut health is to follow these steps:

Eliminate processed foods, added sugars, alcohol, fried foods, red meat, GMO foods, and eggs. Sadly most of the Western diet is full of these foods. They are highly normalized. However they're not supporting your gut health. No wonder we have a health crisis on our hands! You'll be doing yourself and your gut a favour by getting rid of these foods.

Bring a variety of plant foods into your diet to feed the friendly microbes in your gut. Ideally you want to have at least 30 different types of plant foods in any given week. A variety of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, lentils, beans, and rice. The more variety you have the healthier your gut will be! You'll literally be feeding and supporting the health of different microorganisms in your gut. They in turn will reward you with health. 

Manage stress levels with yoga, meditation and daily mindfulness. Download my free ebook for tips! Stress profoundly changes your gut. All the more reason to make reducing stress a part of your daily routine. 

For gut support you only need one supplement. I have been using, and highly recommend, Biome Medic. It's proven to help support good bacteria in your gut, functioning as a pre and probiotic. More importantly it pulls toxins out of your body (the only independently tested product to do so), repairs your gut lining and reduces the immune response in your body. To learn more about Biome Medic click here.

The healthier your gut is, the healthier the rest of your body will be! If you have any specific issues related to your gut health, please feel free to contact me directly.

Photo by Dan Gold