Gut Health leads to Overall Health

I would venture to argue that most people when they think of their “gut” they only imagine a place where food is digested…and maybe where fart jokes originate. I’m not sure, in our house living with a 3 and 5 year old if you just whisper the word fart, it starts the giggles. I mean I get it, a well-timed fart joke is priceless.

 But I digress…

 Your “gut” is a remarkable area that does many amazing cool things. A few crazy things to grab your attention. Our gut biome is made up of all of the microorganisms, bacteria, viruses, protozoa and fungi and all of their collective genetic material that is present in our gastrointestinal tract. Our gut biomes are like fingerprints. Everyone’s is different.

Gut feelings are a real thing. The neurotransmitter Serotonin which is a happy feeling NT is made in the small intestine and is also found in the brain. So, your gut and brain talk to each other about a number of things. Your gut is a major player in hormone production as well. When that is on point, then everything else will follow suit. One of the main things for people who struggle with depression or any sort of mental disorder is to help get their diet and gut health in check because it can make a huge difference in how we feel.

 Did you know that over 70% of your immune system lives in your gut? That is incredible. If you take care of your nutrition and make sure you are keeping that gut garden growing and happy with good bacteria it will in turn take care of you and keep you healthier. In our current situation in life this could not be more significant.

 People in hospitals who are exposed to prolonged antibiotic use can literally destroy all of the good and bad bacteria in their stomach and GI tract. This can cause a number of uncomfortable GI issues.  There is even a thing called a fecal transplant where they take poop from one person and put it in another to help re-populate some good bacteria growth in really sick individuals. I guess that’s one step above borrowing your buddies car.

 So, how do we increase our gut health and promote good bacteria growth?

I’m so happy you asked…

 There are about 100 trillion good and bad bacteria that live in your gut. Our internal body bacteria alone consists of over 50 different genera and 500 species…that’s a big house party. And there are over 4 pounds of biomass alone in our gut. All of these bacteria good and bad influence our health, moods, metabolism, digestion and body composition. Probiotics can also help alleviate abdominal pain, farts and toots, bloating, nausea, allergies, ease food poisoning and can help with Irritable Bowel Syndrome and Irritable Bowel Disorder. We need to make sure that we are providing our bodies with good bacteria to help off-set the bad guys.

 There are a few things that tend to throw off the good bacteria in the belly. Certain medicines, antibiotics, stress, poor diet(processed sugars, alcohol, processed foods) and also the dreaded processed lunch meats. That means no more Oscar Meyer fried bologna hats. FML!!!

 So, now that we know a little about probiotics…how are they made?

Probiotics are made of bacteria and yeast through a process called fermentation. The most common probiotic types are lactobacillus and bifidobacterium. The fermentation process produces alcohol, lactic acid and acetic acid. These help to prevent spoilage and the lactic acid is what gives yogurt and other probiotic foods that sour taste.

 Probiotics are found mostly in certain types of yogurt(more on this in a bit), buttermilk, kefir and sauerkraut.

If you are not getting a lot of these foods in your diet, it might be smart to supplement some probiotics. I take a probiotic supplement everyday in conjunction with my daily mulitvitaims. I choose 1st Phorm Supplements , use the hyperlinks to check out the information.

The cover models Joseph and Zack also get a probiotic daily. I started this not long ago when the boys had some GI issues and diarrhea. I did some research and found the best probiotic supplement for kids was Culturelle probiotics. Since then their poops have been more regular and they have been overall healthier.

When supplementing probiotics you should aim for 3-5 billion CFU (colony forming units) as a starting dose and then slowly increase to 10 billion CFU depending on how you feel. Beware that when you increase probiotic intake you might feel worse for the first few days before your body acclimates. This is due to the fact that bacteria releases toxins and once the good bacteria outnumber the bad you’ll be feeling aces and pooping like a champ!!

 Now we can’t touch on probiotics without talking about prebiotics. Prebiotics are what those good bacteria eat for food. Think of prebiotics as miracle grow for the probiotics. Prebiotics are complex carbohydrates that contain fiber which our bodies don’t digest, but probiotics eat them up…literally. Some great food sources of prebiotics are bananas, berries, whole grains, barely, oats, quinoa, flax and honey. Try to get 1-2 prebiotic foods each day to keep your good bacteria healthy and full!!

 Here is a little extra credit for you that might help you add quality probiotics to your diet. As well all know marketing is pretty slick and tricks us into buying products that we think are healthy. They are counting on us to look at the fancy packaging without reading the label. Most people think all yogurt sold at the store is good for you, quite the contrary. The majority of it is just loaded with sugar.

 All commercial yogurt starts by adding two types of bacteria to milk, Lactobacillus Bulgaricus and Streptococcus thermophilus. This mixture is warmed for hours during which the bacteria convert the milk sugar(lactose) to lactic acid which curdles the milk and gives it that distinct  tangy flavor.

To give this yogurt a longer shelf life, manufactures often heat treat yogurt after fermentation. This kills off the very valuable live active yogurt cultures. The same ones you think you are getting the benefit of. The FDA requires that these products be labeled “heat treated after culturing.” When you’re cruising the yogurt labels look for “active yogurt cultures, living yogurt cultures, or contains active cultures.”

My favorite brand is vanilla Oikos Triple 0. It has great flavor, low sugar, fiber and those live active cultures!

Here’s to your poop, toots, immunity, digestion and mental health. Ok, maybe not in that order.