The Gut Microbiome and What It Means for Your Health
The gut microbiome has become a hot research topic in recent years due to our expanding knowledge of it’s health benefits from gut health to mental health and everything in between.
But what is the gut microbiome? The gut microbiome is an environment of TRILLIONS of bacteria that live in our intestines. We have about 37 trillion cells in the human body and about 39 trillion microbiomes or bacteria on average (https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2018.01835/full). So that means, we are more bacteria than cells!
The gut microbiome is made up of “good” bacteria that provide many, many health benefits. As well as “bad” bacteria that can have negative health impacts. For example, when you take antibiotics they wipe out most of the “good” bacteria which is why diarrhea is a common side effect of antibiotic use (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8756738/#:~:text=The%20gut%20microbiota%20plays%20a,activities%2C%20and%20thus%20overall%20health) .
So how do you make sure you have the right balance of bacteria? Diet can play a huge role in gut microbiome health. In fact, you can change the makeup of your gut microbiome in about three days with dietary changes.
Great news, right? Sure, but it also means you can throw off your gut microbiome with just a few days of bad eating.
What do you eat to ensure you have a healthy gut microbiome?
There are certain foods that contain the healthy bacteria or probiotics our gut needs:
Yogurt
Kombucha
Kefir
Kimchi
Sauerkraut
Pickles
Sourdough bread
Fermented cheeses (feta, swiss, gouda, edam, gruyere, cottage cheese, parmesan, provolone)
Beer
Tequila (bad news, if the tequila is mixed in a sugary margarita the sugar negates the health bacteria effects)
You also need to eat foods that feed your gut microbiome, these are called prebiotics. They can be found in fruits, vegetables and whole grains like whole wheat bread or pasta.
So what are the health benefits of a healthy microbiome?? That is a long list and we are still identifying new health benefits all the time with continuing research. Of course, a healthy gut microbiome is good for intestinal health but it also has the ability to impact health throughout the entire body.
A healthy gut microbiome may not only help lower your risk of becoming obese but it also can help boost weight loss. In fact, there is a significant difference in the gut microbiome of lean individuals compared to individuals with obesity.
Studies have investigated the use of fecal transplants for weight loss. Yes, you read that right. They take fecal matter from lean individuals and transplant it into individuals with obesity and we have seen an improvement in weight loss (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7693552/) . These fecal transplants are still being tested and debated so it will be awhile until it is a standard treatment.
A healthy gut microbiome can also lower your risk of developing type 2 diabetes. And if you have diabetes it can help improve your blood sugars (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7415231/) .
Lastly, we are just starting to understand the gut-brain axis. It appears that there is a connection between cognitive and emotional centers of the brain and the function of the intestines (https://www.health.harvard.edu/mind-and-mood/probiotics-may-help-boost-mood-and-cognitive-function) . In fact, an imbalance in your gut microbiome can contribute to conditions such as anxiety and depression. One study found that probiotic supplements may be just as effective in treating some forms of anxiety and depression as anti-anxiety medications.
We are just scratching the surface on our understanding of our gut bacteria but it is clear that it plays a major role in our overall health.
If you are looking to try a probiotic supplement, look for one that has a variety of strains of bacteria. I like this one because it is third party verified (that means its been tested to prove the company actually put in what they said they did) and it doesn’t have any allergens or preservatives: https://smartq.pureforyou.com/products/32040780693538/probiotic-123
