ARE GUT HEALTH SUPPLEMENTS WORTH IT?

Gut health has become extremely popular recently and for good reason with research suggesting it is related to many things from immunity, how we store fat, regulating glucose levels, controlling appetite, digestion, mental health, hormone and neurotransmitter production and determining our disease risk. Is there a magic pill we can take to improve our gut health? Read on to find out more about gut health supplements, good gut health and what you can do to maintain it.

What is good gut health?

When it comes to determining what good gut health actually is, we’re talking about having a an abundant and diverse range of beneficial bacteria and other microorganisms in the gut. We know that the healthiest tummies are ones that have both richness and diversity of the good kind of bacteria (microbes) living in them. Whilst testing is available to see what bacteria you have present, it is both inconclusive and expensive at this point in time (no doubt with further research in years to come these tests can give more accurate results). So without testing, the best way to know if you have a healthy gut is if you are free from the symptoms most often associated with poor gut health (for example irregular bowel movements, stomach pains, gas, reflux, poor immunity, poor mental health, skin problems etc).

So consider that every time you eat, you’re not just fueling your body with energy and nutrients but also feeding the microbes living inside your gut. I’ve written a lot about this topic, and you can read my article on how long it takes to improve gut health here.

How to improve gut health? 

Slow and steady is key here, because our digestive tracts are actually quite sensitive. Whilst you can change your gut composition within hours to days through lifestyle factors such as food, exercise, sleep, stress management etc for permanent positive changes, you need to maintain the lifestyle changes for a minimum of 6 months but really, forever. So when it comes to improving gut health, we’re not talking about quick fixes here. The number one best thing you can do to improve gut health is of course start by looking at your diet. At Body Good Food, we’re always talking about having diets full of plant-based whole foods and that’s because eating a wide variety of these types of foods will help to ensure a diverse range of microbes in your gut. Avoiding highly processed and refined foods is also important as that can reduce diversity and richness of the beneficial bacteria in your gut. Further down our article here, you can read our top 5 tips for improving your gut health through diet. 

Lifestyle factors to improve digestive health

Diet is obviously the big one here, but if you’re wondering what else you can do to boost your gut, here are some important ones: 

• Sleep

• Regular exercise

• Reducing stress

What do probiotics do?

When it comes to gut health, the conversation naturally involves talking about probiotics too (which essentially are a source of the beneficial bacteria we’ve been talking about). You’ve likely heard about probiotics and the added benefits of consuming them, (read more about them here). If you’re wondering though what probiotics actually do, they create a healthy environment and allow more microbes to grow in your gut, leading to an overall healthier and more diverse bacteria balance. Probiotics can come from food sources like yoghurt, kefir and sauerkraut (referred to as fermented foods) or they can also come from probiotic supplements.

Best supplements for gut health:

Whilst there is a range of supplements available on the market, you must make sure the food you are eating will also help to support your microbiome to ensure those supplements can work their magic most efficiently. From probiotics, to prebiotics, collagen, glutamine, aloe vera and digestive enzyme there is a lot of options available but little scientific evidence to back up these claims (hello collagen! Great for skin yes, but for gut health the science is lacking). Probiotic supplements however are worth the investment, along with other therapeutic grade supplements recommended to you individually by your health practitioner. You will be wasting your money on supplements though if the foundations of your diet are not wholefood based and focused on foods that naturally help to populate your microbiome! 

Best foods for gut health:

To take control of your gut health, the first thing you can do is to improve your diet. Here's my top 5 tips for how to ensure your food choices are gut friendly.

1. Plant foods:

There is a common denominator in the diets of the healthiest, longest living communities in the world this is an abundance of plant foods. They are incredibly beneficial for out gut flora due to their fibre, polyphenols and antioxidant content. Fibre, in particular, moves through the digestive system where it is fermented by the good bacteria in our intestine and this helps to populate more good bacteria. With 2 out of 3 Australian adults and 1 out of 2 Australian children not eating enough fibre, this is a must if you want your healthy gut bugs to thrive and survive.   

2. Fatty foods:

The fat profile of foods can lead it to have pro or anti inflammatory effects and its the omega-3 fatty acids and monounsaturated fats that we want to seek out, not only for their anti-inflammatory properties but also because these healthy fats can promote healthier gut bacteria. We're talking fish, eggs, walnuts, flaxseeds, chia seeds, sea vegetables, organic meats, extra virgin olive oil, avocado and nuts. 

3. Prebiotics:

Probiotics are strains of healthy bacteria that live in your gut and prebiotics (known as a type of fibre) is what these probiotics feed on. They ferment the prebiotics which stimulates the growth of more good bacteria. Prebiotics includes: onion, garlic, leek, asparagus, artichoke, tempeh, miso, banana, chicory root, dandelion greens, oats, barley and flaxseeds.   

4. Resistant starch:

Another form of fibre, resistance starch passes undigested through the small intestine into the large intestine where it is fermented by the bacteria and the gas produced is helpful for the integrity of the lining of our gut. Resistance starch includes: legumes, green bananas, cooked and cooled potatoes, al dente (or slightly undercooked) pasta.   

5. Fermented products: 

Fermented foods actually contain healthy bacteria that is produced from the fermentation process which can improve your ever changing microbiome balance. Fermented foods include kim chi, saurkraut, kombucha, miso, tempeh, tamari as well as the many other combinations of fermented veggies available in the refrigerators at health food stores today.  

You can read more about fermented foods in my article here.

If you’d like to read more about gut health, take a look at my article on gut loving here, how to improve sluggish bowels, and how long it takes to improve gut health. If this is information overload and you’re completely confused about what to eat, don’t stress (it’s bad for gut health!) and read this instead.