Gut Instinct: What is your Gut telling you?

SCIENCE, HEALTH

Week 1: Gut Instinct - What is your Gut telling you?

November 16, 2021
4 min read

~Do you ever have brain fog or feel chronically fatigued?

~How about bloating after eating?

~Full of gas or cramps?

~As if you’re overly full and distended, even if you just ate a small salad?

~Do you suffer from constipation, diarrhea, or both?

~How about feeling generally down and low energy?

I have struggled with some of this too. It sucked and had me reaching for my high-waisted jeans to hide the fact that I looked like I was eight months pregnant after eating!

So, why do we bloat, and how do we help reduce the bloat?

**Bloating can be due to many different factors; I suggest talking to your doctor or a Functional Medical Practitioner if this causes you a lot of issues.**

It’s that GUT feeling…

One BIG reason why we suffer from the dreaded bloat, along with all the other symptoms, is our gut microbiome.

Did you know that your body is made up of more bacteria than human cells?

We are made of roughly 40 trillion bacteria cells and only 30 trillion human cells… how crazy is that?! Yet, we have evolved to live in harmony with these bacteria cells, along with viruses, fungi, and other microscopic organisms. These ‘microbes’ make up a ‘microbiome’ that exists primarily in our gut and on our skin.

Here’s another fun fact: The microbes in our gut collectively weigh about the same as our brain, and they function as an extra organ in the body that impacts our health. Thousands of varieties of bacteria exist in our microbiome. Many are incredibly beneficial to our health, but some are not. So having a healthy, balanced mix of the ‘good’ and ‘bad’ bacteria is key to having good health in general.

If we have too much ‘bad’ bacteria in our gut, we can feel bloated because they produce a lot of gas and other chemicals.

Some signs your Gut Microbiome might be out of a healthy balance:

Upset Stomach: Regular bloating, gas, constipation, diarrhea, or heartburn could mean that your bacteria balance is out of whack.
A High Sugar Diet: Sugar feeds the bad bacteria in your gut and makes them stronger. Therefore, they want more sugar as they get stronger, so you begin to crave even more sugar. This cycle is intense and has been likened to a heroin addiction!!
Sleep Disturbances/Constant Fatigue: Serotonin is a hormone that affects our mood and sleep/wake cycle. Most of your serotonin is produced in your gut. If your gut is imbalanced, then serotonin production can be impaired. This can affect our sleep and make us cranky.
Skin Irritations: Inflammation and a poor diet can cause the thin lining of our gut to become irritated and damaged. This causes gaps to appear in the lining, and the gut becomes ‘leaky.’ Larger molecules can then leak into the body from the gut. Specific proteins entering the body in this way can cause skin irritations, eczema, or psoriasis.
Food Intolerances (NOT the same as food sensitivities or allergies): This occurs when there aren’t enough good bacteria to break down and digest the food we eat effectively. We become intolerant to these foods because we can’t properly digest them. This can cause bloating, gas, diarrhea, nausea, and abdominal pain.

It sounds like a pretty sh*t situation (yes, pun intended)!

So, what can we do to improve our Gut Health?

Over the next month, I will introduce four different ways to help improve your Gut Health. They are designed to be habits—or lifestyle changes—that you can easily implement and build upon each week from home. There are no ‘quick fixes’ in improving Gut Health, just consistent improvements over time that will make a big difference.

WEEK 1: GIVE YOUR DIET A MAKEOVER

Reduce processed and high-sugar foods. This step has a HUGE impact on your gut health. As mentioned, sugar feeds the ‘bad’ bacteria in our microbiome, so they multiply. These bad guys then have more control over the good guys as they outnumber them. The bad guys crave more sugar for fuel, and so WE crave more sugar. It is a crazy cycle. You may find it tough to reduce sugar, but it has such amazing benefits to gut health, and therefore can dramatically reduce the symptoms we talked about earlier. Try switching out processed sugars for fruit, dates, or small amounts of agave or honey to sweeten foods. Processed foods often contain weird chemicals and compounds that our bodies cannot break down. These large molecules enter the gut and damage the delicate, thin lining. The lining can then begin to pull apart, leaving gaps between the cells. This allows a multitude of things to enter our bodies that are not supposed to be there. Not good!
Increase plant-based foods. Our gut LOVES fiber. The good bacteria favor chowing down on fiber more than anything else. If we feed them more fiber, they thrive! Fun fact, dietary fiber is ONLY found in plant-based foods. So, to feed the good guys, we have to increase our intake of fruits, vegetables, legumes, and whole grains. I learned this the hard way; I felt fiber made me feel more bloated, so I avoided it. It turns out it was because I had an imbalance in the good and bad bacteria, and more fiber helped me gain a better balance and reduce my bloating! Now, I take psyllium husk powder each evening before bed to increase my fiber intake.
Add in some fermented foods. Fermented foods contain live bacteria and yeasts that improve gut health, supporting the balance of good bacteria. Try adding miso, sauerkraut, kimchi, tempeh, or live-cultured yogurt (check that the yogurt isn’t loaded with refined sugar first!) to your diet.
Be mindful of high-saturated fat diets. I’m all about including healthy fats into my diet (think coconut oil, olive oil, ghee), but too much saturated animal fat or fried foods can increase inflammation in the body. Inflammation can affect the balance of good and bad bacteria in the gut. Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE eating steak now and then, but too much can be problematic.
Add some herbs that aid digestion. Certain herbs and spices aid digestion, helping your body break down nutrients into more usable parts. This, in turn, helps the gut as there are fewer large molecules to irritate the gut lining. Some herbs and spices to consider in your cooking are ginger, turmeric, garlic, caraway, fennel, cinnamon, dill, or allspice. Experiment with different herbs and spices to see how you feel or which ones you enjoy the most. Of course, it helps that they’re delicious!

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To read Week 2: Gut Instinct – What is Your Gut Telling You? CLICK HERE

Melissa is a British-born Health Coach who knows firsthand how difficult it can be to manage the emotions that surround weight. After decades of weight control and yo-yo dieting, Melissa studied to become a Health Coach and effectively coached herself through the process. Through learning how to eat intuitively, Melissa gained a new perspective and shifted her focus from ‘dieting’ to nourishment. She also learned how to recognize and address trauma and stress in her life. The stubborn weight she had held onto for years just melted away.

Melissa LOVES to help others figure out and conquer their own personal health and wellness goals. Following a life-long enthusiasm for alternative medicine, Melissa trained at the Institute for Integrative Nutrition, where she received in-depth training in nutrition, health and wellness, and coaching skills.