There’s growing agreement among scientists, doctors and nutrition experts that maintaining gut health is crucial for overall wellbeing. The gut houses the gut microbiome, a unique ecosystem of trillions of bacteria and other microbes within each of us.
The microbiome influences various aspects of our health, including our immune system, mental health and digestion, reports Surrey Live.
Healthline, a medical website, explains that there are “more bacterial cells in your body than human cells”, functioning as an additional organ that plays a significant role in your health. Scientists and nutritionists generally categorise these bacteria into two groups: “good” and “bad” and say an excess of “bad” bacteria can trigger inflammation and disease.
The gut microbiome has several other important roles in health:
It’s becoming increasingly clear to scientists that a healthy gut microbiome is vital for our overall health, a concept that many of us may have only recently become aware of.
How can you determine the health of your gut?
Firstly, the good news is that if you have a healthy and varied diet consisting of a wide variety of plants but few unhealthy or ultra-processed foods, there is a good chance your gut microbiome is in good shape. But there is only one way to really know for sure and that is to get it tested.
To do this, I joined the Zoe programme, a nutrition programme that begins by testing the health of your gut microbiome (via a poo test) as well as your blood sugar control and blood fat control (via a blood test) — you can read more about that experience here.
When I first joined Zoe, I had already embarked on a six-month journey of healthy eating, which included abstaining from ultra-processed foods. So my initial gut health score was already a robust 82 out of 100.
Six months later, Zoe re-evaluated my gut health and I was thrilled to see my score had increased to 93 out of 100.
What two simple rules did I follow?
I followed these two simple tactics to improve my gut health score:
Again, there is growing consensus that ultra-processed foods can negatively impact gut health. According to Zoe, this could be due to the lack of fibre in these foods, which is crucial for maintaining a healthy microbiome. Their Predict study indicated that a diet high in processed foods was linked to an increase in “bad” or potentially harmful gut microbes.
Secondly, a study published in Nature highlighted that certain additives such as emulsifiers, sweeteners, colours, and microparticles and nanoparticles can affect various factors including the gut microbiome, intestinal permeability and inflammation.
On the other hand, consuming a diverse range of plants and fermented foods is believed to promote “good” bacteria and enhance the health of your gut microbiome.
Here’s how I improved my gut microbiome and how you can do the same.
