What is your Microbiome and what does it do?
Each of us has a unique microbial eco-system living in our gut and on our skin called a “microbiome,” which is home to more than 100 trillion microbes. That outnumbers our human cells by about ten to one. The good microbes that live in your gut, support your immune system, protect you from disease, digest fibre in your food, detoxify your body and keeping you slim if you host the right microbes. The undesirable microbes play a role in the development of inflammation, bloating, wind, obesity and many chronic diseases, which is why it’s important to keep your microbiome healthy. So what can you do?
Each of us has a unique microbial eco-system living in our gut and on our skin called a “microbiome,” which is home to more than 100 trillion microbes. That outnumbers our human cells by about ten to one. The good microbes that live in your gut, support your immune system, protect you from disease, digest fibre in your food, detoxify your body and keeping you slim if you host the right microbes. The undesirable microbes play a role in the development of inflammation, bloating, wind, obesity and many chronic diseases, which is why it’s important to keep your microbiome healthy. So what can you do?
- Feed your microbiome fibre. The good microbes feed on the fibre in our food that we can’t digest. So it’s important to have a wide range of vegetables especially greens, whole grains unless you are intolerant, nuts and fruit in our diet. Avoid at all cost processed low fibre food that comes in a packet
- Eat fresh free range & pasture fed meat. Avoid chicken and beef raised in sheds and feed lots which have been fed antibiotics to make them grow faster
- Minimise sugar which feeds the bad microbial populations like Candida, and never use artificial sugars (stevia is a natural sweetener)
- Also minimise antibiotic use. Research shows that one 5 day course can kill off a third of your microbiome, and it takes months to recover.
- Take probiotics daily to support the health of your microbiome
- Avoid foods you have intolerance to. These foods trigger inflammation in your gut and result in bloating, wind, pain, constipation and diarrhoea.
- Exercise daily. It’s been found to be good for nearly everything including your microbiome.
