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Gut Health
While intestinal fortitude is a refined way of saying “to have guts,” an idiom that conveys the notion that the bowels are the seat of courage, this discussion will focus on literal intestinal fortitude as it relates to the vigor of your physical gut health. For further context, please see my previous column, “Are the Bugs in Your Gut Aging You?” published in the October issue of Shepherd Express, in which I discuss gut microbiome derangements. In this article and its follow-up I provide more information on what to do about it.
The gut microbiome is like a community or town. Certain features promote resiliency. A thriving town benefits from diversity in its citizenship and possesses essential keystone elements that help it function well, such as schools, markets, fire and police departments, library and parks. Without these features, communities suffer economic decline along with exodus of productive citizens and influx of “riff raff.” Next up, businesses close, crime increases, drug houses go up and so forth.
Same with our gut ecosystem. With injury to our microbiome, we lose keystone bacterial species leading to overgrowth of troublemakers. As can be demonstrated by microbiome testing, many of us are unfortunately in a significant state of decline. So how do we reverse course? We employ interventions that nurture keystone species and suppress disruptive microbes. I use a combination of food, prebiotics and probiotics starting with diet.
Food is Powerful
Food is a powerful lever. Here are guidelines to nurture you and your gut microbes.
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- Diversity. Food variety leads to diversity in your microbiome. Ideal goal is 50 different plants per week (try this food diversity tracker to test your diet https://www.deannaminich.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/50-Food-7-Day-Tracker_Fillable-Final.pdf)
- A rainbow of colorful veggies offering beneficial phytonutrients. Stretch goal 5–7 cups per day
- Food fibers and seeds—ground chia, flax, pumpkin and sunflower seeds, psyllium husk, steel cut oats (or overnight oats) and legumes.
- Prebiotic foods (asparagus, sun chokes, onions, garlic, leeks, dandelion greens)
- Beets are a superfood! Eat several each week.
- Fermented foods—kimchi, sauerkraut, yogurt, olives (sorry—alcohol doesn’t count!)
- Resistant starches—cooked and cooled rice, sweet potatoes/potatoes create resistant starches (can reheat to lukewarm). Also, green bananas or green banana flour. This helps our bugs make the important anti-inflammatory molecules known as Short Chain Fatty Acids.
- Generous amounts of herbs, spices and superfoods like turmeric, green tea and rosemary.
- Smoothies—rotating fruits and veggies, a great way to pack it in.
- Eat organic to avoid harmful pesticides and herbicides. (Monsanto may say it is safe for us but our gut bugs disagree!)
- Important: avoid emulsifiers and additives (they can diminish beneficial bacteria, increase inflammation and lead to leaky gut). These include Polysorbate-80, Carboxy-methylcellulose, carrageenan—most often in ice cream, sauces, whipping cream, plant-based milk, frosting, margarine, bread, mayonnaise, bottled dressing. Gotta read the labels!
Altering your eating habits is a journey but the rewards are substantial. You won’t believe how much better you feel and in time, may actually find yourself craving a salad. If this is new, take one step at a time. Set a few new goals each week and be kind to yourself along the way. If you are not used to eating a lot of veggies and fiber, you may need to transition slowly as you may otherwise be discouraged by symptoms of gas and bloating. That is the “riff raff” and will diminish in time.
There are many resources for healthful cooking that can make the journey fun and tasty. Some to get you started: Smoothies at bewellbykelly.com; Mark Hyman’s cookbooks; Kara Fitzgerald’s website https://www.drkarafitzgerald.com/recipes/. Then explore on your own.
Next time I will cover supplements: Prebiotics and Probiotics. Meanwhile, to start “making your gut great again,” diversify the menu and empower the good guys with food so they can jettison the troublemakers!
The content of this article is for informational purposes only and is not meant to serve as medical advice or as information to facilitate self-treatment.
